2008 Woodie Awards
Does Education Have a Price
Some say college students have 'consumer mentality'
Christopher Anderson
Issue date: 4/22/04 Section: Opinions
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Welcome to Lakeland College; you're among the 800 some students who will be paying almost $20,000 a year to further their education. Some of you, or more like 80 to 90% of you will be graced with grants and scholarships to lighten the load, and others will turn to the bank to finance their education.
So what's that $20,000 getting you--a paper that's signed by the president of the college, "The college expereince," as some might call it, or just something to do after high school? Most of us do think this way; I know I do. I don't see any motive for this so called degree other than promises of it paying off in the future. I, as well as most of you, fall into this category that Paul White, Director of the Hayssen Academic Resource Center, calls the Millenium Generation.
We are the 80's babies. We don't remember past president Bush, senior that is, and I'm sure some don't remember after Bush Jr. either, but nonetheless we are categorized by the modern advances and technological things that we've come to know and love. This isn't a bad thing though; it's just who we are. Some other generations might call us spoiled; they're just jealous.
White recently gave a symposium for Lakeland faculty on the consumer menatlity of education. I can assure you that it was not a meeting where staff and faculty get together to bash the students, nothing of that sort...although students may often wonder... Instead it was a discussion based presenation fueled by White and a few others to give information and background about who and what our generation consists of.
So why is this important? Well as White said, "The information is imporant, but also meaningless...if we [faculty] can understand who's coming to college, other than by meeting you on SEED day, we can know more about you, and not just your educational background."
In the interview I had with White, he clarified the different types of generational gaps that exist. This was very clear, so when he started talking about how our generation doesn't remember what it was like to not have a TV or a VCR or how we have no recollection of the Challenger space shuttle disaster, I will admit I was baffled. Myself being very age sensative, I was rather appalled at what he was saying.
So what's that $20,000 getting you--a paper that's signed by the president of the college, "The college expereince," as some might call it, or just something to do after high school? Most of us do think this way; I know I do. I don't see any motive for this so called degree other than promises of it paying off in the future. I, as well as most of you, fall into this category that Paul White, Director of the Hayssen Academic Resource Center, calls the Millenium Generation.
We are the 80's babies. We don't remember past president Bush, senior that is, and I'm sure some don't remember after Bush Jr. either, but nonetheless we are categorized by the modern advances and technological things that we've come to know and love. This isn't a bad thing though; it's just who we are. Some other generations might call us spoiled; they're just jealous.
White recently gave a symposium for Lakeland faculty on the consumer menatlity of education. I can assure you that it was not a meeting where staff and faculty get together to bash the students, nothing of that sort...although students may often wonder... Instead it was a discussion based presenation fueled by White and a few others to give information and background about who and what our generation consists of.
So why is this important? Well as White said, "The information is imporant, but also meaningless...if we [faculty] can understand who's coming to college, other than by meeting you on SEED day, we can know more about you, and not just your educational background."
In the interview I had with White, he clarified the different types of generational gaps that exist. This was very clear, so when he started talking about how our generation doesn't remember what it was like to not have a TV or a VCR or how we have no recollection of the Challenger space shuttle disaster, I will admit I was baffled. Myself being very age sensative, I was rather appalled at what he was saying.