MS> DH> by virtue of being HS graduates we expect them to act somewhat m
MS> DH> responsibly.  
MS>  
MS>     Given that the vast majority of HS seniors (particularly in "col
MS> courses) graduate, is it reasonable to expect them to magically beco
MS> responsible the moment they get the HS degree?
 
My personal feelings are that I place that expectation to act 
responsibly a heck of a lot earlier in life than at the 17 or 18 yr 
point.  However, generally speaking, I feel that yes we do "expect" a 
transformation to take place at that point.  Now whether that is a 
valid expectation or not is a matter in-and-of its self.  This may not 
be like an "ahh-ha" experience (if you know what I mean by that--the 
"sudden understanding of life and everything" kind of experience) on 
the part of the student, but the realization that they've moved into 
another phase of life.  Much of the student's understanding of this has 
to come from support from the family that puts a value on the 
transition...just as we encourage the new first grader, or the student 
just entering middle school or high school.  We have greater 
expectations for students achieving those educational milestones, so 
should we have greater expectations for those moving from HS to 
college.  
 
This expectation of increased responsible behavior is no different than 
what I expect of my college students.  I teach Air Force ROTC, when 
college students complete our program, they enter the US Air Force as 
Second Lieutenants, officers who are then immediately responsible for 
leading the enlisted force, managing financial and physical resources 
and of course providing for the National Defense.  These same young 
people were the ones two months prior were just "college students".  
The difference, and what prepares them for the challenges and increased 
responsibility they face when they complete their program is the 
training and education they receive in the 2 or 4 yr program -- we 
teach them skills that will be useful as they develop their own 
leadership styles.
 
I would hope that we are teaching our high school students (all 
students for that matter) how to prepare for that transition from HS to 
college, teaching them skills for how to behave responsibly, modeling 
postive behaviors.  This has to be happening in the home as well as in 
the school for it to be truly effective.  I know it's happening out 
there because I come in contact with a lot of college freshman who are 
mature beyond their years, obviously someone took the time to "teach" 
them throughout their educational career.  I bet in each one of those 
kids you could find a parent or teacher that took the time to 
communicate with and take interest in them...someone they could say 
had a significant impact on them -- [thwack] -- a role model!  Ahhh, 
but too many people feel that it takes too much time to take interest 
in a young person and we lose touch with them...we don't change our 
expectations mind you, we hold the same beliefs about how they *should* 
act, but we don't provide them the tools to get there.  It's no wonder 
those "discipline problems" you speak of pop up.
 
Hehehe that's the long answer to your question...the short answer is 
yes, while I don't believe in a magic wand approach ->poof<- you're 
more responsible, I do believe that society in general does expect 
a transition to occur at that stage in a young persons life. I also 
feel we should have been preparing them for this transition for quite 
some time. We used to prepare them for it better than we do today, this 
is something we ought to work on.
 
MS> DH> I had one such student last term (SP 96) in my college 300 level
[snip]
MS>     A few months earlier, his same behavior (skipping class) would h
MS> considered a "discipline problem" in most any HS in America.
 
FWIW, he was a Jr in college, he'd been out of HS a few years, but yes 
if he'd exhibited that behavior in a HS or Middle School setting it 
would have been viewed differently based on the environment and 
expections in that environment...gosh, my daughter's kindergarten 
teacher probably would have put him in "time-out" and not let him 
color! ;)  But the fact remains, he was in college, knew the 
expectations, was given the tools to help him meet those expectations, 
and he chose not to.
 
Thanks for the reply!
 
Dale
--- TriDog 10.0
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