Not to worry
Altbach, Philip G. & Lewis, Lionel S.
NOT TO WORRY PHILIP G. ALTBACH THE COLLEGE MOLD DOESN'T HOLD LIONEL S. LEWIS On one side of the often acrimonious debate about "political correctness" and the sanctity of the traditional...
...Service-related majors or those majors which did not promise instant economic gratification languished...
...they believe that the bulk of student aid is going to others more favorably placed...
...The wangling is unnecessary if the concern is about changing or safeguarding the social attitudes or civility or character or ethics of students...
...What is worth knowing...
...Clearly, there are differences in college students over time...
...Back in 1957, Philip Jacob found that students were hardly changed by their collegiate experience...
...Just what does college do for students...
...Sykes, for example, reminds us about the "distinction between teaching and indoctrination...
...There is little doubt that students do learn as a result of going to college, but they remain remarkably untouched in terms of attitudes and values by academic experiences...
...We can focus on what is important...
...Their survey of 2,600 studies carried out over the last two decades on American students tells us that college has only a modest and mostly illdefined impact on students...
...During the 1960s, students became more liberal and their choice of majors reflected a concern with social activism and service...
...And these two authors are not the first to look at student change and not find much...
...American colleges and universities are an integral part of American society: so far as there are social, racial, and economic tensions in society, these will be reflected on campus...
...We should remember that the much-studied women from Bennington College, who were saturated with New Deal ideas in the 1930s, were not discernibly different when compared with their sisters and other close relatives a decade later...
...In 1969, Kenneth Feldman and Theodore Newcomb were more optimistic about college impact, but their massive synthesis did not come up with convincing or unambiguous evidence...
...Ernest T. Pascarella and Patrick T. Terenzini, following in the tradition of earlier studies, have summarized the massive but not very conclusive research on students in How College Affects Students (Jossey-B ass, 1991...
...The latter, conservatives like Dinesh D' Souza and Charles J. Sykes, are, at present, the most vocal...
...One could add the annual surveys of American college freshmen done by UCLA and the American Council on Education...
...What, then, should colleges and universities do...
...For example, the new Pascarella and Terenzini study notes that, on the following items: social liberalism, political liberalism, civil rights and liberties, secularism, and modern gender roles, the net effects of college on attitudes and values are either unclear or small...
...If a wealth of evidence shows that over the past two decades a college education has not greatly affected the attitudes and values of students, perhaps educators are spending too much time on attempting to manipulate the curriculum with the idea of changing attitudes...
...But when it comes to attitudes and values, the evidence is less persuasive...
...the abyss that separates the Socratic method from propaganda...
...To be sure, there was some radicalization in the 1960s, a modest although noticeable conservative trend in the Reagan years, and most recently there is evidence of some resurgent liberalism among students...
...These "radicals" have become intensely involved in rethinking the curriculum and adding various courses dealing with multiculturalism, minority perspectives, and human relations in an effort to influence the attitudes and values of students...
...They are convinced that the Left has captured the curriculum and that students are being subjected to the politically correct radical ideology of the campus Left...
...The best that higher education can do is to ensure a stimulating environment for learning, study, and research...
...Once this is recognized, the heat can be lowered on the curriculum debate...
...NOT TO WORRY PHILIP G. ALTBACH THE COLLEGE MOLD DOESN'T HOLD LIONEL S. LEWIS On one side of the often acrimonious debate about "political correctness" and the sanctity of the traditional curricular "canon" are faculty who would like their teaching to have a liberalizing influence on the attitudes and values of American college students...
...After the 1960s, students were buffeted by the economic uncertainties and declining job market of the 1970s...
...Moreover, opposition in high places to affirmative action, quotas, and other efforts to ensure racial equality, as well as recent decisions by the Supreme Court have all signaled significant change...
...The other side is concerned that these humanists will be successful, that those who take a certain ideological line in the classroom will impose a dubious worldview on students...
...They feel threatened by admissions programs that seem to favor someone else...
...The evidence shows that these do not significantly alter student ideologies...
...But these are precisely the areas which are so bitterly contested today...
...Student generations change because young people are affected by the same societal trends and conditions as the rest of the population...
...Improved race relations and a greater degree of tolerance on campus will not come from restricting freedom of expression or mandatory human relations courses...
...Thus, a broadened concept of the role of minorities in American life and a multicultural approach to history and society would not be inimical to a coherent curriculum...
...As entering freshmen during the Reagan years, students had their sights on professional degrees and careers...
...The effort to marry the curriculum to social and attitudinal change would seem to be fruitless...
...What do we need to know...
...Political correctness will lose much of its salience and the Right will be able to stop worrying about students being brainwashed...
...But students come to campus with these predispositions...
...Everyone should relax...
...it is a conceit to believe otherwise...
...A new book reminds us of the illusory nature of attitude change on campus...
...College graduates also benefit economically from having obtained a university degree...
...How could it be otherwise...
...The traditionalists have pitted themselves against those whom they describe as radicals who worry about the rise of racism on campus and a general intolerance and separatism among students...
...The debate about the curriculum should be based on questions about what knowledge is intrinsically important and what is useful in an increasingly complex and technologically oriented society...
...Later, in the 1970s and 1980s, students of the "me-generation" flocked to fields such as law and business, fields that would yield high incomes...
...The academic experience imparts knowledge—students seem to learn something in college...
...in the 1980s they were affected by the conservative ethos and instant gratification of the Reagan years...
...If they use what they learn, they retain it...
...Why do the attitudes and values of students change over time...
...Spouses and children, 14: 10 April 1992 Commonweal community activities, and social class were clearly more salient than vaguely remembered Keynesian theory and liberal ideas imbibed on campus...
...Perhaps the "core curriculum" proponents who devised the Chicago "Great Books" program or the Columbia general education core were right...
...Although 1991 freshmen may not see the world precisely as freshmen did in 1971, throughout individual college careers there is remarkable stability in attitudes toward politics, life-styles, and ideology...
...They focused on what they felt was important to learn...
...It should be kept in mind that these Commonweal 10 April 1992: 15 core programs were not static—they changed as ideas about knowledge expanded and society presented new challenges...
...Further, "Willie Hortonism" has combined with real fears and tensions to produce a deterioration in campus race relations...
...The skills and knowledge, and most particularly the discipline, that are learned in college are valued by employers—we know this because employers pay more for college graduates...
...And what should the academic community do to improve the present problematical situation...
...They learn them at home and believe them before attending their first college lecture...
...The fact is that students are only marginally influenced in terms of attitude change, politics, or broader societal perspectives by their experiences in higher education...
...All this leaves us with several important questions...
...Our point is that American higher education has been led astray by the idea that the curriculum, the impact of professors, and the "collegiate experience" change attitudes...
...q 16: 10 April 1992 Commonweal...
...It is becoming more respectable in American society to blame minority groups not only for society's ills but also for one's own individual problems...
...Studies indicate that those with a degree earn more than their counterparts without one...
...In colleges and universities across the country, many white students see affirmative action and other programs favoring minorities as hurting themselves—a zero-sum game...
...Not surprisingly, many college students buy into these new attitudes and values...
...Why has there been a deterioration in racial and ethnic relations...
...It is not surprising that the campus felt the influence of these basic economic and social factors...
...In the past few years, cutbacks in higher education and a tough job market have led to worries on campus...
...For the most part, students are pretty well inoculated against ideological and intellectual currents...
...For example, classes in sociology were full and faculties doubled or tripled in size...
Vol. 119 • April 1992 • No. 7
