Every year we await the Beloit College Mindset List as it makes us ponder, laugh and feel really, really old. This year does not disappoint starting with the very first line reminding us that this is the last college class to be born in the Century that we consider home. Today’s 18 year olds were born in 1999, the year we were sure we would see “lights out” come New Year’s Day. They are the very last of the Millennials.
Last year’s list stunned us by reminding us that the class of 2020 have never known a day when they US was not at war and they had never seen a billboard ad for cigarettes. It is a wonderful look back through modern history to look at these lists that go back to the Class of 2002.
So here is a look at some of the highlights from this year’s Beloit list:
- They are the first generation for whom a “phone” has been primarily a video game, direction finder, electronic telegraph, and research library.
- It is doubtful that they have ever used or heard the high-pitched whine of a dial-up modem.
- They have always been searching for Pokemon.
- A movie scene longer than two minutes has always seemed like an eternity.
- Wikipedia has steadily gained acceptance by their teachers.
- In their lifetimes, Blackberry has gone from being a wild fruit to being a communications device to becoming a wild fruit again.
