similarities / differences + undergrads

Students having to know how to multi-task, is something that I think pertains to most students today – but it is not something new from when I was an undergrad. Maybe what they choose to do with their time is different. It might be because my teaching experiences have largely been in media classes (with students who supposedly interested in media) but I feel like one of the biggest differences is in what students spend their time doing. Instead of instant messaging they are on Facebook and instead of watching TV they are on the internet (maybe watching videos /TV). I think though, they are writing and creating more than when I was an undergrad. During presentations and class discussions, some students share videos they’ve made, blogs they’ve written, lolcats they’ve designed. Not all students create digitally, but most tell me they do not watch TV. They say they are too busy.

I don’t think students study any less today than when I was an undergrad. Furthermore, I think it depends largely on the student and the demands of the program they are in. I get kind of frustrated with one-line statements that are supposed to give us a vision of students today when really each one is so different. Also,

I think students today are having to learn how to be critical of the information they receive more so than when I was an undergrad (though we were beginning to have to do that). It’s interesting watching someone, even distinguished professors using the internet and seeing them click on links that are obviously NOT what they are searching for through Google. They will just click through each link beginning at the top. I think students today (though we sometimes criticize their research skills), just by the amount of time they spend doing Google searches are learning how to sift through information more efficiently – improving their multi-tasking. The first video asked “who will manage all this data?” And I think the best answer is – the individual. Giving the individual the power to catalog data that is relevant to him/her, like delicious, makes finding information you’ve stored in the back of your mind so much easier. I think this efficient data storing and cataloging is the answer to much of the one-liner issues from the “vision of student” video.