Daughter to college

It has been four days since I drove my only daughter to college.  As any parent knows, this is a challenging passage for parents and children.  On one hand, it is emotionally difficult because my daughter is no longer physically around on a daily basis.  On the other hand, it is gratifying to know she is going to college which has been the goal since she was three-years-old.  As I returned home, I started reflecting on my college experience and how her college experience may be different.  I went to college over 30 years ago – in the mid-1970s.  So, here is my first analysis based on my daughter’s first four days of college as compared to my experience 30 years ago.  Many things are similar, but some things are different.  I will be anxious to learn if college instruction has changed or not in the past 30 years.

Dad in College (30 years ago)

Daughter in College (today)

Dorms Dorm Roommates Feelings of uncertainty, will I have friends, will I be successful? Will college be hard? Missing family, but not letting on that I miss them Bought a stereo system Phone calls home once a week (landline) Handwritten letters home once a week (or so) Courses scheduled Textbooks purchased from college bookstore Professor Instruction:  Lecture

Dorms Dorm roommates Feelings of uncertainty, will I have friends, will I be successful? Will college be hard? Missing family, but not letting on that I miss them Bought a computer and ipod Phone calls two-four times a day (cell phone) Text messages daily (I’m trying to get my daughter to let me be her “friend” on Facebook) Courses scheduled Textbooks purchased from college bookstore and online Professor Instruction:  time will tell

Jason Dorsey and Gen Y

All Clovis Unified school administrators attend a yearly two-day retreat affectionately known as “Charge!” This is our time to catch up after the summer and get ready for the new school year. In addition to reading and sharing the book, It’s not about the coffee, we had a guest speaker. Jason Dorsey is 30 years old and has been writing and speaking since the age of 20.

Jason spoke to our group about Gen Y (also known as the Millennials), which he defines as those born from 1977-1995. There are 80 million of this generation. Their defining moments have been: a) The Challenger Explosion; b) The Fall of the Berlin Wall; and c) 911. He went on to explain that these are some of the factors of Gen Y:

• They may still be living with their parents when they get their first real job.
• No expectation of lifetime employment. Will work for 60 years because it may take until they are 28 to get a “real” job.
• Feel entitled. When they got old enough to work, they found there were more people than jobs, so they decided to enjoy life rather than look for a job. Jason says they suffer from “Adult Olescence” which means they want all the freedoms of being an adult, but none of the responsibilities.
• Their attitude is, “don’t follow the money, do what makes you happy.” This generation decides on day one of a new job if they are going to like it or not…and if not, they may not show up on day two and not tell anyone.
• They hunger for instant gratification. They appreciate weekly feedback from their employers.
• Are entirely outcome driven. They decide where they are and where they want to go.
• They value relationships and lifestyle above career. They leave work on time because there are other things more important than the job.
• They have no sense of history…no sense of geography…they don’t know quick answers to historical facts. However, give them access to the Internet and they can prepare a presentation in two hours on any historical topic.

Based on his research, he had these suggestions in dealing with GenY:

• Guide them when the start their first day of work. They like to itemize and prioritize. Give them a list of things to follow.
• Deliver continuous feedback. A quick email saying, “You did a good job in handling that customer” in the subject line is all that is needed.
• Give them diverse challenges.
• Show them how they can reach their personal goals.
• They are Tech Dependent! Embedded into their being. Their most important device is their cell phone.

Jason was a great speaker and gave us lots to think about, especially about how to interact with the GenY generation who are currently in our high schools and are now entering the job market.

He then said that “soon, everyone will have access to all information.” And then to all of us in the room – none who were under age 30 – he asked: How do you know that you’re over 30? You spell out all the words in a text message. How do you know when you’re over 40? You spell words correctly and use punctuation in your text messages.

Much of what he said about Gen Y affirms what Don Tapscott wrote in his book Growing Up Digital in 1998.

His message was a wonderful contrast to this article I came across today on CNN that suggested that in the next three years, 54% of 8-12 year olds will have a cell phone. However, there is also a warning in the article that cell phones may lead to “a sexual predator’s “grooming” process.” Other experts recommended that parents should put a device on their children’s cell phones so they can monitor phone calls and text messages. I wonder how the Gen Y-ers would respond to this article?

Disrupting Class and the future of education

I read the book, Disrupting Class, about a month ago – see my blog posts.  Reading this book has caused me to pay closer attention to the term “disruptive innovation” and in particular, what educational trends could be considered a Disruptive Innovation.  The authors of the book continue to blog in response to the book.  They also main a blog as part of their company, Innosight.

I just came across this article entitled, ” The Future of Education” written by futurist Thomas Frey and his associates (March 2007) that validates many of the ideas put forth in the book, Disrupting Class .  Interestingly, this article was written prior to the book being published.  Frey maintains his own blog and his group has a blog titled, Impact Lab.

And, recently, Frey was interviewed about the future of education where he suggests that education will become an “i-tunes model”,  that within two years, there will be Multi-Couseware Builder that will make online courses available worldwide and that libraries need to move to become “creation” institutions.

Here is the interview:

Technology and presidential politics

NPR has run a series of stories in the last few days about the technology use and technology views of presidential contenders John McCain and Barack Obama.   It is good to hear their perspectives about the use of technology both personally and professionally.

The Digital Divide between McCain and Obama

McCain’s Technology Outlook

Obama’s Technology Outlook