April 4th found me circling the parking lot at Edmonds Community College in a vain attempt to find a space to park my car. For 15 minutes I drove around the campus, going ever further from my first class of the day - Spanish 100. Yup. I'm back in real college, taking ten credits towards renewing my teaching certificate.
Upon snagging a spot, panic set in when I realized how much time it would take me to walk across campus to my 8:30 a.m. class in Room 204 in Snoqualmie Hall. Being late is not my style, and certainly being late for my "first day" would not be cool. However, as I scurried along I found I was not alone. My fellow students were apparently doing the same, faces intent, coffees in hand.
I wasn't sure what to expect because it had been half a century since I was a freshman at the University of Washington, taking a full schedule of 100 level courses. Literally huffing and puffing I managed to arrive at the same time as the teacher, and slipped with relief into a second row seat. My first impression was how quiet everyone was. My second was seeing true diversity in age, race, and physical capability. In my first college experience all those years ago, the classes were filled with young, mostly white faces, and socializing, or should I say flirting, was a natural part of the educational process. After all, in those days girls were in college to get their "MRS." degrees. Right?
Here students ranged from 17 or l8 years of age to 60 +, with most in their 20s and 30s. One older fellow was getting a language requirement out of the way so that he could transfer to a special program at the U.W. Ditto a young mother trying to get into the nursing program at the same place.
The instructor was a brusque, no nonsense male in his fifties, who spoke in a heavily accented voice. Actually at the end of the period I decided he was pretty cool! After taking roll he spoke in a rapid fire mix of English and Spanish, and I was scribbling down notes as fast as I could, while also trying to understand what the heck he was saying.
In going over the syllabus he stressed the importance of classroom participation. Periodically he would ask a question requiring one of us to answer, but few were brave enough to try. Finally he asked a question I thought I could answer about the use of dipthongs in Spanish, but my answer did not meet with his approval. I think he said something like "on a scale of 1 to 5 with one being the lowest, my answer might be a 2". Since I have a 4.0 mentality this beginning salvo did not bode well for my future "A" grade.
At 9:20 the class ended and I dashed out the door to find my next class, beginning piano. It was located across the campus, and I was again out of breath when I arrived. Already I could see a benefit to my studies. Weightwatchers and my doctor have long been urging me to walk, and suddenly I am put in a situation where I must walk far and fast. Could it be that I will finally lose those pesky pounds?
The instructor, a warm, friendly woman probably also in her fifties, was flitting about making sure that each of the twenty-five or so students was sitting at a working keyboard. She was welcoming and outgoing, and I had the feeling that I just might be able to do o.k. in the piano playing department. The set up in the classroom was amazing. Each keyboard was hooked into some kind of electronic console at the front, and once we had all donned headphones, the teacher could talk to us as a group or individually if we pressed a button on our keyboards. She could also listen to us play solo the same way. This seemed like an efficient and effective way to teach the class.
A week has now passed and here are some major differences from fifty years ago, and insights gained.
First, despite all the media attention to the woes of higher education, EDCC seems to be doing a fine job of educating kids, from the point of registration to sitting in the classroom. I can now speak with some authority as I have "been there and done that!"
Fifty years ago I was a seventeen year old farm girl, excited to be away from home and living in a dormitory pretending to be all grown up. Dorm life was different from sorority life (less social but still fun), meeting other girls who would become lifelong friends. Much time was spent conjecturing and giggling over the attentions of this boy or that. I was not looking for an MRS. Degree, but still it was fun to dream. The girls lived on one side of the campus, the boys on the other, and the thought of panty raids was deliciously exciting. Curfew was 11:00 on weeknights and 2:00 on Friday and Saturday.
Now I am a senior citizen, mother and grandmother, with a specific purpose - certificate renewal. There must surely be giggling, hopeful girls somewhere on the EDCC campus or in class, but somehow the kids seem more focused and mature than I felt at the same age. Perhaps that is the nature of a community college with the vast majority being commuters, rather than at four-year schools where many live on campus, in a protected, youth-oriented environment.
Fifty years ago, the student body was largely white, as were members of the basketball and football teams. There was a "foreign student" presence, but those students were in the minority. The age range seemed to be 17-22. If one was handicapped the facilities were limited. A senior citizen student was rare indeed.
Now at community colleges and the University of Washington, one sees large numbers of international students chattering away in a multitude of languages. The teaching staff is equally diverse. Facilities allow for even seriously handicapped students to feel comfortable. Sport teams are full of minority students.
Fifty years ago I remember going to a gigantic building on the UW campus where registration took place. Everything seemed big - the majestic library, the buildings surrounding the Quad, Frosh Pond, the long walks between dorm and classes, especially science, historic Denny Hall and, of course, the HUB or student union building where we met up with friends. It was hard to find one's way around. To this day I find the immense campus confusing.
Now, at EDCC, I find buildings that are well marked , strategically placed direction markers in various pedestrian areas, and, when all else fails, maps to show where everything is located. Walking across campus is doable. The buildings are attractive and serviceable. They do the intended job.
Fifty years ago a few lucky young people, mostly guys, had cars. Most did not. We walked around campus and down to the "Ave" where we shopped, saw a movie, or ate out occasionally. Rarely did we go downtown, but if so, we took busses. There were few parking areas, and parking was not a problem.
Now it seems like most college students have wheels, although there are many who also take the bus. This means that large areas of campus must having parking for staff and students alike. I think EDCC has a leg up compared to other colleges. I didn't have to pay for parking, I simply have to get there early enough to find a space. This was problematic the first week, and I found I needed to come earlier and earlier to snag a spot.
Fifty years ago cost of tuition at the University of Washington was listed at $25.00 per quarter for residents, with 15 + credits a full load. That would be $75.00 per year. Is that even possible? EDCC did not exist at that time. The cost was within the budget of most kids if they worked, and the post-college debt load was insignificant unless you were in medical school.
Now The annual tuition is $8,701 for residents at the UW. At EDCC the present day cost for a full load (ten or more credits) is $870.00 per quarter or approximately $2700.00 per year. The debt load for loans and other money acquisitions, despite healthy scholarships and grants, is huge and hard to pay back.
And the biggest change . . . Technology!
Fifty years ago I lugged my old manual Underwood typewriter to college and used it for term papers and letters home. Some papers were handwritten. One prayed for no mistakes because corrections were messy and there was no such thing as liquid paper. When an easy-erase paper arrived on the scene we rejoiced. Based on today's standards and output of information, I honestly don't know how we survived.
Now we register on line, talk to the professors on line, use an on-line resource called Blackboard, that I don't yet fully understand, and in general have student academic lives dictated by the internet. As an aside, referring to the importance of the internet in our daily lives, during my first week of school our home phones and internet connections went ka-put and we were lost until a repairman arrived.
So what is the lesson to be learned? Every generation has its good points and bad, its problems and solutions.
Fifty years ago I loved living on campus, socializing and making lifelong friends. It helped to shape who I am and what my contributions to the world are. Part of me is sorry that many of today's young people cannot have that experience. It kept us young and blissfully ignorant about life's problems for a few extra years.
But now, in this age of technology, young people grow up faster and are more informed. Ignorance is not possible. Therefore, I am pleased to see the seriousness and apparent dedication of the present day students, at least at the community college level. They are dealing with the hand life has dealt them, and are eager to make their own marks on the world. Sadly they will have other problems to deal with such as our economy, world-wide unrest, environmental issues and the like. Somehow I hope and believe today's young people will rise to the occasion.
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