Colleges Are Having to Change… So Will You

In 2018, the New York Times reported how Generation Z students were transforming the way schools serve and educate. Bottom line? Generation Z is “super connected. But on their terms.”

They do not tend to read books. They rarely read emails. They are a generation that “breathes through social media… sending presidents and deans to Instagram and Twitter.”

Further, students today want to navigate campus life on their own, getting food or help “when it is convenient for them. And, yes, on their mobile devices or phones.”

As the associate director of learning programs at Ohio State University notes, “It’s not really technology to them.” He’s right. The iPhone came out when most students were in grade school, so to them, technology is just the natural way to live. So now schools such as Ohio State issue iPads, have courses designated “iPad required,” and are building an app that “in addition to maps and bus routes has a course planner, grades, schedules and a Get Involved feature displaying student organizations.”

More customization is coming. Soon, when students open the app, it will know “which campus they are enrolled at, their major and which student groups they belong to.”

But higher education is experiencing not simply a communication revolution. Generation Z is forcing course makeovers, “pushing academics to be more hands-on and job-relevant.”

Millennials may have wanted climbing walls and en suite kitchens; Generation Z wants all things career development. Generation Z is even changing office hours.

One journalism professor not only takes attendance via Twitter and posts assignments on Slack but holds office hours at 10:00 p.m. via the video conference site Zoom, “because that is when they have questions.” The only role email plays is during instruction on how to write a proper one as a business skill.

Another dynamic, new to mainstream academia, is how individualistic Generation Z students are and how individualistically they expect to be treated. They have been raised in a world of “tailored analytics” that instantly customizes their online experience. This leads them to expect that everything put in front of them will be customized.

They do not like to learn in groups. They “like to think about information, then be walked through it to be certain they have it right.” They want a model, and then to practice it.

And while they very much favor videos over static content, they still want visual, face-to-face communication over texting. They are not always good at live social interaction, but they crave it.

“They want authenticity and transparency,” says Corey Seemiller, professor at Wright State University. “They like the idea of human beings being behind things.”

What might this mean for the church?

1. Embrace social media and the technology that facilitates it, and then use it as much as you can to communicate, inform, and serve as you encourage people to take next steps in spiritual formation.
2. As much as you can, customize what you offer.
3. Be practical in your content. Consider foundational offerings on subjects such as how to read the Bible, how to pray, how to have a quiet time (or a time of devotion), and what it means to become a Christian.
4. Adjust to the schedule of the person you are trying to serve. This may involve offering on-demand courses.
5. Get visual in every way you can, particularly using video, but facilitate the delivery of the content and debrief in person.

Here’s an example: We developed an online systematic-theology course. I wrote and taught the course, which was filmed over several weeks. The course ended up being seven installments of around 45 minutes each. A workbook was created to go along with the course. Students enrolled and for seven weeks participated in the class during lunch hour. Though the teaching was a recording, I joined the class live to answer questions.

Digital learning is about far more than just tech. As Stephanie Morgan, director of learning solutions at Bray Leino Learning, summarizes it, “In reality, it’s more a way of learning than any single type of learning, requiring an organisation-wide mindset shift to be truly successful.”

Particularly in regard to self-directed learning. Research shows that “millennials and Generation Z want independent learning opportunities, taking control of their own learning to access what they want, when they need it. As younger generations are used to finding instant answers to everyday problems outside of work—think a YouTube video or ‘how do I’ Google search—they now expect similar responsiveness at work.”

Whether we want to admit it for the church or not, colleges are having to change…

… and so will you.

James Emery White

Sources

Excerpt from James Emery White, Hybrid Church: Rethinking the Church for a Post-Christian Digital Age (Zondervan), order from Amazon.

Laura Pappano, “The iGen Shift: Colleges Are Changing to Reach the Next Generation,” The New York Times, August 2, 2018, read online.

Stephanie Morgan, “Why Digital? What Digital Learning Can Bring to Your Organisation,” Training Journal, July 12, 2019, read online.

About the Author

James Emery White is the founding and senior pastor of Mecklenburg Community Church in Charlotte, NC, and a former professor of theology and culture at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, where he also served as their fourth president. His latest book, Hybrid Church: Rethinking the Church for a Post-Christian Digital Age, is now available on Amazon or from your favorite bookseller. To enjoy a free subscription to the Church & Culture blog, visit churchandculture.org where you can view past blogs in our archive, read the latest church and culture news from around the world, and listen to the Church & Culture Podcast. Follow Dr. White on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @JamesEmeryWhite.

The views expressed in this commentary do not necessarily reflect those of Christian Headlines.

Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Sky Nesher 

The views expressed in this commentary do not necessarily reflect those of CrosswalkHeadlines.

James Emery White is the founding and senior pastor of Mecklenburg Community Church in Charlotte, NC, and a former professor of theology and culture at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, where he also served as their fourth president. His latest book, Hybrid Church: Rethinking the Church for a Post-Christian Digital Age, is now available on Amazon or from your favorite bookseller. To enjoy a free subscription to the Church & Culture blog, visit churchandculture.org where you can view past blogs in our archive, read the latest church and culture news from around the world, and listen to the Church & Culture Podcast. Follow Dr. White on X, Facebook and Instagram at @JamesEmeryWhite.