Making It. Stephanie Malia Krauss

workers and heads of households. Too often, we talk about the future of work but not tomorrow's workers. Or, we talk about the future of learning but not the changing workforce and economy. This book is an attempt to bring those conversations together.

A Few Other Considerations

      Early into the writing process, I called my brother in a panic. He is a journalist and radio producer, and I needed his advice. My book research and interviews kept elevating the importance of mental health and youth development, but I was trying to write a book about education and preparation. He encouraged me to discuss those themes up front. So here they are.

      It did not matter who I interviewed—young people, teachers, parents, policymakers, professors, employers, or pediatricians—everyone had two of the same concerns when we talked about preparing today's kids in tomorrow's world:

       Today's kids are overloaded and overwhelmed. If young people are too stressed, stretched, or sad to show up to school or work, they will not make it. This goes before and beyond the currencies and requires that we prioritize young people's mental health, identity development, individual experiences, stress management, and cognitive load. We have to get this right. The ability to manage constant overwhelm and overload will be their oxygen mask.

       What we call “enrichment” or “extracurricular” is essential and expensive. I was surprised by how often currencies are accrued by participating in the arts, athletics, camps, and clubs. In education, the past 20 years have focused on academic success; the next 20 need to include social and emotional development, as well as cognitive and physical fitness.

      Finally, I was surprised to learn that many of today's kids will live to be at least 100. And yet, that is least true for children of color and those born into poverty. Too many of these children will not even make it past the first-quarter of life. If science says all children could have a 100-year-life, then we must shift how we talk about the future and youth readiness, committing to a new set of preparatory and protective factors—what I call currencies and currency-building strategies—that will make the prospect of a 100-year livable life more than a possibility.

PART I A Changing World

       Chapter 1: Today’s Kids

       Chapter 2: Tomorrow’s World