This episode we’ve shaken things up a little and in a one-off special have invited two young people onto the podcast to answer a bunch of questions about the world of young people!
We kicked off our time together introducing Peter (15) and Ethan (16) asking them about the best part of Christmas dinner. Peter declared that pigs in blankets as the best part, whilst Ethan likes everything in a Christmas dinner.
The following questions and responses are summarised from the conversation, so if you’d like to hear the full content, do listen to this month’s podcast!
What 2 words would you use to describe your current experience on social media?
Ethan: Very helpful. (Everyone’s on it in today’s world, it’s easy to contact people and helps me to be productive but can be used in some addictive ways too.)
Peter: Useful & Enjoyable (There’s access to information now that you couldn’t get in the past, but also if I’m having a bad day there are lots of things online to cheer me up.)
Often it’s said that your generation is obsessed with the digital world – what do you think about that?
Ethan: I think it’s true. It’s hard not to be obsessed when everyone around you is on it. If you don’t go on it you’d be alone, but if you go on it then all your friends at school will be there too. You can watch videos, play games… do everything there. Without it, there’s not lots to do at home by yourself because everyone is online.
Peter: The feeling of missing out on what your friends are doing isn’t a great feeling. I don’t like the wording that we are addicted but it’s probably true – when you see a young person they’re often on their phone.
Ethan: Now it’s their (young people’s) whole world and it’s hard to stay away from it.
What’s your favourite social media?
Peter: YouTube – there’s a lot of content creators where I love what they create. I prefer it to TikTok as I likes to watch one thing all linked together rather than lots of little things.
Ethan: YouTube too – there are creators I can relate to. Also, Instagram because it’s a place to share the photos I take and I can link up with people the other side of the world.
What’s the first thing you do when you get home from school/college? How do you spend that time?
Ethan: First half an hour is chill, then I work on things from college then chill again after.
Peter: Grab a snack and watch YouTube.
What’s the hardest thing about school at the moment?
Peter: Leading up to important exams. Even when there’s lots of time before exams, school expects you to do lots of revision, but it’s hard to keep motivated for so long.
Ethan: Becoming an adult – it’s pushed on us. It’s stressful when they put a lot of stuff on us and say ‘you have to do this for the future’ or ‘you have to do that’.
We then imparted that most adults are making things up as they go along which they said was a bit stress-relieving.
What’s the hardest thing about being a Christian at school?
Ethan: The influence of other people – the way they act around their friends. I’m open with it (faith), but find it hard to say I’m a Christian to people without being worried if I’m scaring them off. It’s about providing a space where if they ask questions then you answer, it shows their interest without you having to force it on them. I’m comfortable with sharing, my worry is people not understanding and pushing me to the side.
Peter: I agree with that and that people treat me differently. There are quite a few people of other religions, or none, so trying to teach them of some of the different aspects of Christianity can be difficult and they might disagree.
Ethan: It’s hard when you don’t always have all the answers, and you don’t want to seem like the dumb one.
Peter: Yeah, it might seem like you don’t know enough about your religion, but you can’t know everything.
If there’s one thing you wish youth-workers or grown-ups would know/understand about young people, what is it?
Ethan: I don’t think there’s anything that they’re missing but we are just figuring out where we want to be. Encouragement is a helpful part of that process of growing.
Peter: I think it depends on how old the person is – depending how much older they might not understand the effects social media have on young people.
Word Of The Month
Vibes = Atmosphere or emotional state that makes you feel happy/sad and is felt by others.
Eg. ‘This place has good vibes.’ ‘It’s a vibe’
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