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Boston University School of Public Health
Meeting the Challenges of
Teaching Multiple Generations in
the Same Classroom: Boomers,Gen X, Millennials and more....
Lisa Sullivan, PhD
Vanessa Boland Edouard, MPHBoston University School of Public Health
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Presenter Disclosures
(1)The following personal financial relationships
with commercial interests relevant to thispresentation existed during the past 12 months:
Lisa M SullivanVanessa Boland Edouard
No relationships to disclose
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Trends
Applications and enrollments in Schools ofPublic Health continue to grow (76% and 55%increase from 1998 to 2008)
More minority students (34% in 2008)
Percent female (70%) relatively constant
Approximately 60% full-time
ASPH Annual Data Report 2008
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Students
SOPHAS 2008-2009
mean age of 26 years (median=24 years);range 17-63 years
Age of students decreasing (slowly)
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BUSPH Past 10 Years
Mean age decreased by 3 years (29 to 26)
Classrooms more varied by age
28%
37%
24%
11% 40%
41%
12%
7%
20-2425-29
30-39
40+1999 2009
Aging faculty..
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Definitions
Generation Years Born Age Today
GI Generation 1900-1924 85-109
Silent generation 1925-1945 64-84
Baby Boomers 1946-1964 45-63
Generation X 1965-1979 30-44
Millennials or Generation Y 1980-2000 9-29
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Our Schools
Faculty Students
Boomers
Gen X
Gen Y
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Backdrop
Life experiences impact theway people learn
As students are getting
younger, faculty are aging
Challenge for faculty to beeffective in teaching and to
make teaching and learningrelevant
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How Many Can You Identify?
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Understand This?
*$ HTH
AISB IDST
AITR IMS
BFN KWIM
BITD M4C
CT Cant talk NP
DEGT Dont even go there NYC
GAS SEP
Starbucks
As I said before
Adult in the room
Bye for now
Back in the day
Cant talk
Dont even go there
Got a second?
Hope this helps
I didnt say that
I am sorry
Know what I mean?
Meet for coffee?
No problem / Nosy parent
Not your concern
Somebody elses problem
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How About You?
Are you constantly on-line? In the office, at home,..
Is your cell phone/PDA always with you?
Do you attend meetings with your laptop?
Are you always multitasking (e.g., conference call &answering e-mail)?
Do you use the computer to help you remember
dates and tasks?
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Mixed Classrooms
Older Students Younger Students
Benefits Experienced Technologically Savvy
Challenges Anxious Lack Identity
Mixed classroom closer to work environment
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Generation X
Latchkey kids both parents working
Many from single parent homes
Technologically savvy
Grew up with corporate downsizing andlayoffs, fewer career opportunities
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Generation X
Independent, problem solvers
Ambitious, self-starters
Want support but do not want to be told what todo or how to do it
Expect instant gratification, immediate feedback
Know they must keep learning to be marketable
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Generation Y
Largest generation since baby boomers
Many from divorced, single parent homes butparents are extremely hands-on (decade of thechild)
Overindulged, overprotected, self-absorbed
Technologically savvy
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Generation Y
Self-confident, entitled
Ambitious with high expectations
Want to know process, rules, how to get ahead Expect to start at the top
Want constant and immediate feedback
Move quickly from one thing to another Not as independent as Gen X (parental back-up)
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Helicopter Parents
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Our Students
Surfers and scanners not readers and digesters
Expect constant and immediate feedback
Want directness over subtlety
Technologically savvy but crave personal contact
Always hurried know what they want
Want to learn
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Our Faculty
Healthiest and wealthiest of generations todate
Redefine traditional values
Hard-working
Passionate (can change the world)
Believe in hierarchy may find it difficult toadapt to more flexible arrangements
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Some Comparisons
Boomers Gen X Gen Y
TV Video games Web
Memorandum E-mail Text Message
Competitive Skeptical Realistic
Solid Career Portable Career Parallel Careers
FeedbackOnce a year How am I doing? When I want it!
Boomers Gen X Gen Y
TV Video Games Web
Memorandum Email Text MessageCompetitive Skeptical Realistic
Solid Career Portable Career Parallel Careers
Feedback
Once a Year How am I doing? When I want it!
