Substitute Teachers Lounge
Substitute Teachers Lounge
Generation Alpha Unleashed -- onto Teachers
A substitute teacher reflects on how Generation Alpha differs from Gen Z and how teachers can adapt their methods accordingly. This light-hearted exploration of generational differences reveals that Alpha students are the first fully digital generation, with distinct learning preferences and world perspectives.
• Fourth graders are split between Gen Z and Generation Alpha based on their birth years
• Generation Alpha grew up entirely in the digital age, making them extremely tech-savvy by nature
• Early childhood disruptions like COVID-19 have impacted social development and maturity
• Alpha students show increased global awareness and environmental consciousness
• They learn best in "gamified" environments that leverage digital engagement
• Every generation faces criticism from those who came before—60s had "groovy," Gen Z has "slay"
• Teachers must adapt to students rather than expecting students to conform to outdated methods
• Despite concerns about entitlement or anxiety, Generation Alpha brings positive qualities to education
Check out my Instagram where I break down Gen Z slang—I'll even play it for you at the end of this episode!
Greg Collins, june 10th 2025. Substitute Teachers Lounge. I had the fourth grade all tore up the other day because we were sitting around. Somebody mentioned that they thought I was a cool sub, that somebody else mentioned I think Mr Jackson is a cool sub and they asked him why. And he said because he said slay the other day and I'm thinking that is a Gen Z word. And I got them all tore up after that because I said you know, only half of this class is Gen Z because of the way your birthdays fall. The other half is Generation Alpha.
Speaker 1:Today we're going to talk about Generation Alpha because there's a lot of stuff about it out there on the internet Substitute Teacher's Loud. All right, full disclosure. Now that I've done a little research on the generations. There's quite a bit of overlap and probably the whole fourth grade could be considered either, but it's so funny, the different generations. I'm going to talk about what the Internet says about Generation Alpha and you know I don't want to plagiarize, but I don't even know who to give the credit to now, because you know, when you Google something these days, the first thing that pops up is the AI summation, in fact, last week's episode. If you don't do anything else, even if you didn't listen, go back and listen to that interview where I interviewed a fifth grader and a kindergarten student, because the AI built into my podcast came up with the description for that and it almost made me choke up when I read it. It was so effective. So most of the notes I'm going to give you today and some comments are going to be the AI summary. So thank you, ai. I will give you credit as soon as I figure out who the credit belongs to.
Speaker 1:As I think back over the generations, I asked the students they know my age, they know how old I am. I ask them what generation do you think I was in? A lot of them will say millennial. I don't even know which group that is, but they usually come up with baby boomer and I'm kind of nervous in elementary school when I ask them well, what is baby boomer? Sometimes I won't even ask them what does baby boomer even? I won't even ask them what it does baby boomer even mean. They already know. I don't have to mention why they call it baby boomer. They already know. They knew that after world war ii was over, that people came back and had babies and that's where baby boomer came from and I'm proud of that. But but you know my generation, my goodness.
Speaker 1:I grew up as a teenager in the 60s. Was there a more radical decade than the 60s? I mean, I've watched movies on Netflix about how we got into Vietnam. Should we have gotten into Vietnam? Where the protests came from? Why? All of us, including myself? Yes, I used to have hair down to my shoulders. I think I was a freshman in college when that happened because all of us guys back then wanted to look like the Beatles. My father would fuss at me for playing my music too loud, playing maybe the wrong kind of music. I never was much into the music that had swear words in it because I just thought that was kind of gimmicky to get the record to sell more. But every generation has its stuff to deal with and every group of teachers that has taught in a generation has had to live with what they're going through.
Speaker 1:I actually did a. It was supposed to be comical, I think. I think people liked it. I did an Instagram about Gen Z. It's probably been three or four months ago now. I'll play it at the end of this episode if you want to listen to it.
Speaker 1:So the latest thing that I have on Generation Alpha, it's kind of funny. My interest in doing this topic was because I read an article in an electronic newspaper and it was just ripping into Generation Alpha like we're not going to be able to teach them. They live in their own world. They won't care a thing about what I say, they will just turn the other direction and ignore us. They are selfish and egotistical. Well, those are pretty strong words and it made me think that couldn't be exclusively what that generation is known for. So I'm going to give you the highlights and this is highlights based on when I searched I actually searched Generation Alpha student, so you could do the same thing, get the same results.
