Expectations
Dave Reed
Department of Horticultural Sciences
Texas A&M University
Expectations
a looking forward to;
prospects for the future
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We’ll start with:
Setting Expectations for Freshman
(the given title by Dr. Litz)
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But, we’ll finish with:
Clash of Expectations between the
“Baby Boomers” & “Generation X”
and the
“Millennials”
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Setting Expectations for Freshman
“Become the Best You Can Be”
2004 Freshman Convocation
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•Courses and Grades
•Experience
•People Skills and Networking
•Teamsmanship and Leadership Potential
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Courses and Grades
“You are going to have to maintain a minimum
of a 2.0 GPR or we will ask you to leave bummer!”
“However, you need to strive to maintain your
grades as high as possible, because the higher
your grades the more career opportunities will
be available to you upon graduation.”
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Experience
“Whenever I bring students to visit industry
leaders, I always ask:
What is the first thing you look for when hiring
employees?
What do you think they always say?”
“Experience”
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People Skills and Networking
“Can you apply your academic knowledge and work
experience in an interactive world of incredibly diverse
people?”
“If you are that quiet, somewhat introverted, wall
flower, you need to blossom.”
“If you are that braggadocio know-it-all, you need to
tone it down and learn to listen more.”
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Teamsmanship and Leadership Potential
“Can you put your academic skills, work
experience and people skills together to
accomplish tasks?”
“Finally, you need to become a team player and
a potential leader.”
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Final Challenge
“… to begin using this Learning Community
and the opportunities available to you … to
build yourself into the “Total Package” and
become “The Best You Can Be”
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However, I have come to realize that these are
“My Expectations”,
which reflect the Expectations of the
Fading “Baby Boomers” &
Current “Generation X”.
Therefore, I am imposing the Expectations of
“My Generation” on that of the “Next
Generation”
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We must ask the question:
What are the Expectations of the Next
Generation?
And, where they “clash”:
We must resolve the conflict!
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What is the “Next Generation”?
They are the kids, primarily of Generation X, born
since 1980, and who currently are infusing colleges.
“Millennials”
“Generation Y”
“Echo Boomers”
“Generation Dot Com”
Baby Boomers (40s-50s)
Generation X (60-70s)
Millennials
Millennials
Millennials
Millennials
Millennials (80s+)
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Let’s Characterize the “Millennials”
from
•Neil Howe & William Strauss,
Millennials Rising – The Next Generation
•Dr. Mel Levine, UNC, Pediatrician
•60 Minutes, December 26, 2004
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What are the characteristics of the
Millennials?
•most watched over generation
•most protected generation
•came along at a time when we
started re-valuing kids
•came along at a time when parents made
time to spend with their kids
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What are their experiences?
•heavily programmed by parents, teachers, etc.
•extensive organized activity
•accustomed to teamwork and group activities
participation and
don’t
team stressed
keep score
“we” wanted them to feel good about themselves
accustomed to being “rewarded for participation
not achievement”
everyone receives a trophy or star at the end of
the year or performance
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What are the results of these experiences?
•consider themselves collectively special
•want to fit in
•want to please parents, friends, teachers, etc.
•may not know what to do if left by themselves
•easily bored because there is “nothing to do”
•do not know how to “go out and play”
•accustomed to immediate feedback and may not
think long range
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What are their “Expectations”?
•expect instant gratification
•expect immediate feedback
•expect to be rewarded for participation not
accomplishment
•expect a trophy or star for everything they do
•expect to rise to the top quickly
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Hence, the
“Generation Clash”
Millennials Expect:
•expect a grade based on how hard they worked, hence
expect grade inflation
•expect “teamwork” & “organized activities”, and do
not consider “helping each other” as wrong, hence
do not understand our definition
of scholastic dishonesty
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However, our Generation’s
definition of cheating is unclear
“In circa-2000 America, you can look
everywhere from politics to business to sports
and you’ll find adult cheaters being excused,
even celebrated, so long as they can prove
themselves winners.”
Howe and Strauss, Millennials Rising
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However, our Generation’s
definition of cheating is unclear
“… adults, in charge of schools, often don’t
enforce anticheating rules and emphasize
collaborative learning, practice testing, and
web research in ways that make it unclear just
what it now means to “cheat” at school.”
Howe and Strauss, Millennials Rising
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Let’s not end on negatives about
this new generation of
“Millennials”
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Positives about these “Millennials”
•violent crime is down
•tobacco and alcohol use are down
•teen pregnancy is down
•aptitude test scores are up
•optimism about the future is up
•trust of mom & dad, authority and government are up
•they are the best well educated, technologically advanced and
technologically comfortable generation this world has ever
seen!
Some feel they may be the
Next Great Generation
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And, it’s our job to help them achieve this
potential!
“We” must “learn” how to “teach” them
without sacrificing
“our academic integrity”!