School apathy. Have teens stopped caring?

学校冷漠。青少年们是否已不再关心?

Round Table China

社会与文化

2025-05-19

31 分钟
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Lesson after lesson, you sit in class—eyes open but spirit asleep, as if school is just background noise in a life on pause. Even chasing top grades feels hollow, like running a race without knowing why. In the US, more teens show up to school but mentally check out. In China, a similar apathy is called 'hollow heart disorder'—a spiritual emptiness despite success. So why are teens losing their spark for learning? On the show: Heyang, Steve Hatherly & Yushun
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  • Discussion keeps the world turning.

  • This is Roundtable.

  • You sit in a classroom, lesson after lesson, eyes open but spirit asleep.

  • As of school, it's just another background noise in a life that feels so empty.

  • Even chasing top grades feel hollow, like running a race without knowing why.

  • Does that sound familiar?

  • In the U.S., reports say more teenagers are showing up to school but mentally checking out.

  • In China,

  • a similar kind of apathy has been described as the hollow heart disorder, perceived success.

  • So what's really going on when teens lose their spark for learning?

  • Coming to you from Beijing, this is Roundtable.

  • I'm He Yang.

  • For today's program, I'm joined by Steve Hatherly and Yu Shun in the studio.

  • First on today's show.

  • As reported by The Atlantic magazine, in the U.S.,

  • teenage apathy in schools is reaching alarming levels, with more students feeling disengaged,

  • and that's occasionally skipping a class or two or simply going through the motions without real investment in learning.

  • Educators and parents are left wondering.

  • Why has teen disengagement become such a problem?

  • So when it comes to education, what exactly does it mean when teens are disengaged?