Speaker 1:And it's funny, every generation has its own words. I mean 60s, you know. I don't think anybody says groovy anymore. People probably still say cool. Those were two big words. What's going on? We would say things like far out and things like that. If you ever watch Back to the Future, you'll hear some of the old words.
Speaker 1:It's kind of funny to think that any generation is worse in teaching than the others. I am of the opinion that teachers I'm 67, I'm old enough I can say this, if I want to. Teachers need to adapt to the type of students they're teaching. We can't just insist on. I've done it this way for 40 years. You're going to learn it the way I'm going to teach it because everybody's not as receptive as you want them to be. You're not as receptive If somebody tries to lay something on you and you don't want to hear it. You're going to ignore it, you're not going to pay attention, and that's kind of the way it goes sometimes. So the generation alpha here's what the internet says we need to keep in mind.
Speaker 1:First of all, they are the digital bunch, man. They are, I guess the best way to say it is. They grew up in a world where everything was digital. I mean everything. Think about the last time you checked your smartphone. I'm going to guess you've checked it. Since you started listening to this, I'm going to guess I've gotten kind of sloppy with mine. It's like any random thought now that pops into my head. I get on my smartphone, google it and see if I remember it correctly. It's like I can't wait. Sometimes I do it while I'm in church because I'll forget it when church is over. I'm still listening, preacher, I promise, but we do that all the time, so we're just as bad as they are.
Speaker 1:But they grew up in the digital age. They're one of the first groups. Gen z's highly digital too, but they're the first group that can say that their entire life. They came out of the womb with a smartphone in their hand, so to speak, from day one. That that's what they did. They had those early childhood issues, like COVID was five years ago now. So if you're in fourth grade, you're 10, that happened when you were five. That is a very early time in your life. So they had to go through all that. Doggone it, man, that face. At least in the seven years that I've been substitute teaching, that affected kids more than anything else, because it was amazing how much more immature they were just by missing out on that year of I don't know what would you call it just interacting with each other, interacting with kids their own age, all that, that kind of thing.
Speaker 1:Well, critical thinking. You could say that, as they navigate information, we should probably focus on emphasizing critical thinking skills, because they probably didn't get much of that on their own. They like to learn in environments that are for lack of a better phrase gamified. The state of Kentucky. Now our Kentucky High School Athletic Association recognizes game competition and has high school programs with awards and all that kind of stuff. So they have, in fact, adapted to that.
Speaker 1:Now, their global awareness it almost seems like it's a little. They really have a strong awareness of social issues and things going on in the world because, again, it's all around them. They can't get away from it. Even if they don't watch the news on TV, even if they don't have a smartphone, they've got friends with smartphones. They keep up with that kind of thing. They're probably more concerned about the environment than I was back in the 60s. We probably need to be more concerned. There's more things to be concerned about and that's one of the things they think about too. All those are their characteristics. I think that, on the positive side, that should affect how we teach them and I think they are the most tech-savvy they may be entitled.
Speaker 1:That's what that first article was about Maybe a little bit more anxious than we've been before. But as far as their academic performance, we have read concerns about declining reading and math skills, because a lot of kids would read at home in the old days. What are they doing home now? A lot of kids would practice math in the old days. What are they doing home now? A lot of kids would practice math in the old days. What are they doing now? I don't know. That old article mentioned increased misbehavior in the classroom. I don't know about that. Maybe you're seeing something different than I have. But I'll just close this out by saying Generation Alpha is here. We are the teachers and the substitute teachers that are going to try our best. Since we can't talk them out of being in their generation, we'll adapt to them and try to change our teaching methods accordingly they said I was the lulu.
Speaker 2:What does that mean? But then I realized it's just a Gen Z thing. So I studied Gen Z words and I got all the deets. You may think I'm cray cray, but now I can eat. Now don't be jelly, because if you know, you know I won't dish you because you're slow to the show. So I'm just dropping bars with the words I sang. I know it's a sus, but it's a Gen Z thing. Man, oh man. I slayed that song and this Baby Boomer thing sits far out and groovy. Can you dig it?
