I'm kind of confused by the last chapter I just read in my book My Freshman Year by Rebekah Nathan. She seems surprised by her findings about the community or lack of community among the students in the dorms, or I'm interpreting it all wrong.
At the first mandatory dorm meeting, the dorm residents are asked to share something about themselves. The author announced that she had lived overseas before. She was surprised that none of the other students asked her anything about the experience. As classes began, she hoped to get a "sense of the rhythm" of the students' lives. In the early days of the semester, it proved hard for her to devote time to her study because of the necessary demands of being a student--getting books, getting classes straight, finding the right class buildings, etc. The author started a daily journal so she could record her findings. She found out very early on that students had numerous responsibilities that required their attention and these responsibilities took up a lot of time. Once settled into a daily routine, the author began conducting interviews with selected students for her research.
After interviewing students on their routines, responsibilities, and usage of time, she found that (compared to another study conducted by Michael Moffat http://www.nytimes.com/1989/04/30/books/paperbacks-no-orgies-please-we-re-studying.html) students were spending approximately 1.45 hours per week of prep time for academics. Moffat's study in the 70s showed that students were spending approximately 2 hours per week of prep time for academics. Compared to Moffat's study, her data showed that students were studying a little less and socializing less, so what were the students spending their time doing?
Data showed that some students worked, some were involved in extracurricular activities (which also could involve volunteer/community service requirements) in sororities/fraternities, and some having to both work and involved in extracurricular activities. Her findings showed that on a typical weeknight, half of the students were in bed by 11:30 pm and up by 9:00 am the next morning. The author followed ten students and these students all led very distinctly different lives. A sampling of the students she followed included an athlete who could not stay out late, a sorority pledge who had late night commitments and slept past noon, an ROTC student who had to be up very early for training, and another student who professed to being a procrastinator who changed her major seven times and socialized at least three times per week, and another student who worked 25 hours a week and used the funds for food and socializing. These students' paths would cross only with great effort on their parts to do so--they were like ships passing in the night.
The author seemed surprised that although these students all attend the same university and some of the same classes, their circles didn't always come together without great effort. Once she realized their differences, she understood why it took effort on their parts to come together. Even those students, who were roommates, friends, in the same clubs, etc., had to have some forethought and planning with each other to build a social circle. The author thought that there was no real sense of community among the students. When visiting the dorm after the freshman year experience, she was surprised that she did not recognize anyone on her old dorm floor. The RA explained that students were always shifting--rooms, majors, activies, etc.
More to come...
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Why would anyone want to return to school after they are done?
You may ask yourself the question, "Why would anyone want to return to school as a college freshman when they don't have to?" In the case of this blog and the book that I chose, My Freshman Year by Rebekah Nathan (pseudonym), the author decides to return to school to conduct a qualitative research project during a sabbatical from teaching. She does not want to identify herself of the university, choosing to remain anonymous in order to share the information she learned while she was a student. Personally, I don't think I will ever want to return back to those first days asi a college freshman, unless, I was 17 years old all over again. I don't think that I would be brave enough to live and mingle with students who are under the age of 20 as a 50-year old as the author did.
After 15 years of teaching, anthropology instructor decides to return to school as a college freshman, experiencing life as a college freshman, and doing everything a college freshman does, such as live in the dorms and attend functions along with the college freshmen.
Some of the decisions that led to the research included her as well as some of her colleagues, being perplexed by:
* students not dropping by her office during office hours for help
* students not accepting her offer of help with research
* students never taking notes in class
* students eating and sleeping in class
* students not reading the required readings
After trying to make sense of this odd behavior, and after auditing classes and seeing things through the eyes of the students (as an auditor of these classes), the author decides to make the leap from professor to student. While auditing classes, she heard things that students typically don't share with teachers.
The journey begins--the professor (50+ years of age) applies to the university where she teaches as a first-year student. She applies and gets accepted using her high school transcripts. Once admitted, she ponders what to say to other students about her status--why was she starting school so late in life, what her current status is, etc. Students didn't really seem to care that much--they didn't ask too many questions, so the answers to the questions that she had formulated in her head were not necessary because students didn't question her to that extent.
*the author gets admitted
*the author gets assigned a room in the college dorm
*the author goes to freshman orientation and events
*the author gets busted for having anopen beer in the community room. Students over the age of 21 can have beer in their rooms, but not in the common area. BUSTED by the RA (resident advisor).
After 15 years of teaching, anthropology instructor decides to return to school as a college freshman, experiencing life as a college freshman, and doing everything a college freshman does, such as live in the dorms and attend functions along with the college freshmen.
Some of the decisions that led to the research included her as well as some of her colleagues, being perplexed by:
* students not dropping by her office during office hours for help
* students not accepting her offer of help with research
* students never taking notes in class
* students eating and sleeping in class
* students not reading the required readings
After trying to make sense of this odd behavior, and after auditing classes and seeing things through the eyes of the students (as an auditor of these classes), the author decides to make the leap from professor to student. While auditing classes, she heard things that students typically don't share with teachers.
The journey begins--the professor (50+ years of age) applies to the university where she teaches as a first-year student. She applies and gets accepted using her high school transcripts. Once admitted, she ponders what to say to other students about her status--why was she starting school so late in life, what her current status is, etc. Students didn't really seem to care that much--they didn't ask too many questions, so the answers to the questions that she had formulated in her head were not necessary because students didn't question her to that extent.
*the author gets admitted
*the author gets assigned a room in the college dorm
*the author goes to freshman orientation and events
*the author gets busted for having anopen beer in the community room. Students over the age of 21 can have beer in their rooms, but not in the common area. BUSTED by the RA (resident advisor).
Introduction of My Freshman Year
I was drawn to this book because I taught a first-year experience course to freshman during the last academic school year and will be starting again with a brand new class in a few weeks. These brand new college students were among the best and brightest at their high schools and are hand-picked to attend the Air Force Academy. Although they are among the best and the brightest entering college students, they nevertheless, are still young and inexperienced. In the weeks to come, I will blog about the experiences of one college anthropology instructor who decides to conduct research on college students by returning to college herself as a freshman (first-year student).
Since the college professor teaches anthropology (the study of human beings), it was quite natural for her to study the students within their own environment, as a student, rather than as the instructor. She decides to conduct a year-long ethnographic study of the students and live with them and experience their environment.
Her intent was a to provide a detailed and indepth description of their everyday life and practices.
After auditing a couple of classes for her own interest and education, the author discovered that she acted like a student and the other students treated her like a fellow student. The idea was born and this over-50 year old college professor returned to school to expeience life as a freshman college student all over again.
Since the college professor teaches anthropology (the study of human beings), it was quite natural for her to study the students within their own environment, as a student, rather than as the instructor. She decides to conduct a year-long ethnographic study of the students and live with them and experience their environment.
Her intent was a to provide a detailed and indepth description of their everyday life and practices.
After auditing a couple of classes for her own interest and education, the author discovered that she acted like a student and the other students treated her like a fellow student. The idea was born and this over-50 year old college professor returned to school to expeience life as a freshman college student all over again.
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