<p>(Note that even engineering students these days have workloads less than the “standard” 3 hours per week per credit unit, although their workloads are higher than that of most other major groups.)</p>
<p>In some cases, the reduced workload may be due to improved technology. When I was in college, there was no web browsing or web searching or ordering a needed book or article for quick or electronic delivery. Looking for references for a term paper meant going to the library and looking in the library catalog to see what books or articles may be relevant, then finding each one in the stacks and looking through it to see if it is worth checking out and bringing home (if no one else checked it out). Writing a paper meant using the primitive word processing software of the time, or using a typewriter and correction fluid. When doing CS programming assignments, an entire class shared a computer that was orders of magnitude less powerful than a cheap computer in a student’s dorm room today, and one had to go to the computer lab to find a terminal to use the computer (or use a 1200 baud modem if you had your own computer and modem).</p>
<p>Of course, a student who is actually committed to being a “full time student” can choose to take overload schedules if s/he finds that s/he can use some of the extra time on doing academic things.</p>
<p>Still, it is a valid topic to research what factors have what amount of influence in reducing student workload these days compared to before.</p>
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<p>True, if it is now possible to learn the same amount of material with less work, then it would make sense from the student’s point of view to offer lower cost “compressed” degree programs. However, the barrier to this may be that grading and evaluating student work may not be that much less work for the instructors, since it takes the same amount of time to grade many types of assignments, projects, and test questions.</p>
<p>You know, I hear so many parents brag on and on about how “gifted” their kids are, whether they are or not. Then, when their child cannot excell at something, then the parents declare it “unimportant” or whatever else. I do not think all the trophies are causing this. I think parents who never, or rarely, make their children work for anything is a bigger part of the problem. I see many parents, usually with 1-2 children, who see their children just reflections of themselves. Then God forbid that child not be just handed everything. They give their children everything from cell phones to cars to everything. If anyone tells the children they cannot do this or that, then the parent jumps in and gets all angry. I cannot even believe the times where I hear someone say something like “I don’t like this friend my 10 yr old brought home” and everyone else jumps in and says “you can’t tell him what to do, it will just make him want it all the more!” If a parent feels like they cannot parent a 10 yr old, then the parent never should have become a parent in the first place. That may sound harsh, but I see too many parents not even trying, and that is the harsh reality.</p>
<p>I recently saw a show on what is happening to China’s children, since it is a society of mostly only children, some 2 child families. It talks about how kids are so spoiled there, and obesity is a huge problem because parents will give the kids whatever they want to eat and not make them get off the video games and so on. Well, this country, parts of it anyway, are a short step behind. I heard a dad in public talking about how his 7 yr old won’t get off the phone at night when he tells her to. He laughed and just said “but what can you do?” and thought it was funny. I turned to him and said “you can take the phone away.” The answer was so obvious. But it was clear that he thought it was cute and funny that his 7 yr old behaves like that, AND that he was a failure of a parent. It is not. </p>
<p>I know maybe I come off as strong. But honestly, a few trophies are not the cause of entitled children. Children think they are so great and so entitled without any effort because of parents who never make them work or try for anything. Parents who are of the “don’t tell my child no” group.</p>
<p>I disagree with this. If teachers in 1 school routinely gave poor grades to poor performers, colleges would know this and know that this particular school is harder to get good grades in.</p>
I hate this stupid stereotype. I hear so many adults moaning about how video games are ruining my generation. I have no interest in video games and most of my friends don’t either.</p>
<p>But frankly, so what if they do? The gamers that I do know are some of the brightest, most organized kids I’ve met.</p>
<p>Technology, contrary to the opinions of these sky-is-falling columnists, is not the devil.</p>
<p>It’s not my impression that the top students of 30 years ago did four hours of homework a night. Certainly not in high school. Before the days of widespread AP, high school was quite easy for the smart kids–at least public high school.</p>
<p>This lazy American student is a gamer with a 3.8 GPA and works 40 hours per week. I spend most of my free time playing games because it relaxes me.</p>
I certainly didn’t do much homework as I recall. Except when we had to do library research of some sort or type up a paper. That was pretty rare. But what is it about AP these days that requires so much work? Or does it depend on the teacher or class?</p>
<p>My high school had one AP class (US History) which I took in 1973. I don’t recall much homework for that either. What I do remember was a lot of in-class discussion which was sort of new and painful for me. I also took a few other AP tests just based on honors and normal classes. I don’t recall studying much for them either. I didn’t 5 out on all of them, but my lowest score was 3 on Chem which I took at the end of senior year based on sophomore chemistry.</p>
