I read the following in this morning's Boston Globe. This opinion piece, by Babson College History Professor Kara Miller, is the antithesis of the point that cultural anthropologist Michael Wesch is making (as shown in my post of yesterday).
My lazy American students - The Boston Globe
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There is probably a lot of truth in what Ms. Miller is bemoaning. But, I would love to see a snaphot of what is happening in Ms. Miller's classroom. Why are her students checking their e-mail during her class? Why are they sleeping?? What is she doing to actively engage them in their learning?? I don't think this is strictly a cultural phenomenon as she is suggesting!
Sara Goldrick-Rab at The City Club of Cleveland
4 years ago
So it's the teacher's fault the kids are rude and inattentive? You must be an administrator. Get a clue. As an employer who actively recruits college students for entry level positions my experiences mirror Prof. Miller's. This country is in for a rude awakening. If you think we are in economic trouble now, just wait until the generation you are currently "educating" bumbles into the workforce and truly wreaks havoc on our economy. You are rationalizing this type of behavior among our students. You are part of the problem.
ReplyDeleteYou are helping make my point, Anonymous! As an employer that recruits college students for entry level positions, do you not want young people who can effectively communicate, think critically, collaborate, and problem solve?? Don't you think there is a responsibility among educators like Ms. Miller to change the pedagogy so her students can acquire these skills?
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, I am an administrator. The title of the blog, "Principally Speaking" should have been a key tip-off for you...
I'm not sure you really have a point, but you are definitely making an insinuation. Your insinuation is that Prof. Miller is not "actively engaging them in their learning", and this is the attitude I am attacking with all the vigor of my soul. Effective communication abilities, "critical thinking", "the ability to collaborate", and "problem solving" are fine, but to put it bluntly, the ability to endure the mundane, the ability to follow instructions explicitly, the ability to listen intently, and the ability to follow through are more important traits for an entry-level employee. The workforce is being flooded with young people who have been "actively engaged" their entire life. What a shock it is to them when they find they are not the center of their employer's universe, but rather the customer is. When the "every kid gets a trophy" generation finds out that every entry level employee doesn't get a good review....what sour faces! Some of my favorite quotes from career fair attendees: "Am I gonna have to, like, sit in a cubicle?", "I want to be a Project Manager, I'm really good at that in my classes, I don't want to sit and write code all day", "I have to learn Pivot Tables in Excel? But that's hard?"...on and on. The kids who go the furthest are the kids who observe and absorb, but these days it seems we are turning out way too many who "announce and expect". I'll tell you right now where the biggest problem is: boys. The college girls are so far ahead of the college boys it's truly alarming. From basic skill sets to overall attitude, our girls can generally compete with anyone from anywhere, but the decline of the boys is stunning. If you were to observe my next career fair in the fall it would shake you to your core.
ReplyDeleteWell the first part of the comment sounded like it was going somewhere and then we got to the end. That is not sexist at all....
ReplyDelete