Focus

1. Focus On the Millennial Generation Presented by David J. Sorrells, Ph.D. Coordinator of Assessment QEP Chair

2. The Millennial Boom . . . • Millennials were born between 1980 and 2000, and the birthrate peaked in 1990. • Millennials are the largest generation of Americans – with over 112 million people. • Millennials make up 36% of the population. • 31% of Millennials in the US are from minority groups. (Brown, 2011)

3. Birth Trends of Millennials • Baby Boomers chose to become parents (or to become parents again) at an older age in the 1980s. • Early Gen X moms reverted back to earlier birth-age norms. • Thus, two generations were having babies at the same time. • Most Millennials have older Baby Boomer parents. • The average age of first-time mothers was at an all-time high of 27 in 1997.

4. Demographic Trends • Smaller families: about 10% of Millennials come from families with only one child. • More parental education: 1 in 4 Millennial students has at least one parent with a college education. • Kids born in the late 1990s are the first in American history whose mothers are more educated than their fathers, by a small margin.

5. Trends – Changing Diversity • Increase in Latino immigration • The largest minority is Latino/Hispanic, who speak another language, thereby helping to create a bilingual world for American students. • Nearly 35% of Millennials are nonwhite or Latino • 20% of this generation have at least one parent who is an immigrant • Millennials are the most racially and ethnically diverse generation in US history.

6. Baby Boomers and Early Gen-Xersas Parents • Boomers and early Gen-Xers rebelled against the parenting practices of their parents. • They made conscious decisions not to say “Because I told you so” or “Because I’m the parent and you’re the child.” • Strict discipline was the order of the day for boomers.

7. Baby Boomers/Early Gen-Xers as Parents • Boomers and early X-ers wanted their children to be able to understand the pros and cons of situations, be able to make sound decisions, know not to talk to strangers, not to believe everything they read, etc. • They explained actions, consequences, and options to their children rather than choosing for the children.

8. Baby Boomers/Early X-ers as Parents • Boomers and X-ers allowed their children to have input into family decisions, educational options, and discipline issues. • This coupled with the popularity of computer software and games that changed the ending based on the decisions children made (role-playing games).

9. We navigated our way through . . .

10. They navigate their way through . . .

11. The Result? • Millennials have become “a master set of negotiators” who, at a young age, are • Capable of rational thought • Able to make complex decisions • They will negotiate with anyone, including their teachers. • Some call this “arguing.”

12. There is no I in Teamwork Millennials have done everything in teams . . . • They played soccer or took dance together since the age of 3. • They went to play groups. • They participated in all kinds of groups • Scouts • Sports • Extracurricular activities Millennials work extremely well in teams and with diverse individuals, with no fear or preconceptions.

13. Millennials Want to Learn . . . • With technology • With each other • Online • In their time • In their place • Doing things that matter

14. . . . but they have some issues. • Diversity of needs, backgrounds, and experiences • High drop-out and failure rates (average 3 of 10) • Poor class participation • Typically underprepared • Have difficulty relating to authority figures using traditional communication techniques.

15. Which group do you think claims TECHNOLOGY as distinctive and unique to its Generation? • Silent Generation • Baby Boomers • Gen-Xers • Millennials

16. Technology is a MUST When asked what makes their generation distinctive and unique: • 24% of Millennials say TECHNOLOGY more than any other answer. • 12% of Gen-Xers cite technology as generationally distinctive. Baby Boomers and the Silent Generation generally don’t cite technology as distinctive in their generations. (Pew Research, “Millennials: A Portrait of Generation Next,” 2010)

17. Which generation do you think is smartest? • Silent Generation • Baby Boomers • Gen-Xers • Millennials

18. Who is Smartest? In the same Pew Research Poll cited above, each generation defined itself as smarter than the others: Millennials: 6% Gen-Xers: 6% Baby Boomers: 5% Silent Generation: 13%

19. Technology is a MUST for Millennials and Late Gen-Xers • This generation has been plugged in since they were babies. • They grew up with educational software and computer games.

21. Technology and the Millennial Students Students of the Millennial Generation are accustomed • To using keyboards rather than pens or pencils • To reading information from computer screens or mobile devices rather than from printed texts • To being connected with friends in digital environments The same can be said about late Gen-Xers, too.

22. What do you with YOUR smartphone? • Place or answer calls • Text • Play games • Surf the internet • Read a book • Play with apps • What’s a smartphone?

23. Millennials use their Smartphones for: • Texting • Taking pictures • Going online • Downloading apps • Email • Recording video • Playing music • Playing games What is missing? Talking on the phone and listening to messages Pew, 2011

24. 24/7 • Millennials want and expect services 24/7. • They do not live in an 8-5 world. • They all have cell phones and expect to be in contact 24/7. "More than 8 in 10 [Millennials] say they sleep with a cell phone glowing by the bed, poised to disgorge texts, phone calls, e-mails, songs, news, videos, games and wake-up jingles.” (Choney, 2010)

25. Email? Are You Kidding? • The average college student reads 2.4 emails a day • 25% of students use email ONLY to sign up for social networking sites • 36% use email to receive email alerts to keep up to date on their social • networking sites (Carol Phillips, 2008) • 90% of all email is spam (Cisco’s Annual Security Report, 2009)

26. Social Networking • 75% of Millennials have a Social Networking site profile • 30% of Baby Boomers have a profile • 6% of Silents have a profile Pew, 2011

27. OMG – ROTFLMAO – HTH <3 • 18- to 24-year-olds send or receive over 1,400 text messages a month (Oct. 2010) • 63% of Millennials feel a sense of connectedness when they receive text message feedback • 58% feel an increase in confidence from the feedback (Bentlage, 2011) “Messaging isn’t just a new technology; it’s also a new language.” (Forbes, 2006)

28. The Digital Divide What About First-Generation/Working Class Millennial Students? Not all Millennial students will be proficient with technology: • their experience with technology may be limited to television, movies, and games • they may not have had exposure to educational uses of technology • most of these students have cell phones that have texting capability • all of these students have access to on-campus technology

29. Who Are Our Students? According to IE Director Nancy Cammack’s Fact Book, on average in 2009-2010: • 1385 LSCPA students were 24 years old or younger • 756 LSCPA students were 25 years old or older Simple observation on campus will tell us that by far the greatest proportion of our student body is made up of Millennials and late Gen-Xers.

30. What Works Against You • Trying to appeal to every single person in the classroom • Trying to appeal to all generations in the same assignment • Not allowing students with experience to bring that into the classroom, including technological savvy • Ignoring generational differences completely • Not asking students to stretch beyond their comfort zones

31. What Works for Everyone • Emphasizing active learning • Requiring participation in some way for each class period • Changing activities often • Encouraging discussion and cooperation between generational groups • Using team or group activities often • Enforcing individual accountability for group projects • Assigning group roles for the first few team/group projects • Giving individual work in addition to group work • Tapping into the technological savvy and interest of Gen-Xers and Millennials

32. Comparative Data

33. Use of Digital Devices (Pew, 2011)