RISD: how things have changed

I will start this series with a comparison of how things were when I
went to high school (mid-80s) and how they are now.

I think most of the changes are good. Kids seem to base their decisions
about who to befriend, shun, or date based on personal preference rather
than by race, class, age, language, etc. Boys and girls seem genuinely
comfortable around each other. Gender equality and racial is taken as a
given by most. Gay kids are probably the last group to be openly mocked
and even that is changing.

I realize the kids are probably farther along the tolerant spectrum than
is comfortable for parents. Fair enough. But these are generational
changes and the parents won't be around forever. Our kids will run the
world and it will be /their/ world.

The demographics of RISD are changing. I stood in front of a series of
class photos at one JH and the transition from Anglo to a variety of
faces is unmistakeable. In my experience in the classroom, immigrant
children (and children of immigrants) are doing fine. Do not fear the
/reconquista/. Texas has always been a syncretic frontier.

Your kids probably know more about Office programs like Word and
PowerPoint than you do. [edward tufte suggests this may not be a Good
Thing). Kids are entirely comfortable with online applications, but
will find any opportunity to sneak onto Facebook or mp3 streaming sites.
Ever had a dog that could find any weak spot in a fence? It's like that.

Texting is a cultural tsunami; the immediacy of SMS and ubiquity of
cellphones mean whole subsets of kids are finding opportunities to text.
Kids used to smoke in bathrooms; now they text. The most distressing
aspect is encroachment of textspeeak (IDK, 2, U, etc.) into homework,
quizzes, tests.

Teachers appear to be better prepared, academically.

A few changes have been less positive.

Teachers and the kids are trapped in seemingly endless cycles of high
stakes testing. The "Want to teach?" altcert billboards should, if
truth in advertising is important, read "Want to train kids to take
tests?"

There is a marked decrease in classroom decorum; it is destructive to
the academic environment and is my single greatest concern for RISD. I
am not talking about "kids these days" fist-shaking stuff, but behavior
that would get adults arrested, sued, or fired. There is a real chance
that your kid is being cheated out of full academic opportunity by the
disruptive behavior and general wildness of poorly socialized kids in
their classroom. More on this in a later post.

Lunch over now; must run.

posted by offline email