As a millennial living through a pandemic aside from all the bad it has caused, one positive we can take away from these unprecedented times is that if not aware already – we are now better educated around politics, history, society and not to mention the media.

Shapes values but harms health

What better way to learn and educate ourselves around society and politics than witnessing how our government, parents, cities, employers and schools act during a worldwide crisis. Associate professor at USC states “Millennials and gen Z’ers are not usually mired in deep questions about religion, but now they are grappling with questions of meaning, morality and mortality in ways they never did before”. A recent survey published by Deloitte found despite the individual challenges and personal reasons for anxiety that millennials and Gen Z’s face, they’ve remained focused on larger societal issues, both pre and post pandemic. If anything, the pandemic has reinforced their desire to help drive positive change in their communities and around the world. Now, as millennials we continue to push for a world in which businesses and governments portray that same dedication to society, putting people ahead of profits and prioritizing environmental sustainability.

 

The world post pandemic

Undoubtebly, the world that follows will surely be different and likely more aligned with the prospects that millennials and Gen Z’s have expressed in this survey. As Millennials we’ve seen how quickly the earth can heal, how rapidly businesses can adapt, and how cooperative people can be. We know that a post-pandemic society can be better than the one that preceded it, and millennials are motivated enough to make this a reality.

An out of date education system

For me personally, prior to the pandemic I didn’t know a great deal around politics and the history of the UK which I’ve always been ashamed of. Now, after living through this pandemic it’s made me realise that the way we’re educated in school has a massive influence on the stereotype that the younger generations don’t know enough to for example vote.

For me, Maths was not one of my strongest subjects, however I can name a handful of times I’ve had to use algebra after leaving school, whilst it is useful – why is it compulsory? History is optional to take at GCSE level which arguably can be used more as a means of general knowledge and applying lessons we’ve learnt in the past to the present day. After students recently being let down by the education system, the people of the UK are owed an education system makeover.

I am by no means an expert in politics therefore I am not taking either left or right wings side, but what I am sure of is that an education system that is meant to set students up for the real world needs to be updated to fit with the ever changing times – just like people all around the world have during this pandemic. Nearly three-fourths in the Deloitte survey said the pandemic has made them more sympathetic toward others’ needs and that they intend to take actions to have a positive impact on their communities – are you creating the next political party to make a change for the better?

Written by Sophia Ghahramani