Welcome back to our minisode series, "I Have Some Thoughts." These short episodes are designed to contextualize the pop culture moments we're currently paying attention to through a mental health lens. Pop culture isn't just fun to chat about, it can reveal important information about how we relate, cope, and understand ourselves. Join us each Friday to hear Dr. Joy share her thoughts about the happenings of the week.
This week, we're chatting about Maya Boyd being cast as the new Storm, Tyga's new album, and the University of Michigan's new grade policy.
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Speaker 1 (00:09):
Hey, y'all, welcome back to I Have Some Thoughts, a
weekly mini solo series where we cover all things pop culture,
but of course from a mental health lens. And I
am joined today again with Elise. Hey, Elise, Hey, doctor Joy.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
I'm super excited for today's topics, especially because we are
kicking it off with some talk about black Disney princesses.
So this past weekend, Disney hosted its Disney Princess Celebration,
bringing together some of the women who have made history
as Disney princesses. One of the biggest moments was a
(00:42):
performance featuring Brandy, who became Disney's first Black Cinderella in
nineteen ninety seven, Anika Noni Rose, who voiced Keianna in
The Princess in the Frog, and Hallie Bailey, who portrayed.
Speaker 1 (00:54):
Ariol in the live action Little Mermaid.
Speaker 2 (00:58):
Seeing the three of them share this day created a
full circle moment for black Disney fans, particularly young black
girls who have grown up seeing these women redefine what
a princess could look like and then Cherry on top.
Shortly after, Marvel announced Maya Void as the new Storm
in the upcoming X Men film, And so I've always
(01:20):
just been so curious about what does seeing yourself represent
it as powerful, beautiful and worthy do for a black
girl's sense of self. We know representation matters, especially for
children to see characters that look like them growing up,
but why does it feel equally as powerful for adults?
Speaker 1 (01:39):
So first of all, at least I did not know
all of this news, so I knew about storm, but
I did not know that there was a Black Disney
Princess celebration. So even my heart is fluttering thinking about
I want to see footage of this now, and also
how do we get on the guest list because I
want to be at the next Blade celebrations. There was
our impact, right, right, But I think that that really
(02:02):
speaks to your question, right that you know, of course
there are other children who are children now, but all
of us have a little person inside of us, right,
that we continue to want to foster throughout adulthood and
staying connected to that sense of curiosity and wonder and play.
And I think that that is why representation feels so
important again, both for little people but also I think
(02:23):
for us, right. I think we can think about maybe
when we grew up at a time where there was
not the same representation, And so to think about what
kinds of different decisions might you have made, what kinds
of ways could your imagination have been foster if you
saw characters that look like yourself. And so I think
that there is both the celebration but also some sadness
(02:43):
and grief related to the kinds of things that maybe
weren't an option for you. And so I think that
when we see these kinds of things, it really just
taps into our inner child.
Speaker 2 (02:52):
Absolutely. And another question that I have for you is
how do we continue to help black girls develop a
strong sense of so especially when it does feel like
the media around them doesn't reflect or affirm them. I
see so many teen shows coming out and I'm like,
oh my goodness, where are the black girls. It's like
they got everyone else up in this friend group.
Speaker 1 (03:13):
But not us. That's a great, great point. And I
think we've talked about those kinds of things, right, like
what kinds of media exists for young black girls today?
And it feels largely absent, And so I think that
that means that we just have to work harder to
be kind of living representations of that media for them. Right, So,
of course you know we have the few and far
between princesses and things that we do have in the media,
(03:36):
But I think the conversation has to go beyond media, right,
Like what kinds of interactions are young girls having with
the black women and girls in their lives that they
can see in touch? Right? Like, so are we volunteering
in our elementary schools? What kinds of things are we
involved in in the community, so that girls have access
to different women who are doing different kinds of things
and impacting the world in lots of different ways. Because media,
(03:59):
of course, is one thing, but I don't think we
can overstate the power of having somebody in your community
who's doing some really cool things that you're able to
have a conversation with and maybe see on a regular basis.
And so I think when in the absence of media,
that means that we have to be more present. Oh,
I really do like that.
Speaker 2 (04:16):
I think it was beautiful and I hope that's something
that we're doing with this podcast, just showing kind of
like the range of career paths, career paths within the
mental health field.
Speaker 1 (04:26):
But also outside of that.
Speaker 2 (04:28):
Right, So moving on to topic too, If I had
to wager it feels like over this year at least
thirty percent of the topics will somehow involve AI. O
the things that are going on with AI.
Speaker 1 (04:43):
It's a mess.
Speaker 2 (04:44):
So rapper Tiga released an album called Starface last week
and shortly after received a zero out of ten rating
on Pitchfork. This the first time in almost twenty years
the publication has rated an album a zero. They are
reasoning centered around the fact that Taiga openly admitted to
using AI to make the album. While he says the
(05:04):
vocals and songwriting was him, some of the musical elements
were AI. Aside from this particular album, the rating has
led to a broader conversation surrounding how we balance artistry
in a world where AI and AI usage is developing
very fast. So I'm curious on your thoughts on how
can artists protect their motivation when they see technology producing
(05:27):
in seconds that took them years to learn. You know,
like if you learned how to play the saxophone or
the piano, and that is so integral to how you
view your artistry. And now people are saying, hey, I'd
rather just use this generative AI. How does someone recommend.
