The Collective Belief in "Education Changes Destiny" Collides with the Reality of Credential Devaluation

The 20% depression detection rate among adolescents reported in the China National Mental Health Development Report strikes like a hammer at the cracks in society's long-held beliefs. While parents born in the 1970s still cling to the old script of "getting into a top university to leap across social classes," their children are trapped in a job market saturated with master's degrees. According to a job platform, master's graduates in 2024 submitted an average of 87 applications, yet only 12% secured ideal positions. This generational disconnect is more than a clash of educational values—it reveals how social consciousness has lagged behind the rapid pace of economic development.

The Breakdown of the "Success Script": The Root of Generational Conflict

Struggles Cut Off by Time

The legendary tales of post-1980s students transforming their lives through the college entrance exam (Gaokao) were rooted in a specific historical soil: the gross enrollment rate in higher education surged from 9.8% in 1998 to 30% in 2012, creating a golden era for academic credentials. By the time the post-2000 generation entered the scene, university expansion had pushed the number of graduates past 10 million annually, while emerging fields such as AI and livestream e-commerce were already reshaping employment norms.

Structural Contradictions Exposed

Inverted returns amid academic inflation: It takes 11 years to train a medical PhD, but after healthcare reforms, entry-level salaries at top hospitals average only 150,000 RMB—less than the commission from a single livestream session by a social media influencer.

Differing tolerance for risk: Those born in the 1980s came of age during a period of rapid growth and deeply believe in "long-term effort leads to reward." In contrast, the post-2000 generation faces layoffs, AI replacement, and growing uncertainty, making them more inclined to "cut losses early."

This cognitive dislocation often plays out in brutal family dialogues:

"I ate pickled vegetables and made it to college—what right do you have to say you're tired?"

vs.

"You got into a public-sector job with a bachelor's degree. I need a specialized master's and still face a 100:1 admissions ratio."

With no realistic anchor for struggle, intergenerational conversations often devolve into tragic misunderstandings.

Rethinking the System: How Do We Rebuild Support Networks?

In Education: Break Free from Credential Worship

Post-Double Reduction policy data shows that 57% of junior high students experienced an increase in extracurricular tutoring time by over 20%, exposing the persistent imbalance in resource distribution. In one province's top high school, physics candidates saw an 11.6% rise in admission rates to Project 985 universities compared to the traditional scoring system. This suggests that "scoring adjustment" policies amplify single-subject advantages while raising questions about the stability and adaptability of educational reforms.

In Families: Transition from Authoritarian to Democratic Parenting

(1) Break the Psychological Curse of Comparison

Research by Beijing Normal University's psychology team reveals that teens raised under the shadow of "other people's children" show a 15% decrease in prefrontal cortex activity, directly impacting their stress resilience. Dutch "growth conversation" models offer an alternative: at dinner, family members take turns sharing their "small progress of the day," such as "I solved a hard math problem" or "I comforted a crying classmate," helping reshape how value is perceived.

(2) Learn and Apply Nonviolent Communication

A leading high school in Shanghai has piloted a "Parent-Child Communication Growth Group," offering effective strategies such as:

• Replacing "Why did you fail again?" with "Which part of the test surprised you?" (focus on the issue, not the person)
• Saying "Let's figure out how to improve together" instead of "You must do three more problem sets daily" (build a sense of shared responsibility)

Follow-up studies show that families who participated saw a 41% reduction in parent-child conflict and a 28% increase in students' sense of self-efficacy.

(3) Introduce Tolerance for Failure

A family in Hangzhou created a "Failure Fund": every time their child attempted a new challenge (e.g., business contest or solo travel), they received a reward regardless of the outcome. This "reward the attempt, not the result" approach led to a dramatic improvement in autonomous decision-making scores—from 32 to 79—within two years (according to East China Normal University's assessment system). As a saying in Silicon Valley goes: "Failure isn't the end—it's tuition for a class."

Rebuilding Hope: Finding Meaning in a Fluid Era

The purpose of education is not to mass-produce "qualified components," but to help each individual discover their own way to burn brightly.

Life's meaning doesn't lie in owning a luxury car or mansion, living up to someone else's child, or becoming the most successful family member. It lies in finding a field one loves or excels in, and achieving alignment between personal and societal value through ongoing effort and exploration.

Once the collective social mindset begins to shift, perhaps the young people standing at the crossroads of life can set aside their "sacrificed generation" narrative and walk a third path—one that allows for trial and error, respects difference, and stays true to the self.