Report from the trenches: "what your college students won't tell you"

Parents Forum
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<p>I've just finished reading Binge: Campus Life in an Age of Disconnection and Excess, by Barrett Seaman</p>

<p>Book based on time spent on campus at Hamilton, Harvard, Dartmouth, Middlebury, Stanford, Cal-Berkeley, Duke, UVA, Indiana University-Bloomington, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Pomona, McGill</p>

<p>Conclusion:

[quote]
It’s not easy to reconcile the view that North American colleges and universities are being dealt a hand of dysfunctional and overanxious children with a simultaneous view that these institutions, perhaps especially the best ones, are babying their students. But this journey has led me to believe that the higher education establishment has lost focus on an essential mission of college: to provide young people with the tools to obtain knowledge about the world and about themselves.

[/quote]

The trends he observed:
[ul]
[<em>]Student use of IMing, cell phones, etc. threatens the development of good communication skills, for example, dealing with conflict
[</em>]Dating is unpopular. Students prefer to drink, socialize in groups, then hook up more or less randomly. Harms develop of self-esteem, hard to develop significant relationship with someone of the opposite sex
[<em>]The percentage of students entering college while on meds (for depression, etc.) is much higher than before. Business is booming at college mental health centers.
[</em>]Drinking age of 21 is causing students to drink heavily in private before venturing out to social events where they are more likely to encounter adults in a supervisory capacity.
[<em>]Hook up/heavy drinking scenarios make date rape a real problem.
[</em>]Colleges have recruited minorities, but there is little mixing between groups outside the classroom.
[li]Unlike in days of yore, professors are not involved with students outside the classroom. The presence of faculty in residence halls, at meals, etc. has been replaced by “residential life” staff. The Res Life folk provide handholding for students; students no longer have the chance to grow up by taking their lumps. Also, students gain from personal relationships with professors (in terms of wanting to earn their respect, for example) in a way that is not possible with res life staff.[/li][/ul]</p>

<p>(I was especially interested to hear about the hiring boom in the area of residential staff. I have to believe that this headcount has contributed significantly to the skyrocketing cost of college.)</p>

<p>These trends are making it more difficult for kids entering college to grow up into mature adults by the time they graduate. </p>

<p>Seaman feels that students at toptier schools are the most likely to experience the kind of hothouse atmosphere that fails to prepare them for adulthood.</p>

<p>Does this ring true? If so, what colleges are out there that buck these trends?</p>

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<p>You are asking for colleges that buck this trend..
[quote]
Colleges have recruited minorities, but there is little mixing between groups outside the classroom.

[/quote]
I believe Rice does. According to Princeton review it has "lots of race/class interaction." I think this is because of the residential college system. Students are randomly assigned a res college for all 4years, and bonds form that way, in addition to by cultural group. Major allegiance is to one's res college - with living quarters, dining hall, intermural teams, party-hosting, etc. There are no "themed houses", which can help segregate campuses.

[quote]
Unlike in days of yore, professors are not involved with students outside the classroom. The presence of faculty in residence halls, at meals, etc. has been replaced by “residential life” staff. The Res Life folk provide handholding for students; students no longer have the chance to grow up by taking their lumps. Also, students gain from personal relationships with professors (in terms of wanting to earn their respect, for example) in a way that is not possible with res life staff.

[/quote]
. Rice has no res life staff, but each college elects an unpaid student president and officers who run the college. Professors serve as "College Masters" and live in house attached to each college. In addition, each college has several professors living in it. My DD loves to chat with her college master, and he and his wife often invite students over for informal meals or snacks, or eat with the kids in the dining hall. Due to low student faculty ratio (5:1) there are lots of close bonds and mentoring to students, and LOTS of involvement outside the classroom. I think Rice does a great job. I do know that there are kids at Rice that drink a lot, but also many who don't. I'm thrilled with DD's opportunities there.</p>

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<p>anxiousmom, the author of this book is a big proponent of residential colleges such as the one you describe at Rice.</p>

