Beeline : what spelling bees reveal about generation Z's new path to success / Shalini Shankar.
Material type: TextPublisher: New York, NY : Basic Books, 2019Edition: First editionDescription: vii, 327 pages ; 25 cmContent type:- text
- unmediated
- volume
- 9780465094523
- 046509452X
Item type | Home library | Collection | Call number | Materials specified | Status | Date due | Barcode | Item holds | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Adult Book | Main Library | NonFiction | 155.419 S528 | Available | 33111009148384 |
Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:
An anthropologist uses spelling bees as a lens to examine the unique and diverse traits of Generation Z--and why they are destined for success
At first glance, Generation Z (youth born after 1997) seems to be made up of anxious overachievers, hounded by Tiger Moms and constantly tracked on social media. One would think that competitors in the National Spelling Bee -- the most popular brain sport in America -- would be the worst off. Counterintuitively, anthropologist Shalini Shankar argues that, far from being simply overstressed and overscheduled, Gen Z spelling bee competitors are learning crucial twenty-first-century skills from their high-powered lives, displaying a sophisticated understanding of self-promotion, self-direction, and social mobility. Drawing on original ethnographic research, including interviews with participants, judges, and parents, Shankar examines the outsize impact of immigrant parents and explains why Gen Z kids are on a path to success.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 293-309) and index.
Introduction -- Kids today -- Brain sports & kid competitions -- Spelling bees -- Gen Z kids -- Parents of Gen Z kids -- Bee week -- Becoming elite -- Making spellebrities -- Professionalizing childhoods -- Conclusion: Gen Z futures.
Generation Z-- youth born after 1997-- seems to be made up of anxious overachievers, hounded by Tiger Moms and constantly tracked on social media. One would think that competitors in the National Spelling Bee, the most popular brain sport in America. would be the worst off. Shankar argues that, far from being simply overstressed and overscheduled, Gen Z spelling bee competitors are learning crucial twenty-first-century skills from their high-powered lives, displaying a sophisticated understanding of self-promotion, self-direction, and social mobility. She examines the outsize impact of immigrant parents and explains why Gen Z kids are on a path to success. -- adapted from jacket