Growing up twenty years ago.
As a person in his mid thirties, I am very grateful that I grew up in the 90s and early 2000s. Contemporary kids have a harder environment than I did. The internet was a cool toy when I was growing up, not an endless scroll that could take up your entire day. I talked to friends on AOL messenger or read the news, because that’s all there really was to do. Now it’s completely different, TikTok, Instagram, Reddit, these apps produce enough content to keep the average person entertained all day, every day. There’s always another bombastic opinion, strange viewpoint, or interesting development to engage in. The algorithms figure out what engages you the most, and then serves it to you continuously. Adults can barely cope with this onslaught of personally crafted content, much less the underdeveloped mind of a child. Then, parents and teachers ask these kids to focus on the same machine that can provide unlimited distraction. It isn’t fair.
That’s why at Goat Academics we focus on the root causes of students performing poorly in school. Proper diet, good sleep, and putting down that phone can help a struggling student much more than the traditional advice of studying more or slacking less. When I first heard Amit talk about his start up idea of tutoring kids, but in his own unique way, I knew he was on to something. The way he talked about it was very compelling, and he quickly pointed out some things that I have observed personally. Every young person I know has a phone addiction and anxiety. This inevitably bleeds into their school lives and makes studying a challenge. A recent article from the Wall Street Journal supports this, stating that high school seniors’ math and reading test scores have fallen to the lowest levels ever recorded as of 2025.
Like most people, I have trouble focusing on my work day to day. It’s easy for me to check a work related notification on my phone, and then open up an app and suddenly what was meant to be the simple act of texting a co-worker back has turned into a 30min or hour long scroll on my phone. A lack of sleep or exercise makes it worse. When I’m sleep deprived and unmotivated the draw of the social media feed or the clickbait on Youtube can be very powerful. I have noticed throughout the years that certain factors really influence my performance and ability to complete projects. Having a healthy diet gives me the ability to have energy throughout the day. Consistent exercise helps clear up my brain fog and makes my mind sharper and more alert. Going for a morning walk wakes me up and energizes me for the day ahead. High quality sleep is one of the most important factors. If I don’t sleep well my entire day can be thrown off and I won’t accomplish my to-do list for the day. All of these factors I had to learn myself through experience and reading about health. Kids and teenagers likewise need healthy inputs to get the most out of their efforts, but they don’t know this.
All of this to say that being a good student and achieving academic success is not as simple as making a student sit down and study. It is much more of a holistic experience than students and parents realize. A student that fuels their mind and body in healthy ways will be able to be active and engaged throughout their day. Students that are able to control their social media use will be able to focus and really engage with the topics they are learning about. Amit and the team at Goat Academics understand these concepts, and are able to help students learn the underlying factors that can help them reach academic success.
– Brandon (Goat Academics head admin)