June 5, 2019
This Guide is for
Educators who want to learn how Gen Z students interact with the Internet when left unsurveyed and how you can better teach them.
What You’ll Learn
How Gen Z interacts with video chat, their preferred study platforms, and actual academic honesty standards. Specifically,
- How often they use video chat
- Go-to websites when they get stuck on homework
- When cheating could get deemed acceptable
- What they value most in their teachers
About the Survey
We reached out to 800 respondents, ranging from 13 to 29 years of age to hear their thoughts on the state of education in the US.
86.4% of our respondents ranged from 18-22 years old. Participants were informed that the study is for US high school and college students only.
Most participants accessed the survey on Reddit, and student text responses have been edited for clarity.
What’s the biggest truth about education that most of your teachers wouldn’t agree with you on?
- Actual degree value is trending down while the financial price is inflated.
- The real-world value of college education is very low.
- Students would get better grades if homework was optional.
- It is better to work smart than work hard because so many students are cheating and get away with doing the bare minimum.
- General education classes are just padding to keep you there longer to pay more money.
- Progress depends entirely on the student, so why is attendance mandatory if I already get it?
- Most of the information is useless.
- Education doesn’t prepare students for the current world or the future because it is so dated.
We asked how often students use video chat.
They reported on frequency of study with classmates, chat with friends, and speaking with family members.
What do students value most in their teachers?
26.6% of students also chose “support and concern for others,” while 4.1% chose “real-world experience.”
What’s the one aspect of using the Internet that most people over 30 don’t understand?
- Google helps students easily find test answers and free textbooks.
- Google is worth 100 bachelor’s degrees and can also reinforce your learning.
- Many students learning everything through Google. If they don’t know, they Google it.
- Students need patience, skill, and effort because the Internet offers more resources. But teachers assign twice the work now.
- It’s a tool that can be used to a student’s benefit or detriment.
- How to engage in discussions with strangers.
- Students wish they didn’t have to spend all their time online.
- The Internet is more useful than the library.
Cheating is Pervasive
Students cited other acceptable reasons for cheating such as failing a class (11.6%), helping a friend (13.1%), passing a general education course (12.2%), meeting parent expectations (7.9%), maintaining a scholarship (15.4%), or beating school stress (14.4%).
Free is Still Preferred
Students also selected a small number of paid services including Chegg, Slader, Quizlet, Course Hero, and StudyGate.
Click here to view the original study.