I'm 56 now and I got to tell ya', I like the kids that are entering the workforce lately. They're bright, want to learn, and seem to be willing to listen if you present a topic in a concise logical manner. I believe that they will gravitate to the "manual art forms", because they need to express the creativity that's been inhibited in them. The young girls today really want to explore their creativity.
They're somewhat hamstrung by their mechanical aptitude skill set, because they just haven't had an opportunity to develop it. Schools all across the country dropped programs like wood working, metal shop, auto shop, etc due to insurance liability. Even basic art classes were dropped due to budget problems. They haven't been given the chance to explore their own hands yet.
Once you explain concepts to them, they pick them up pretty quickly. They just have holes, but it's not entirely their fault. Just start at a very remedial level. They pick up quick. ( For those of us working in industrial environments, do them and yourself a favor. Teach them "soft to hard, hard to soft, and metal on metal hurts a fella."
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Wood working can be utilitarian, but it can also be a art form, and I think that younger people today are going to approach it more from the art form, than the utilitarian aspect.
I think it's just at a low point in a cycle now.