Social Life vs. Academics

1. Social Life vs. Academics Kristine Balderston Literature and Society Dr. Sherry 9/29/10

2. Problem • College is about social life and academics • How do college students create a balance?

3. Proposed Response to Problem • Summarizing studies of college culture: • My Freshman Year: What a Professor Learned by Becoming a Student by Rebekah Nathan (2005) • Coming of Age in New Jersey: College and American Culture by Michael Moffatt (1989) • Interpreting ethnographic data • Describing the culture of college life at Bloomsburg University

4. Background Studies of College Culture • Who: • Rebekah Nathan and Michael Moffatt • What: • Performed ethnographic studies of their colleges by enrolling as students and living in the dorms • Why: • To create an understanding of college culture through ethnographic studies • Where: • Nathan: “AnyU”, Moffatt: Rutgers University • When: • Nathan: 2005, Moffatt 1989

5. Background • Nathan: • Compared to students decades ago: • “Today’s public college students are both studying a little less and socializing less.” ₁ (Nathan, 2005, p. 33) • This means more students have jobs and are involved in clubs • Student’s social networks are important to college students • Many relationships are typically formed early in college or through a common activity • Student’s balance socializing and going to class and most multitasked • An example is watching TV while doing homework

6. Background • Moffatt: • College is a combination of social life and academics • Students referred to extracurricular learning as “social learning” • 4 in 5 considered extracurricular learning more important₂ (Moffatt, 1989, p.58) • All but 10% considered extracurricular learning contributed to their maturation in college (Moffatt, 1989, p.58) • This means 90% of the students thought this type of learning allowed them to make real-life decisions and work through real-life problems • Many students consider social learning more important than academics

7. What About Bloomsburg? • Do the students at Bloomsburg care more about social life or academics? • How do the students at Bloomsburg create a balance?

8. Method • Interpret ethnographic data by: • Visiting dorm rooms • Surveying people about a typical day • Observing a public space on campus • Interviewing people “unlike you”

9. Findings • Dorm Rooms: • Dorm rooms could show if the student was more social or academic such as by neat vs. messy or books vs. entertainment • The picture on the left shows a futon in a student’s room • The futon suggests the person is social and has an inviting room for friends and hallmates to come in and hangout • The student with the futon was more likely to have friends come over and therefore worked less on school work • The pictures on the desk suggest the person loves to be reminded of friends and family all the time • The student, even if they were alone in the room, was surrounded by pictures of their favorite people and places • The picture on the right shows another student’s room • The room is clean and organized and this suggests that it allows the student to focus academically • The students I observed who were focused and diligent with their school work had clean and organized rooms • The students who had messy rooms were distracted and unable to concentrate on their school work • There are also books on the bed showing the student was recently doing homework or studying • This suggests that academics is important and comes before their social life

10. Findings • Surveying students: • Surveying students about a typical day could show more about how they spend their time and their balance between social life and academics • Student 1 (Left): • The first student I interviewed spent five hours hanging out with friends and only an hour and a half doing homework • The student spent more time hanging out with friends than on homework which suggests social life is more important to them • Student 2 (Right): • The second student I interviewed was in class for five and half hours, did homework for two and half hours, then worked for an hour and a half • This shows the student’s priorities are academics and work • Students do prioritize academics and others are required to spend time doing school work because their job takes up a good amount of time

11. Tables Drinks Desserts Food Commons 10 11 2 5 2 Findings 7 4 2 2 4 3 6 4 • Observing a public space: • Observing a public space on campus could relate to identifying students who are more social or academic • I went to the Commons at lunch and observed a majority of students were eating with friends or roommates • There were some students sitting with one other person but no one was sitting along • This shows students enjoy eating with friends instead of eating by themselves • The biggest group of students at a table could suggest that they are more social • I found when it comes to eating lunch or dinner students, social or academic, enjoying making time to eat with friends

12. Findings • Interviewing people “unlike you”: • Interviewing people who you think are “unlike you” allows you to learn about how they participate in college culture • I thought the two students I interviewed were only focused academically because they always read, went to class, and were working on school work • I found they were actually more social and made time to fit in their school work • I asked: What is your favorite thing about college? • Student 1: My favorite thing about college is learning more about myself, meeting new people, and the freedom • Student 2: My favorite thing about college is being away from family, freedom, independence, and clubs • Both student’s answers involved friends and meeting people instead of classes or academics • Also both students listed freedom • This suggests they enjoy the freedom college brings such as deciding how you personally balance social life and academics

13. Conclusion • The culture at Bloomsburg is social life and academics • Students consider both important • Academics is important in earning good grades and a degree • Social life is important to create friendships, relationships, and networks • Some students attend just for the social life, others for academics, or for a balance of social life and academics • Nathan and Moffatt’s studies of college culture agree social networks and academics are equally important • The data shows the students who had jobs were more focused academically because they only had time to focus on school work • Students who formed relationships early were usually more into their social life to keep up their network of friends • Student who were able to multitask could focus both academically and make time for their social life

14. Conclusion (cont.) • A student’s schedule can suggest how they would spend time on academics or social life • College is a chance to make new friends and create social networks while learning and earning a degree • Students need a healthy balance of social life and academics in order to get the most out of college • The data I collected suggests a majority of students at Bloomsburg create a balance

15. References ₁Moffatt, M. (1989). Coming of Age in New Jersey: College and American Culture. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press. ₂Nathan, R. (2005). My Freshman Year: What a Professor Learned by Becoming a Student. New York: Penguin Group, Ltd.