Freshman Say What?!

            Being stereotyped is not the best feeling in the world. Although, some people might get great insight to how they are acting, their personal views, and perhaps some of the things they may not know about.

            A detailed, descriptive list, by Beloit College, has stereotyped the class of 2014. Some aspects are very true such as the many examples they gave about the way the class of ’14 acts. A lot of the descriptions gave insight about how technology influences the every-day life of those who are now college freshman. They also told how the class is accustomed to the lingo of “carmel macchiato” and “half caf vanilla latte.” Perhaps this shows how this class rarely has to work for the things they get. On the flip side though it may show how much time is spent working, and the need for a caffeine pick-up is a necessity. The class of 2014 was stereotyped by the list saying the class of 2014 thinks the digital world and technology is too slow. A lot of people in the class of 2014 would more than likely prefer for the world to take a breath and slow down.

            It might be correct to say the class of 2014 is growing up quickly. With technology advancing as quickly as it is it is hard not to. A good example on the list put out by Beloit College was how people in the class of 2014 first met Michelangelo when he was a computer virus. However, many children in this era probably watched the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles at some point in their life, and knew that Michelangelo was a character in the show. An earlier generation probably knew Michelangelo as the famous Italian Renaissance painter, sculptor, architecht, poet, and engineer. Also with five hundred plus cable channels in their everyday life who knows how many other characters the class of 2014 met and remembers from television! One example is that “Beethoven has always been a good name for a dog” as the list from Beloit College stated.

            The class of 2014 may not know as much about history as the previous generations. However, there is plenty of access to knowledge on the World Wide Web. Because the technological influences on this class more people probably know how to type and use a computer efficiently than write in cursive. With iPhones, BlackBerries, and cell phones in general there is not much use for a wrist watch any more. One thing the Beloit College list did not come out directly to say was how the class of 2014 might be missing out on the face-to-face conversations. With all of the technology in the world there is not much need for that type of communication. Much of the news and mail is directly put on to the internet, and “snail mail” is now replaced by E-mail put directly onto their phones. Cell phones have made it virtually impossible to be on the phone with a cord attached from the earpiece to the receiver. However, as a child, there probably were a lot of the people from the class of 2014 who still experienced this. The class of 2014 has rarely had to deal with physical harm and attack. They have never had to be worried about Russian missle strike on the U.S. China has always been an economic threat. Korean made cars are a norm in the society for the class of 2014.   

            Being stereotyped by Beloit College really was not all that fictional. Most of the instances are very true. Coming from a student in the class of 2014 I feel like most of us are so dependent on technology that we miss out on history. We have seen a lot of changes throughout the years. However, some of the most basic principles of human to human communication are lost through this new web of information. We are learning about new and current issues most of the time and find ancient history, or history in general boring because everything in today’s world seems to be moving as such a fast pace. Most of the things on the list from the Beloit College were correct to say about how the class of 2014 acts, what their personal views are, and some of the things they may not know so much about.