Gen Z isn’t holding back — and this time, they’re taking aim at their textbooks.Even though some of them just graduated (or are still in school), they’re already calling out the stuff they were taught that’s either totally false, outdated, or just completely useless in the real world.
A Reddit thread popped off after Gen Zers started sharing things they learned in school that were later “disproven” or straight-up irrelevant. And let’s just say… the pluto-shaming and cursive propaganda hit hard.
Here are some of the best (and painfully true) examples:
📉 “Grades are more important than taking care of yourself”
Spoiler alert: Burnout is real, and mental health matters more than getting a B on that volcano project.
🤖 “You won’t always have a calculator in your pocket”
Uhhh… enters math problem into iPhone calculator while ordering DoorDash.
🥕 The Food Pyramid
Remember that big triangle poster? Yeah… turns out eating 11 servings of bread isn’t exactly peak wellness.
✍️ “You’ll need to write in cursive for college”
One Gen Zer said they were taught that professors would refuse typed assignments.Spoiler: They’ve typed everything since middle school.
🎓 “Get a degree, get a good job”
The diploma doesn’t guarantee anything but student loan debt. Sorry, not sorry.
🕒 “College professors don’t accept late work”
Real ones know some profs will literally say “eh, just get it in before finals.”
✨ “Add a comma every time you pause”
That advice makes your writing sound like Captain Kirk giving a speech. Weird, comma-laced, drama.
👅 “Different parts of your tongue taste different flavors”
That tongue map was a lie. Science says taste buds aren’t that picky.
🪐 “Pluto is a planet”
RIP to the little guy. He had full-planet status for a minute… now he’s just chilling as a “dwarf planet.”
💻 “You can’t copy answers from the internet”
One user admitted their essays came back 50% plagiarized — not because they copied, but because every student had to answer the exact same question every semester. Same answer, same vibe, different name.