First-year reading

Selection of a book that all (or most) first-year students will read and then discuss during their first days of attendance at university has been used by multiple institutions to offer a serious message about learning. One of the longest standing efforts in first-year reading is Miami University of Ohio where I previously worked. From first-hand experience, I can testify that reading programs such as this have great potential to connect students with one another, introduce faculty in an important equal learner role, and establish the expectation that attending university is a serious matter. Carefully managing the program, involving faculty, encouraging follow-up in other classes, and relevance to students' lives are keys to success.

Maxine Joselow captures what is happening in first-year reading in 2016 in her article, What Freshmen will Read. This year's trend among some institutions is focus on immigration and racial injustice. With the swing toward nationalist isolation seen in the U.K. and U.S.A., focusing on such topics is important. The question is if the discussions that will unfold will recognize that immigration and social justice are not simply U.S.A. challenges. Mobility across national borders impacts us all in political, economic, social and other ways. One can only hope that the first-year reading programs will seek to position concerns about immigration and racial injustice in an international context. If they are not, imagine being a new international student sitting in a discussion during your first week at school and listening to debate about your motivations for attending and your very presence at the university.