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<p>At my d's college (Smith), no residential staff (other than student hires), no theme houses (other than one French house for students going JYA), very low binge drinking rate, 4-year residential houses, relatively small, with students chosen at random, very strong student/faculty interaction (sometimes I wonder whether they've gone over the top.</p>

<p>Many cellphones. And I expect that many more students on anti-depressants than 30 years (which I think, on the whole, is a tremendously positive development - it wasn't that they didn't need them 30 years ago, only that Freudian shrinks didn't know how to use 'em.)</p>

<p>We visited and talked with students at some of the campuses Seaman visited and, other than his "breathlessness" (as if he had actually discovered something), many of them concurred with what he had to say.</p>

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<p>The percentage of kids on anti-depressants, etc., is a GOOD thing. A lot of brilliant people have problems are bipolar or suffer from depression. In the old days, these kids wouldn't have made it to college. Today, thanks to medication, they can live much better lives. That said, prescription drug abuse is a REAL problem. </p>

<p>I'm not so sure the lack of dating is all that bad either. My generation did a lot of dating in college and it also has a very high divorce rate. So, I'm not sure that dating really does help develop a good, lasting relationship with a member of the opposite sex. Moreover, marriage is being postponed and that's especially true among those seeking further education. Is it necessary to date as an 18 or 19 year old if realistically you can't even THINK about marriage until you're at least 25 and have finished med school/law school, etc.? Moreover, one thing I personally think the younger generation is doing much better than my own is friendship between people of different sexes. In my day, those were rare and most grew out of friendships between two people of the same sex, one of whom had a connection with that of the other. So, a young woman might be good friends with her brothers' friends or with her (romantic) boyfriend's friends or with her good girlfriend's boyfriend, but it was much less likely that she'd have good male friends whom she met herself. I think the whole hanging out in groups thing has fostered such friendships, and I think they are a good thing. However, the whole "friends with benefits" approach to life is beyond my comprehension. YUCK!!! </p>

<p>I agree that colleges that ban theme housing tend to have more interaction. I think heavily Greek campuses tend to be the worst at self-segregation. Colleges with randomized housing, especially those where almost everyone lives on campus, tend to be best. Those that have a high percentage of students who engage in ECs also tend to be better. ( A survey years ago at Berkeley, a rather segregated campus, found that the two groups most likely to have close friends of another race were athletes and musicians. )</p>

<p>Those who have read these boards for a long time know that I think kids should be able to drink once they hit 18. I think it's better when colleges look the other way when there's moderate drinking, 'cause then kids who do/don't drink socialize together.</p>

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<p>my d school does have theme housing but no frats
The themes actually increase interaction because they will each host events intended for the whole campus- of course at a school that is smaller than her sisters high school, it is easier to do, than at a big U.
I agree that more people seem to be getting diagnosed, but I think that is good, often at this age emotional/mental illness begins to be a concern whether they happen to be in college or not.
My D school also goes overboard with adult /student interaction.
Every employee on campus, whether they are security or housekeeping staff or the president ( well I don't know if the president gets a stipend) gets a stipend to spend on students.
My daughter has played paint ball with the president ( he thought he won), gone to see all of the Harry Potter movies with her bio prof and his family, and I know that the housekeeper makes cookies and takes kids to the airport when they miss their ride- she was great- she even lent me her car:)
so sad that D isn't in a dorm anymore.
but it is good experience for shopping/cooking/cleaning</p>

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<p>I remember the articles that compared my generation to our parents generation. We were a wonton, deteriorated lot. </p>

<ul>
<li> we protested against the war, rather than sign up to fight.</li>
<li> the colleges scrapped "hours" for women. The horrors of the decline of in loco parentis.</li>
<li> some of us used drugs openly. Heck you could even smell grass in the dorm.<br></li>
<li> colleges, in response to student pressure, taught "pop culture" courses that students actually wanted to attend, instead of classics etc.</li>
<li> we stopped studying foreign languages (gee, colleges even dropped the requirement!) to the predicted demise of US global influence.<br></li>
</ul>