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Survey of BUSPH Faculty and Students
Faculty(n=42) Students(n=241)
% Male 38% 13%
Age
Gen Y 78%
Gen X 31% 18%
Boomers 69% 4%
Estimate of Mean Ageof MPH Students
26.4 (2.3) 26.0 (1.9)
(Actual=26)
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How Faculty Spend In-Class Time
Student
Group Work
15%
Student
Independent
Work 7%
Lecturing
59%
Other
19%
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Effective Strategies
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
%Responses
FacutlyTeachingStrategies
StudentLearningStrategies
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Communicating with Faculty
E-mail Mean # per week per course= 1.1
(TA: Mean # per week per course=0.9)
Face-to-face
Before & after class
Scheduled meetings0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
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Faculty Responses to E-Mail
Mean # hours per week responding to students E-mail : 5.5
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%
Longer than 1week
Within 1 week
Within 1 day
2 - 5 hours
Within 2 hours
Studentexpectation:how quicklyshould facultyrespond tostudent emails
Faculty report:how quicklyrespond tostudent emails
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Students Expectations
Want solid knowledge base and real-worldapplications
Want clear and organized presentation of material
Want to be stimulated, active and participatory Expect customer service
Want to know why (how does this activity, readingconnect to my future career?)
Want faculty to be enthusiastic, helpful and engaged Want FTF contact but OK to set boundaries
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Facultys Challenges
Time
Keeping up with my field
Dealing with students with varied backgroundsand skill levels
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Strategies
We must understand learners
Accept differences among students and betweenstudents and faculty
Engage students in setting goals and expectations Be flexible, creative and try not to be surprised by
anything that happens in the classroom!
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Strategies
Problem-based learning
Student-centered instruction
Adult learning/Adult education
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Student-Centered Learning
Substitute active learning projects andexperiences for lectures
Hold students responsible for material not yetcovered
Assign open-ended questions and problems
Use simulations, role-playing
Use self-paced or cooperative (team) learning
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Student Challenges
Students feel that teachers have changed therules
Teachers not teaching
Paying tuition for what?
Some do not want to work in groups
Do all members contribute equally?
Too difficult to schedule, coordinate Some dominate, others hide
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Faculty Challenges
Fear stop lecturing & lose control
Wont cover all of the material
Will students do the work? Fair assessment of group and team work
Repercussions of student dissatisfaction(lower ratings, etc)
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Suggestions
Cant satisfy everyone so mix it up!
Teach to the top
Use student-centered approaches
Use effective technology (audience response, realexamples)
Consider team work, peer-to-peer exchange
Focus content relevance
Stay connected
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Strategies
Use different methods
In-class
Outside of class (must link to
course objectives)
Encourage critical thinking and synthesis
Create opportunities for reflection Pre-class assignments
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Strategies
Inductive versus deductive teaching
Inductive let student observe, raise questions, explore
before learning concepts
Deductive more structured teacher first presentsideas and concepts and uses examples to illustrate
* Difficult for faculty
* May take more time
* May not be best for all students (esp. students with disabilities)
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Curricular Implications
Focus on skill building, real-world application Use of technology with purpose
Simulations
Laboratories
Collaboration and interaction are important
Most learning is outside of the classroom
Implications for teaching spaces
Implications for part-time students
Implications for students who dont own computers
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Next Generation
More older students as undergraduates
More younger students in articulated degreeprograms and public health majors/minors
More variability in our classrooms to come
Make changes now!
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References
Brown BL. New Learning Strategies for Generation X, ERIC Clearinghouse onAdult Career and Vocational Education; 1997.
Carlson E. Population Bulletin 20th-Century U.S. Generations, PopulationReference Bureau, 2009; 64(1).
Felder RM, Brent R. Navigating the Bumpy Road to Student-CenteredInstruction, College Teaching, 1996; 44: 43-47.
Goldman S. The Educational Kanban: Promoting Effective Self-Directed AdultLearning in Medical Education,Academic Medicine, 2009; 84(7): 927-934.
Hoover E. The Millennial Muddle, The Chronicle of Higher Education, October11, 2009.
Howard JR, Short LB, Clark SM. Students Participation in the Mixed-AgeClassroom, Teaching Sociology, 1996; 24(1): 8-24.
Oblinger D. Boomers, Gen-Xers Millennials. Understanding the new students,EDUCAUSE Review(July/August 2003); 37-47.
Oblinger D. Educating the Net Generation, EDUCAUSE Review(2005).
Trunk P. What Gen Y Really Wants, Time, July 5,2007.
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