Blog Post 2

I am still unsure about how to incorporate all my ideas into one central theme but there are a few things I want to try to focus on. I have become more interested on the “type” of student who attends the Ivy League Schools and how students in the elite universities deal with the stress of it and how the universities help them. 

Not only do I want to look at stress levels but also the mentality behind attending the elite. Are these students in the university more interested in doing well rather than actually learning? The Ivies are prestigious and high school students study religiously in order to attend the nation’s top education programs. But once these students get it and school becomes a competition something changes. In some readings it seems as though it’s not so much wanting to learn and more about needing to do well. Less of “does this interest me?” and more of “I don’t care if I like my job, I just want to succeed and make money”. It seems as though students are taught that succeeding equals being the best and being the best means making money. Is that the type of success that students are really being taught?  

I have even been considering looking at college students as a whole or maybe comparing the Ivy schools and non Ivy School because in the my online searches while stress may be greater in Ivy League Schools the idea that most students would rather do well than actually learn about something they are passionate in is a trend across the board. For that reason I'm thinking its not only the school system but society that could be influencing college students into pursuing jobs that will be financially beneficial for them rather than studying something they are truly interested in. 

Key terms that I used while researching my top where terms pertaining to "stress" more specifically "stress in the Ivy Leagues". Also phrases like "How do college students define success" or "what does society consider successful" 

The two links that I think could be the most useful in helping me with my essay are:

1. “Doing School: How We Are Creating a Generation of Stressed Out, Materialistic and Miseducated Students” by Denise Clark Pope

I want to read the book further because it really seems like it could be useful. The chapter "The Predicament of 'Doing School'" had a lot of useful information and insight that supports the idea that students in college are more or less in school just to do well and get a job that pays the bills, not necessarily to learn and become passionate in something

2.http://psycnet.apa.org/psycinfo/2000-00307-006: Stress at college: Effects on health habits, health status and self-esteem

This study takes a look at over 100 undergraduates at Yale and observes there stress levels. The study answers three questions all pertaining to the relationship between stress, self-esteem and behavior. This will be helpful to my topic as it will provide numbers and solid research discussing the stress of students who attend Ivy League Schools.

As of right now there aren't any controversies for either of my two main points, however I believe that by doing more research I will find controversy over students not really learning and just wanting to do well in order to be successful. It's hard to define success which is why controversies can occur and in my research I don't want to define what success is to me but figure out what college institutions especially the Ivy's deem to be successful.