Andrew Taylor on the Business of Arts & Culture
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Living a different life
Posted: August 24, 2006
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I've mentioned the Beloit College Mindset List once before in this weblog (back in 2003). But since it's become a ritual for me to read at the beginning of every school year, it warrants another mention.
The mindset list describes the world as experienced by the incoming freshman class each year. It's intended to remind Beloit College faculty that their own experiences and cultural references are not consistently shared by their students. Says the intro to this year's list:
Most 18-year-old students entering the class of 2010 this fall were born in 1988. They grew up with a mouse in one hand and a computer screen as part of their worldview. They learned to surf the internet as they learned to read. While they were still in their cribs, the 20th century started to close as the Berlin Wall came down, the Soviet bloc disintegrated, and frequent traditional wars in Latin America gave way to the uncontrolled terrors of the Middle East.
It's extraordinarily helpful for anyone who longs to connect with a younger world -- including arts marketers, managers, educators, development professionals, artists, and such -- to recognize this cultural disconnect. To offer some highlights from the list, for citizens born in 1988:
Fun.