Our knowledge differs from one to another. Some people love to learn as much as possible about different topics and show their interest while taking classes at schools such as: history, art, culture, etc.. While some others don’t care too much or just find it hard to process and remember all this information.
Lately, the subject of World War II was brought up on a recent episode of Good Morning Britain because of an incident where contestants of a popular reality television show didn’t know the dates that the war took place.
Millennials on the program argued that people should not be concerned about the current generation’s ignorance about this war. The argument they made was that there are more important things happening in current events, and children’s mental health could be harmed by the details of the war.
The debate involved the former Head of the Office of Standards in Education in the United Kingdom Sir Michael Wilshaw and a reality television personality named Freddie Bentley
The reality star defended millennials who lacked knowledge about the pivotal war saying that learning about it was bad for mental health. He also argued that reflecting on the past was not as important as acknowledging issues in the present.
Freddie acknowledged that the lessons of World War II are educational “in a way,” but not essential to learn today because of the problems currently facing the world.
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As one might imagine, Wilshaw strongly disagreed with these sentiments. He stated that the wars of the 20th century were vital to establishing the freedoms that people enjoy today.
Freddie’s reply to this argument was that he agreed about the impact that the wars had on human civilization, but he felt that children didn’t need to learn about the horrors of the conflicts at a young age.
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He stated that telling young children that millions of people died for them is a little too intense for their mental health. He added that he felt a little overwhelmed when he learned about it himself as a young child. According to Express, Freddie said, “Mental health is on the rise and I don’t think encouraging death or telling people how many people died in a World War is going to help someone in the future.”
Wilshaw responded that children, even at a young age, need to understand just how dangerous the world can be. He gave examples about crossing the road without taking precautions and about the dangers of being “too fat” on their health.
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The show host added that she had spoken to children who told her that learning about the war helped them appreciate the sacrifices people made for their country.
The debate on the television show was also picked up on Twitter by people who were watching the program. The sentiment seemed to strongly favor teaching children about the pivotal wars that took place in the previous century, but there were a few who agreed with Freddie’s point of view in regards to mental health.
Do you think World War II is too traumatic for children to learn about in grade school? Let us know your thoughts, and let others know about this story so that they can join the discussion.
