Incivility in the Classroom: The Generation Gap The phrase “kids these days” is an infamous one that is passed down from generation to generation; the sentiment expressed in these words is a true constant in the midst of a constantly changing world. These words certainly seem to be echoing today within the halls of many colleges and universities. Ideally, educational institutions serve as a means to bridge the gap between generations as knowledge is passed from one group to the next. Unfortunately, the current college cohort are proving to be more disruptive than their predecessors.
Certainly, “… many of the widespread uncivil behaviors seen in college classrooms today were virtually nonexistent through the mid-1980s” (Frey-Knepp). The increasing amounts of nonscholarly, and downright disruptive, behavior seem to originate within this particular generation. The rising tide of incivility in college classrooms seems to flow from the current generation’s consumerist outlook on higher education and is further enabled and influenced by technological advancements. Incivility can take many forms and has been a recurring issue within classrooms.
A more exact way to define it would be to site the most prominent and recurring forms of incivility. Berger classifies these behaviors into a spectrum ranging from passive to overt or active incivilities (446). Passive incivilities include mild disruptions like packing up before the end of class, late arrivals, and talking, but active incivilities include directly disrespectful behavior, insults, and threats against the teacher or other students (Berger 446). Current college students have now added their own distinctive variation to these customary discourtesies.
The term “Millennials” was coined to describe the generation of approximately 80 million born between 1980 and 1995. Morley Safer describes this distinct group as “… tech sawy, with every gadget imaginable almost becoming an extension of their bodies… their priorities are simple: they come first. ” The modern student’s partiality to technology and skill in utilizing it have also allowed for certain pernicious incivilities: cell phones that bleat out in class and students that text freely.
While technology certainly enables classroom chaos, it is also the prevailing mindset of this legion that have helped create a trend of disruptive conduct in the college classroom. Millennials seem to value themselves and their own interests to the exclusion of all else. The traditional image of higher education is one of “hallowed” halls; those that walk within them act in proper deference to the honor of being allowed to pursue knowledge for the sake of knowledge. This ideal has been left behind as students now seem to primarily care about whether the dorm halls are spacious and the mess hall has good food.
A study examining the factors that influence student’s choice of college found that found that 42. 2% rated residential halls as a key factor in their decision making process (Woodson). The alluring outside of the college package is what appeals and “Important data… e. g. , student to faculty ratios, graduation rates, the percent of graduates who find jobs after college, faculty credentials, and information on the diversity of the community’ are overlooked (Woodson). This shift in priorities is demonstrative of consumerism that has become ingrained in the millennial mind. Certainly, secondary education is big business.
Higher education has grown into a 420 billion dollar industry that has been fed by rising tuition, “… which has doubled in both public and private institutions over the past decade” (Woodson). Students today are typically graduating with “… almost $30,000 in student loans” (Boone and Wang). It is not so far-fetched that students are coming to view themselves as customers with the amount of advertising, marketing, and money being exchanged. Arriving in the classroom with the expectations of a customer instead of a student does help to explain, if not excuse, the increasingly demanding and udacious behavior.
The consumerist mentality built upon the fundamental idea that the “customer is always right” may strongly contribute to classroom incivility. As with any purchase, there is an inherent notion that the purchaser has certain rights and protections against defective or unsatisfactory products. This may mean exchanging an ill-fitting shirt for another, or returning a defective vacuum for reimbursement, but for college students this means that they expect to be given a good grade after paying thousands of dollars in tuition and fees.
What may be more alarming than these demands, however, are the responses to them. Assistant Dean Edward Abeyta observes, “Institutions today must compete with one another for students, resources and prestige, and students know it. ” There seems to be a new relationship developing between students and their educational institutions with students acting as a demanding customer and institutions responding primarily in a business minded way. This new business focus has led many institutions to only “sanction the most serious forms of uncivil behavior” (Frey-Knepp).
This is a shifting dynamic within higher education that could cause friction and set in place an environment for incivility to grow. Further aiding this growth is the pervasiveness of technology and the Millennial’s dependence upon it. Technology’s influence is ever expanding as it becomes more and more integrated into the lives of its users. Professor Kapp of the University of Arizona has seen the side effects of this generation’s tech sawy, including bad habits like “Texting, Instagramming, Facebook scrolling, YouTube video watching… lagiarizing material off of Wikipedia DURING an in class assignment. ”
Technology has also influenced the way students learn, which further widens the divide between generations in the classroom. Certain “… tuning-out behaviors” are seen and perceived as merely a sign of disrespect, but they may also be the result of “… learning needs not being addressed” (). The National Training Laboratories reports retention for the average modern student learning via lecture is only 5% and 10% from reading (Bart). Instead of “… learning by lecture or the teacher-centered approaches that faculty tend to favor…
Millennials prefer active and engaging activities, such as simulations and group work” (Pardue and Morgan 75). Knowledge for its own sake has fallen by the wayside; it is more valuable to be able to filter the seemingly endless data to find what will be actually useful. This may mean that part of the tension present in college classrooms is due in part to instructors having to relinquish their traditional teaching methods and adapt to the new learning style of their current students. Certainly part of the conflict within the classroom is due to clashing expectations for learning.
The rising amounts of incivility in the classroom correlate to the rising amount of tension between the very different generations that now share that space. It is a natural and ageless cycle as one generation’s influence rises as another declines and the natural conflict between changing values. The Millennial generation views itself as an entitled customer and the influence of advancing technology has altered the way students learn as well as what they value in education. These differing viewpoints create conflict and aggravation for both sides as they fail to see the world from the other’s perspective.
Lacking an appreciative mindset results in frustration and helps to set the stage for the uncivil acts to follow. There is no excuse for bad behavior, but there may be a rationale behind the behavior that should be understood if the behavior is to be corrected. The college classroom reveals evidence of an increasing gulf between the generations. Though this may present significant challenges, including incivility, it also presents opportunity for learning about more than just course content and to bridge the gap with increased understanding.
