Would you be surprised by this?

[MicDoyle]

I teach English in a secondary school. I qualified later in life, I am in my 40's and I really love the job. However, this one thing has surprised me. We are studying War Poetry, the poems are heartbreaking and raw. 95% of my Year 8 students said they hate this country, would not defend it and can't wait to leave! I have to admit, I was not expecting this! Anyone else surprised?

Sounds like an interesting discussion: why do they feel this way, what would they change, where do they think they are going later in life?
I would be very interested in why they feel like this, where they are getting this kind of narrative from and whether they have critically reflected on it.

@Sajacas thank you for your response. Lots of them would like to live in Dubai, New Zealand etc

Teenagers rebeling through collective thought if pretty standard for all generations.

They see it as fighting and potentially dying in the name of corrupt rich men’s power combined with a lack of critical thought / understanding of the past?

Off the top of my head.

i don’t know though.

I would not be surprised at lots of Year 8 students not aspiring to fight for their country. However, I am surprised that such a high proportion would express hatred for the country and a desire to leave asap.

Tik Tok generation.

Sounds like they are seeing other lives and idealising it.

I guess they'll see and hear nothing of the atrocities of Dubai if you're a Sri Lankan maid or construction worker.

They don't know the cost of living in New Zealand is high and would be unlikely to understand how that compares to the UK.

Maybe set an essay in future about how to emigrate to NZ, get them looking at the practicalities of it and what the opportunities look like.

Or one about the lives of service workers in Dubai, not the lives of the wannabe rich and famous ex pats or sheiks. Get them looking at it from another perspective?