11-12-2008, 04:51 PM
Some students want Bs for effort, survey says
But spoiled kids don't get better grades
SHANNON PROUDFOOT, Canwest News Service
Published: Tuesday, November 11
Most university students believe that if they're "trying hard," a professor should reconsider their grade.
That is one of the revelations in a newly published study examining students' sense of academic entitlement, or the mentality that enrolling in post-secondary education is akin to shopping in a store where the customer is always right.
The paper describes academic entitlement as "expectations of high marks for modest effort and demanding attitudes toward teachers."
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Font:****It's a hot topic - and source of frustration - among instructors, says author Ellen Greenberger, a research professor of psychology and social behaviour at the University of California-Irvine.
"I would have trembled with fear before I suggested to some of my revered teachers that I wanted them to give me a higher grade," she says, chuckling about how attitudes have changed.
Greenberger's study reveals that students who are academically entitled are more likely to academically cheat, exploit others, shirk hard work and display "narcissistic orientation."
She found virtually no connection between self-entitled attitudes and grades, meaning it's not just weak students trying to wheedle better marks out of their profs, and those who do so aren't reaping the benefits on their transcripts.
"It certainly suggests that these attitudes and behaviours aren't producing the desired effect," she says. "It's just making teachers crazy."
Greenberg was surprised that parenting appears to have little influence in shaping self-entitled students, with one key exception: students who say their parents often compare their achievements to siblings, cousins or friends are more likely to engage in these behaviours.
The study, which surveyed two groups of about 400 undergraduates age 18 to 25, is published in the November issue of the Journal of Youth and Adolescence.
Technology may encourage some of this behaviour because email is quick, provides easy access to professors and opens the door to a less formal and respectful tone, Greenberger says.
"In-person communication obliges you to look the person in the eye as you're about to say, 'You really ought to give me a B because I came to most of the classes.'" she says. "Try saying that face-to-face."
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Reasonable accommodation in the classroom
The study asked approximately 400 undergraduates age 18 to 25 whether they agreed with these statements:
- If I try hard, my professor should consider that in my grade 66.2%
- If I have completed most of the reading, I deserve a B grade 40.7%
- If I have attended most of the classes, I deserve at least a B 34.1%
- I often get lower grades than I deserve on paper assignments 31.5%
- A professor should let me reschedule my exams for personal reasons 29.9%
- A professor should lend me his/her course notes if ask for them 24.8%
- I'd think poorly of a professor who didn't answer an email the same day 23.5%
- Professors have no right to be annoyed if I come late or leave early 16.8%
- A professor should not be annoyed if I get an important call during class 16.5%
- A professor should meet me at my preferred time, even if inconvenient 11.2%
But spoiled kids don't get better grades
SHANNON PROUDFOOT, Canwest News Service
Published: Tuesday, November 11
Most university students believe that if they're "trying hard," a professor should reconsider their grade.
That is one of the revelations in a newly published study examining students' sense of academic entitlement, or the mentality that enrolling in post-secondary education is akin to shopping in a store where the customer is always right.
The paper describes academic entitlement as "expectations of high marks for modest effort and demanding attitudes toward teachers."
Email to a friend
Printer friendly
Font:****It's a hot topic - and source of frustration - among instructors, says author Ellen Greenberger, a research professor of psychology and social behaviour at the University of California-Irvine.
"I would have trembled with fear before I suggested to some of my revered teachers that I wanted them to give me a higher grade," she says, chuckling about how attitudes have changed.
Greenberger's study reveals that students who are academically entitled are more likely to academically cheat, exploit others, shirk hard work and display "narcissistic orientation."
She found virtually no connection between self-entitled attitudes and grades, meaning it's not just weak students trying to wheedle better marks out of their profs, and those who do so aren't reaping the benefits on their transcripts.
"It certainly suggests that these attitudes and behaviours aren't producing the desired effect," she says. "It's just making teachers crazy."
Greenberg was surprised that parenting appears to have little influence in shaping self-entitled students, with one key exception: students who say their parents often compare their achievements to siblings, cousins or friends are more likely to engage in these behaviours.
The study, which surveyed two groups of about 400 undergraduates age 18 to 25, is published in the November issue of the Journal of Youth and Adolescence.
Technology may encourage some of this behaviour because email is quick, provides easy access to professors and opens the door to a less formal and respectful tone, Greenberger says.
"In-person communication obliges you to look the person in the eye as you're about to say, 'You really ought to give me a B because I came to most of the classes.'" she says. "Try saying that face-to-face."
- - -
Reasonable accommodation in the classroom
The study asked approximately 400 undergraduates age 18 to 25 whether they agreed with these statements:
- If I try hard, my professor should consider that in my grade 66.2%
- If I have completed most of the reading, I deserve a B grade 40.7%
- If I have attended most of the classes, I deserve at least a B 34.1%
- I often get lower grades than I deserve on paper assignments 31.5%
- A professor should let me reschedule my exams for personal reasons 29.9%
- A professor should lend me his/her course notes if ask for them 24.8%
- I'd think poorly of a professor who didn't answer an email the same day 23.5%
- Professors have no right to be annoyed if I come late or leave early 16.8%
- A professor should not be annoyed if I get an important call during class 16.5%
- A professor should meet me at my preferred time, even if inconvenient 11.2%
