Most kids spend eight hours a day in overcrowded classes being told what to do and how to do it. Their instruction is tailored toward the high stakes tests that determine the funding, and eventually the fates, of their schools. Disciplinary policies punish them for violating rules, rather than people, and thwart opportunities to make amends or learn from their mistakes. After school, many kids have little to do except hang out, either on the streets or in front of a screen. Mobile devices ensure that the societal pressures and impossible standards of popular media are consumed around the clock. Homework exacerbates negative associations with learning.
Yet young people are expected to become productive members of civil society upon entering adulthood. How do they accomplish that, to say nothing of greater goals, without time to discover their interests and their strengths? How do they gain the social and emotional skills that will enable them to maintain healthy relationships, persist in the face of hardships, and rebound after failures?