We all can remember when we were at least addicted to one season of MTV's The Real World. Whether we were in high school, college, grad school or last night, MTV has done a great job of selling this iconic situation of grouping strangers into one house while everyone watches what happens. It would probably be safe to say that The Real World is probably one of the original trendsetters for reality tv. Way before the Kardashians and Real Housewives, teens all over the world were introduced to everyday people who signed up for a unique social experiment in a house of strangers. What is interesting, looking back at my addicted years to the Chicago, Vegas, New Orleans seasons, is the simple fact that this is what I thought the real world was all about. Connecting with different people and finding out about who you really are. I can't argue with the fact that this is definitely a part of everyone's journey and sometimes the most memorable parts of your journey. Many of us encountered a similar scenario when we were on campus and maybe spent our first year living with a hodge-podge of people from all different backgrounds, neighborhoods and mindsets. I'd beg to say that those were some of the most fun years of my life! No inhibition. The world was my oyster and people were teaching me new things everyday. Good habits... bad habits... but I digress. The Real World became my world and that seemed to be all that was going on in the world to me. Can you blame me? MTV was such a great example to follow.
10 years later... (Lawd... is it really ten years?!)... I'm working with college students who share that same perspective I did years ago - the real world is all that exists directly around them. Today, I can't help but see the massive void that leaves in these young minds. The Real World was a microcosm of what life is to live in a bubble and as an adult I start to realize why adults around me at that age did everything to try to poke a hole in that bubble to enlighten me to what existed beyond the bubble. Now, I feel that I'm that annoying adult trying to burst bubbles... with all good intentions so I believe. How do we teach our students to become active citizens with without bursting a little of their bubble mentality? Right now, some can be so self-absorbed that losing a cell phone becomes the end of the world, not famine or sex trafficking. Oh no. Not those. It reminds me of something my old boss used to say to angry parents when they realized their little freshmen would be living in triples temporarily. "I understand that you are upset but living in triples is an inconvenience not a tragedy. Hurricane Katrina [or insert huge calamity here] was a tragedy." That simple reality check captures just how easy it is for our world to become the world and determining what is relative to our situation becomes so narrow minded.
So what then? Do educators become the bubble busters for these poor children who have just become so sold on the media examples of self-absorption? I suppose to some extent we do but first, we must live by example. I've attempted to exercise my grey matter since I've entered adulthood. I'm not too sure what sparked it but I would likely say it was graduate school (thanks CSAA '09) when I became more aware of myself through the lens of others... and ah yes... the 2008 Presidential Elections. I've tried simple things to keep me in the loop of the big picture and I've attempted to share some of these habits with my students helping them realize that you don't have to give up Keeping Up to know a little bit more about what's going on in the world.
Here are the ways I have attempted to stay connected to the real Real World:
- Watching the News
- Everyone interprets what a news show is differently so find your definition and roll with it. Some refer to blogs and the 10pm local news show or even Headline News with Robin Meade (I used to love that show!). Nowadays, I have grown in love with watching the TODAY show in the morning because of the variety it provides for me in the morning. It whets my palette for what is going on in the world and brings a lot of relevant issues to me in a matter of 2 minute segments. In an Essence Magazine article a few months ago, I was introduced to Melissa Harris-Perry. A young black woman, mom, wife and professor who is the first woman of color to have a 2 hour block of weekend prime time on a news channel. Every Saturday morning, she captures some real issues that I take to heart - activism, the elections, and inspiring everyday people with everyday heroes. She has very strong opinions of which I agree with most but it's a great challenge to hear her speak and wonder what others think about the issues with opposing views.
- Follow Smart
- I'm a big fan of twitter and amongst all the celebrities I follow, I also chose to follow our local news, CNN Breaking News and the good ol' Huffington Post. Great source of fast and quick news in a place where I am already drawn to it.
- Email List-Serves
- Everyone loves being on an email list. Not really but it does spice up my work inbox quite well. To stay up to date with current trends in Higher Education, I signed up for The Chronicle digests. It keeps me on my toes by giving me headlines from the week and snapshots of what has happened in some pertinent issues that guide my career in education.
No comments:
Post a Comment