Weekly Readings: Sept 7

Articles about autoethnography and Gen Z college students

Autoethnography

Chang, H. (2008). Autoethnography. Autoethnography as method (pp. 43-57: 229). Left Coast Press.

Key Points: This chapter gives a good overview of the history of autoethnography, what it is and what it isn't, how it differs from other self-narrative writing such as autobiographies, the pros and cons of autoethnography, and pitfalls to avoid when writing an autoethnography. Most importantly writing and reading other autoethnography can bring about self-transformation and greater cultural sensitivity (Chang, 2008).

"Through the increased awareness of self and others, they will be able to help themselves and each other correct cultural misunderstandings, develop cross-cultural sensitivity, and respond to the needs of cultural others effectively" (Chang, 2008, p. 54).

Autoenthnography is a qualitiative research method, "that utilizes ethnographic methods to bring cultural interpretation to the autobiographical data of researchers with the intent of understanding self and its connection to others" (Chang, 2008, p. 56).

Initial Thoughts: Initially, I struggled to make my way through the historical aspect of autoethnography, especially as it related to anthropology, not quite viewing myself as an anthropologist. However, by the end, I was able to grasp how this type of writing is different than self-reflection. For my EDHI 602 The American College Student course, I have to write an autoethnography related to my undergraduate experience about how and why I remained in college. Reading this chapter gave me a much better understanding of how I will need to incorporate data/literature along with my self-reflections.

"Unless autoenthnographers stay focused on their research purpose, they can be tempted to settle for elaborate narratives with underdeveloped cultural analysis and interpretation" (Chang, 2008, p. 55).

Heartful Autoethnography

LINK

Ellis, C. (1999, September). Heartful autoethnography. Qualitative Health Research, 9(5), 669-683. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F104973299129122153

Key Points:

Ingredients of a heartful autoethnography:

• Start with your personal life

• Pay attention to physical feelings, thoughts, and emotions

• Try to understand the experiences you've lived through

• Write your experience in story form (Ellis, 1999, p. 671)

Points about writing good fiction that translates to good autoenthnography:

• Make the reader "feel the feelings of the characters, smell the smells, see the sights, hear the sounds, as though you were there" (Ellis, 1999, p. 676)

• Use "internal monologue, dialogue among the characters, dramatic recall, strong imagery, things like scene setting, character development, flashbacks, suspense, and action. You enter the reality of the novel through a dramatic plot line, which is developed through the particular actions of particular characters with particular bodies doing particular things” (Ellis, 1999, p. 676).

"If you viewed your project as closer to art than science, then your goal would not be so much to portray the facts of what happened to you accurately but instead to convey the meanings you attached to the experience. You’d want to tell a story that readers could enter and feel a part of. You’d write in a way to evoke readers to feel and think about your life and their lives in relation to yours. You’d want them to experience the experience you’re writing about." (Ellis, 1999, p. 674)

Initial Thoughts: I have the feeling I just read an autoethnography about autoethnography :) I appreciated the conversational, story style this article was written in to discuss the elements of writing an autoethnography. It helped me to think through how I can add more color and heart to my story.

"Think with a story, not just about a story. Thinking with a story means to allow yourself to resonate with the story, reflect on it, become a part of it" (Ellis, 1999, p. 676).

"If you let yourself be vulnerable, then your readers are more likely to respond vulnerably, and that’s what you want, vulnerable readers" (Ellis, 1999, p. 675).

College Students in the United States: Characteristics, Experiences, and Outcomes

Chapter 1

LINK

Renn, C. A. & Reason, R. D. (2021). Characteristics of college students in the United States. College students in the United States: Characteristics, experiences, and outcomes (2nd ed., pp. 3-22). Stylus.

Key Points: This chapter begins by discussing data of the sociodemographic characteristics of college students with sections titled as listed below:

Trends in Overall Enrollment

Undergraduate Enrollment

Racial and Ethnic Diversity

International Students

Sex Differences in Higher Education

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Queer Students in Higher Education

Transgender and Gender Nonbinary Students

Family Income Differences Among College Students

Adult Students

Returning Veteran Students

First-Generation College Students

Students with Disabilities and Mental Health Concerns

The authors do warn to not treat this data as if students identify by sectioning themselves off into neat and tidy boxes. Instead, the data must be looked at more holistically with an understanding of intersectionality. It's important to remember and understand as Renn & Reason (2021) state, "multiple identity groups intersect and individual differences manifest themselves to influence students' experiences" (p. 20).