<p>BTW I paid severely when I got to college and was shocked to find I couldn’t continue just sliding by. Hard on my ego because I did have a high regard for myself (and still do as you can probably tell). So maybe it’s a good thing that at least some of today’s kids are prepared for hard work. In fact, I often read on here about kids who find college remedial compared to high school. THat certainly wasn’t my experience.</p>
<p>IMO, I think these articles typically refer to the norm, not the top achievers. Even with respect to the typical student, I don’t personally think today’s kids are any more self reverential than we were.</p>
<p>When I was in (public) high school, the few AP courses offered just seemed like normal honors courses in terms of workload (e.g. AP calculus BC seemed to be about as much work as honors precalculus the year before, and AP English literature seemed to be about as much work as honors 11th grade English the year before).</p>
<p>Perhaps the schools these days are confusing learning with workload, and assigning more busywork (not necessarily specific to AP courses)?</p>
<p>There’s no contradiction, limabeans. I just meant that good parenting enables a child to maximize his God-given potential, and brings discipline into areas of weakness such as character and personality flaws. But speaking as a parent of a special needs child, there’s a limit to what certain children can become even with all the hard work and discipline in the world. I would hate for others to assume I “deserve” the fact that my child lacks certain expected competencies.</p>
<p>My AP classes of 30 years ago required a lot of reading, writing, and studying. I always had a lot of homework, especially in European History and English.</p>
<p>My high school had no AP courses at all. It had honors courses, which were not difficult for a good student. There was no calculus. Writing was fairly minimal. College was something of a shock–especially math and French. Fortunately, I was a reader, so English wasn’t bad. I’m just skeptical that there was all this heavy homework in American high schools 30 years ago, except maybe in the really good schools in big cities.</p>
<p>Comparing my HS experience with that of my own kids, I can say that my kids work/ed a lot harder and not just on academics. Both of mine have spent many hours volunteering, something that was unheard of when I was in HS.</p>
<p>For many once they get to college and the competition gets stiff the realization comes that someone has been lying to them. The Bell curve is relentless.</p>
<p>The high school I attended now has multiple AP courses, despite the fact that the town has lost population since I lived there, and the area is in economic decline. If they are actually using the AP curriculum, the workload is substantially greater in those classes than the courses I took 30 years ago. I suspect that the same is true in many smaller towns.</p>
<p>I’m 23 and I remember growing up, everyone and their mother telling us that a bachelors degree was the “ticket to the middle class” and if we were willing to work hard we could have a better lifestyle than our parents after 3 years. Granted this was in the 90s and early 2000s but still, when I have kids of my own I will be much more realistic with them from day 1. </p>
<p>We were told we were special, irreplaceable, one day we could be the President of the United States, etc. I think that does more harm than good.</p>
<p>So when the college students think they are special and entitled, the student is only part of the equation that needs to be looked at.</p>
<p>"My AP classes of 30 years ago required a lot of reading, writing, and studying. I always had a lot of homework, especially in European History and English. " - The GFG</p>
<p>My experience was the same as TheGFGs. I remember a lot of studying in AP Bio as well.</p>
<p>Each kid is different, but I think most can benefit from some guidance on the importance of time management skills. Those quick four years of high school can have a disroportionate impact on the trajectory of one’s life. A little game clock awareness between the ages 14 and 18 can make a big difference.</p>
<p>Students today have much less leeway for directionless drifting in high school, much less in college. I think kids need to chose a career goal, any goal that makes some sense for them, and start pursuing it, without worrying whether it’s the correct one for now and all eternity and measures up to their specialness. The goal/major can be changed. But too many kids get hung up on not knowing what they want to do with their lives that they don’t move forward in any direction at all. It’s tough to graduate in 4 years that way. Moving forward in some direction can take you to places you wouldn’t have gone to otherwise, and that can be how you find your true passion.</p>
<p>"My high school had no AP courses at all. It had honors courses, which were not difficult for a good student. There was no calculus. Writing was fairly minimal. College was something of a shock–especially math and French. Fortunately, I was a reader, so English wasn’t bad. I’m just skeptical that there was all this heavy homework in American high schools 30 years ago, except maybe in the really good schools in big cities. "</p>
<p>So agree Hunt! I graduated 30 yrs. ago, top of my class, never took an AP or Honors, simply wasnt offered. I applied to one school, $10k in student loans got me through 4 yrs of a Big 10 school…sad how much things have changed really. Are kids smarter now? I dont think smarter, maybe more worldly… I paid off my loans @ $87/month by the time I got married… I know we cant go back in time however somethings WERE better back in the day~ And I think kids need to have some skin in the game, even if their parents have won the Lotto! :)</p>