What's wrong with these students nowadays?

In 1997, a book came out which rocked the higher education community.

Generation X Goes to College, written by Peter Sacks, turned out to be a blockbuster. The author's name is actually a pseudonym. This journalist-turned college professor's work is a scathing indictment of higher education. In his eye-opening account of college teaching, Sacks depicts modern college students as ungrateful brats (even uncivilized wretches) who arrive in college with no desire to learn, an enormous attitude of entitlement, and the expectation that they should be entertained.

To say the least, this best seller triggered a tidal wave of response across college communities. Perhaps Sacks' portrayal was a bit harsh. Some members of the professoriate publicly denounced his characterizations and lambasted his work in various educational publications. But when the dust had finally settled, it turned out that Sacks had far more supporters than critics. Educators from Maine to Mexico responded--expressing relief that what they saw as a troubling conspiracy of silence had finally been broken. Legions of teachers reported feeling liberated, saying that the book validated their own assessment of something gone wrong with college students today. It's an undeniable fact of life that there have been noticeable changes in the character of modern day college students. Professors across the board are dismayed at students who come to college with a peculiar sense of entitlement and a lack of classroom etiquette. Is this just a case of over-the-hill educators commiserating about "these young people nowadays?"

I suspect what we're seeing here is really just a huge generation gap. A gap which pits "Baby-Boomer" educators against "Generation X" students and to put it mildly, the sparks are flying.

To understand this enormous generational divide, one only needs to look at the qualities that have come to define these respective generations.

There's no official definition of a "Baby-Boomer", but it's been pretty well accepted that a "Boomer" describes someone born between 1946 and 1960. So, if for reasons none other than maturity and experience, this group includes most educators today. "Generation X" generally describes someone born between 1960 and 1980. These are probably the offspring of the "Baby-Boomers". The exact date of birth though, is not really what's important . It's life experiences and the sensibilities that these experiences spawn which really give these often pitted generations their real identity.

Baby Boomers launched their careers at a time when hard work and loyalty meant having a job for life. In today's world, Boomers are profiled as super work-focused and self-absorbed. Gen-Xers see Boomers as too job oriented and far too loyal. Generation Xers are much less loyal to what's going on around them and have no problem packing and leaving a work situation that's not to their liking. That's why Boomers see Xers as lacking a work ethic. Gen-Xers are not afraid to question authority. Their older educator/managers see this as a lack of respect for authority.

Generation Xers came of age in a dual career family. Many are kids of divorce. As the country's first latch-key kids, they acquired a quality of independence early on. In addition, this generation is much more global in its thinking, and certainly more technology oriented. And while Baby Boomers still cling to long-held cultural stereotypes, the members of Gen X are blazing a trail towards a more culturally open society.

Ask a Boomer and he'll tell you that young people today are immature slackers. Ask an Xer and he'll tell you that Boomers are old and clueless. And in today's work world, Gen-Xers are suspicious of the Boomers because they are at risk of being downsized by them. It's against this back drop that older workers and educators are trying to manage their underlings.

How does all of this translate to the modern college student? What's happening in higher ed is a very disturbing conflict between what educators think teaching is supposed to be about and the very different views of their students. For example, it seems that the traditional paradigm of teaching--the time honored lecture--doesn't quite cut it for the X Generation. Educational researchers support that Gen Xers are adept at learning on their own and are repelled by educator's tendencies towards lots of formalized training. Hands-on or computer-based learning is what these contemporary students prefer.

Let's just take a look at our allied health students. Ask their teachers, both didactic and clinical, about their perceptions of students today and you're very likely to hear that students are no longer interested in the pursuit of knowledge (like, presumably they were); that they just want to earn the credential (uninterested in professional growth); or who expect to earn a grade simply by showing up at school. "They are not willing to work hard, the way we were", their Boomer instructors will report. "They don't want to pay their dues." Taking it a step further, managers are telling us that once they enter the work force, new grads want day shift positions from the outset. And if those coveted schedules just aren't available, well, they'll just look elsewhere, thank you very much. (All of which reinforces the stereotype of the Gen Xer as a job hopper). We've all probably heard something like this: "We worked whatever shift they would give us and we were grateful for it!" Yadda, yadda, yadda. Applying Sacks' theory, it looks as if today's allied health students are going to college to simply get a job and the perks the job will provide.

The Boomer's point of contention in the educational arena is that "we learned the hard way and you should too." Suffice it to say in summary, the educators are experiencing a big cultural gap between themselves and the young people that they teach.

Yes, without question, we do have a different style of student today. Perhaps the Boomers need to take a look at the Xers and see them in a different light. Let's face it. Being a 25-year-old at the millennium is a lot different than being a 25-year-old in 1975. The world has changed; the workplace, especially health care has changed; thus educators must change. If we really want to ease conflicts, educators need to create open lines of communication between these generations. Learning works both ways. Teachers and managers can learn from their students and workers. The generations can acknowledge and play to each other's strengths and weaknesses. Boomers are very work place smart. On the other hand, Gen Xers are very tech savvy. Don't give students reasons to distrust you. They shouldn't have to question our motives. Teach them everything they need to know. But then foster their need for independence. The more that teachers and managers can do to respect the work/family balance, the better the generations will get along because for younger persons, school or work isn't everything. They want flexibility to balance all of their extra-curricular activities and their family lives too. Finally we must prepare to pass the torch. After all, they are going to be around longer than us Boomers.

To put it all in perspective, we should remember that Boomers' criticisms of Generation X are nothing new. The WWll veterans had similar conflicts about the Boomers. Time keeps marching on. Are any of us prepared for the Generation Next?