The chapter then goes on to discuss the attitudes, values, and beliefs of college students today with subsections tilted as:

Religion and Spirituality

Political Attitudes

Attitudes Towards Experiences With Civic Engagement

Attitudes Towards Experiences with Diversity

"Obviously, students do not enter college as 'blank slates'; they come with attitudes, beliefs, expectations, and motivations that influence how they experience college" (Renn & Reason, 2021, p. 16).

Initial Thoughts: Overall the theme seems to be supporting the quote at the beginning:

"While it's still much too early to draw conclusions, initial signs suggest that post-Millennials are on track to become the most well-educated generation yet" (Fry & Parker, 2018, p.8 as cited in Renn & Reason, 2021, p. 3).

This is of particular interest to me because I'm the mom of two Gen Zers. Certainly, I'm biased, but I would have to agree with much of the analysis of this generation by Renn and Reason. And by the state of the world these days with so much distrust and misinformation being readily believed, I can only hope Gen Z proves to be more well-educated than what I'm seeing in the world today. Renn & Reason (2021) describe Gen Z as, "young adults born after 1996 as 'digital natives' who became accustomed to reports of school shootings and climate-driven disasters such as forest fires, hurricanes, and floods" (p.16). They go on to cite, "A Pew Research Center study (Parker & Igielink, 2020) found that Gen Z shares a number of political values with the millennials, including views on climate change and racism in the United States. Gen Z members tend to hold more inclusive views of LGBT people than previous generations and see both family and societal change as good" (p. 16). These are values and beliefs I see in my own sons. They embrace diversity, stand up for classmates of the LGBT community, and think deeply about social politics. I'm incredibly proud of my Gen Zers and trust they'll continue to embrace change and make this world better.

Teaching the Students We Have, Not the Students We Wish We Had

Goldrick-Rab, S. & Stommel, J. (2018, December 10). Teaching the students we have, not the students we wish we had. The Chronicle of Higher Education. https://www.chronicle.com/article/teaching-the-students-we-have-not-the-students-we-wish-we-had/

Key Points: College students today are "overburdened and undersupported" (Goldrick-Rab & Stommel, 2018). So while there are many complaints about "students these days" lacking interaction and being hard to teach, the authors encourage professors to revisit their curriculum to teach to today's overburdened students. Are the tools currently being used in the classroom excluding or including students? "It also requires that we begin with a consideration of what we value, the kinds of relationships we want to develop with students, why we gather together in places like universities, and how humans learn" (Goldrick-Rab & Stommel, 2018).

"Today’s college students are the most overburdened and undersupported in American history. More than one in four have a child, almost three in four are employed, and more than half receive Pell Grants but are left far short of the funds required to pay for college. Rather than receiving help from their parents to pay for college, even the youngest college students often have to use their loans to pay their parents’ bills." (Goldrick-Rab & Stommel, 2018)

Initial Thoughts: I've been thinking about the core curriculum that is a selection of required courses at many universities. These core courses could take up to one-third of the degree requirements and generally help guide the student to a more well-rounded degree and therefore well-rounded individual. For example, Ball State describes the purpose of their core "is to enable students to live rich, satisfying lives and to undertake the broad responsibilities of citizenship in a free society." However, more often than not, these courses are broad overviews of the subject while listening to professors drone on in large lecture halls with hundreds of students. If we are wanting to enrich our students, could there be a better way to offer these courses? Many of these courses are being taught the same way as they were back when I was in school in the 90s. If the students of today are not the same as the students from the 90s, then why are we still teaching the same way? One example of how Ball State has made changes is with their immersive learning English 103 and English 104 courses. These courses offer students the opportunity to work side by side with a Muncie nonprofit organization. Students will research and write marketing pieces and reports promoting these organizations. Students will stay with the same classmates and professor for both courses. When I asked incoming freshmen at summer orientation if they would be interested in this class, more often than not, they enthusiastically said yes. This seems like one way to think outside the box and connect students with a subject to a real-life experience.