<p>Yea, the outcome of all this?</p>

<ul>
<li> we are socially and morally more conservative than before (so much for the influence of drugs, sex mores etc.)</li>
<li> our country has pulled ahead of ROW in many economic measures.</li>
<li> etc. etc.</li>
</ul>

<p>Just remember, bad news sells more books than good news, except for good news diet and self help books ( who would ever buy a diet book that talks about how hopeless it all is....)</p>

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<p>jonri, I read with interest your comments about the lack of dating because that is an aspect of young people today that has had me confused.</p>

<p>Among the high school crowd my S is in, the girls in "the group" are usually buddies only. The girlfriends are seen separately, one on one outside the group. It seems like a burden for these guys to spend time with the girlfriend--at least that is my perception. Super bowl parties, skiing, surfing (all the real fun), goes back to "the group" without girlfriends involved. Even with nothing special going on, the guys will go over and spend the obligatory few hours with the girlfriend and then go hang out with the "real" friends, with the girls doing the same. </p>

<p>In short, Boy A has a group of buddies consisting of both girls and boys. Girl B also has a group of buddies consisting of both girls and boys. The two groups overlap at larger parties but not the smaller get togethers--hanging out playing ping pong or watching football at someone's house. While the group would be open to admitting a newcomer, most kids don't want to change groups that have been long established for something as temporary as a boyfriend or girlfriend.</p>

<p>With this dynamic, the absence of a boyfriend/girlfriend often makes life easier, since the obligatory one on one time with girlfriend/boyfriend is eliminated. Hook ups are always available on a one night basis after the larger get togethers. </p>

<p>Definitely different from what I remember in high school.</p>

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<p>And for some of our sons, girls just don't even seem to BE in the picture right now! I think it is a time of retrenchment for my son and his buddies. There was the enthusiastic time in 7th - 9th grade where girls called them, they called girls, and they had "girlfriends". But then came 10th grade.. The boys now get together to play poker, spend waaaaaay too much time online playing computer games (against each other, but in separate locations), and play a little basketball and tennis. No interest in participating in HS events, or attending HS functions. (Prom? Homecoming? Football game? Are you kidding?) I think one, of a group of about 7 guys, has a girlfriend. None of the rest date. They don't even attend parties or events where kids WOULD "hook-up". They are attractive, smart guys - I just don't think they are quite ready to go there yet....</p>

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<p>anxiousmom, You have just described how my S and his friends spend their time. He does, however, attend a couple of hs basketball games.</p>

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<p>bucking the trend so far.... YALE!</p>

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<p>klc ~ oh really? yes, we have the college system (which I love love love!) but we certainly don't seem to be doing so well on the drinking and random hookups side of things... :p</p>

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<p>To be frankly honest, there really are no schools in the US that don't hold these trends to be true. Of course there are some more than others, *but people reading these trends make so many assumptions. *</p>

<p>It's important to be critical of all trends, numbers and statistics. For example, people assume that having professors live near or close to students provides some sort of development which is greater than residential life staff. This is NOT always decidedly so. One reason why residential life hirings occurred was because professors were failing to involve themselves significantly in the lives of students because of academic committments, family committments, travel for conferences, etc. It is false to assume that because professors live near students that they promote "less handholding" as this trend would suggest. </p>

<p>Many researchers cry for professors to live near / in student residences but this is not an indication of involvement. The question to be asked is: ** Would you rather have involved residence life staff or uninvolved professors? **</p>

<p>*Needless to say, almost no school is exempt of the trends listed above, barring some anomalies (highly religious, etc). *</p>

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<p>yeah! i wasn't talking about the drinking, etc. sorry! but i know of students whose profs have joined them at lunch, noticed their work & engaged them in great conversations.... and they're just "ordinary" Yale students... of course, my thought is, lucky prof!</p>