Speaker 1 (05:43):
That, Oh, gosh, I mean this is so difficult, I think,
especially when you're talking about something like the arts, right because,
as somebody who I think is very connected to the
arts and who has some very kind of convoluted eyes,
I think feelings about AI and the ways that it
is showing up in these spaces. I think that you
(06:05):
can't actually replicate artistry, right, Like you might be able
to produce the same sound that somebody makes with a saxophone,
but I don't know that that's artistry. And I think that,
especially as opportunities are being taken away, and you know,
people are paying for this because it's cheaper, right to
have a machine do a track than an actual artist,
(06:26):
I know that it can be really hard and be
very demoralizing. I think to say, Okay, I'm going to
stay focused on my artistry. But I think there has
to be an inner knowing that what AI is doing
is not actually art. It is a replication of what
artists have done. And this is why I think we
(06:47):
have to also be very careful about welcoming AI so
haphazardly into our spaces, right because I don't think that
what AI produces is going to give us the same
feelings and move a the same ways as the work
that true artists have done with musical instruments, with the
ways that they have written, with the songs they have composed. Like,
(07:09):
I just don't think that it's possible, And I think,
as hard as it may be, it will be really
important for artists to kind of stick to their artistry,
right because even if machines can do some of what
you can do, I don't think that they can actually
replicate fully an artist.
Speaker 2 (07:26):
Yeah, And I think it is a very dicey conversation
when it comes to the arts generally, because I think
about like what producers do when you're using kind of
like a track machine. You're like, Okay, I'm pressing this drum,
but that's still a human interaction in that it's like okay,
we've recorded this drum sound, now let me mix it up.
And now it seems like we are taking the human
(07:48):
away from that and just saying like I want a
song that sounds like oh three jay Z without finding
and building a relationship with the person who can do that.
And I think about it in terms of podcasting too,
like do people set up workflows for their show? Absolutely,
But if you don't have your own curiosity it's like
(08:11):
you cannot replicate a human conversation and that human curiosity.
And so even when I think about our work that
we do here, it can be very frustrating that it
seems like everyone wants to get things done so fast
and not think about how maybe artistry and maybe the
ways we think about the world are in opposition to
(08:31):
that speed. And that brings me to my next question.
How do you keep developing your craft and how do
you tune out the noise? And what would you say
to someone who feels this pressure to use AI to
like automate their processes and to move faster in a
world that's telling us, hey, if you don't do this,
you're going to be left behind.
Speaker 1 (08:48):
Yeah, I think that it is hard, right, especially when
you feel like it's coming from every angle, right, like
AI moving all of these things forward. And I think
some of it is just like me being old school
and kind of like get off my lawn, right. I
am hesitant to kind of like completely throw everything to
the wind and like AI now revolutionizing everything, because I
(09:10):
think that there are some things that we have been
doing for a very long time that there was nothing
broken with it, right, And so if it's not rogue,
then don't fix it. And so I think that there
are some ways of course, you know, spell check and
like the things that it feels like makes sense for
like a machine to do. And then there are other
things that I think are more heartwarming that come from
the heart that just are not things that we should
(09:32):
really be allowing AI to kind of step into. And
so I think we will see a pendulum swing right
like it very much feels like this is the beginning
of everybody kind of riding this wave of AI take
over everything, and we've seen these kinds of things before, right,
But I think there will also be a swing towards
the other end, where true artistry will still have a place, right,
(09:55):
And so I think I would encourage people to continue
working on your craft right. Continue to learn how to
play a variety of instruments, Continue to learn how to
use your voice as an instrument if that is you
know how you're inclined, Continue to write, like, continue to
pour into yourself, into your craft, because I do think
that we will see another pendulum swing of true artistry
(10:17):
really being what is preserved.
Speaker 2 (10:19):
Thank you for that. I think I needed this.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
Personation more from our conversation after the break.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
Moving on to our last topic, University of Michigan announced
as starting in fall twenty twenty seven, students entering the
university's College of Literature, Science and the Arts will receive
past or no credit marks on their transcripts for the
first semester instead of traditional letter grades. The university says
the pilot program is intended to ease academic pressure, helping
(10:50):
freshmen adjust to college and helping them start strong and
curb the mental health crisis unfolding among college age individuals.
This was very jarring for me. I'm thinking through, are
we helping young people build resilience by giving them room
to fail or preventing them from developing resilience by protecting them?
And I remember being at USC and I think we
(11:13):
had maybe up to three classes we could take past
fail and it was like, Okay, that made sense. You
could spread it throughout your academic career there. But I
get it in some sense. But it does feel like
with this policy, in my opinion, there may be some
avoidance of just like the reality of this is my
hard work. Like if you don't know your grades, how
(11:34):
are you supposed to measure yourself against? What you should
or could be doing. And so my question is, you know,
it's a dicey kind of like policy, but why do
we interpret a lot of these accommodations for mental health
as coddling when others see them as necessary support? Or
is this even what's going on here?
Speaker 1 (11:56):
Mm hmm, Yeah, I think so much gets interpreted as
kind of when other people react to it, right, you know,
So I think when we look at supplemental services that
people need, right, Like, I think a lot of people
just like you mentioned, right, like, oh, this is what
I had to do, right Like a lot of us
are invested in the hard road that we had to
travel to get to a place, and so we often
(12:18):
see it as not fair if somebody didn't have to
do the same thing, right or like oh does their
journey match up to mine? When I don't know, I
mean so I would be very curious to hear what
kind of data prompted this kind of decision, right because
I wonder, like what was happening on campus that made
them feel like they needed to make a decision. But
(12:38):
I do know kind of generally on campus mental health,
you know, we have been seeing increases in like significant
mental health concerns. Sadly, there's no shortage of suicide on
college campuses every year, and so I do know that
students are under a tremendous amount of academic pressure, and
so I'm guessing that some of that is what prompted
(12:58):
them to maybe make this decision. But I think if
you still like pass or fail the class, it is
still giving you some indication of whether you have mastered
disinformation well enough to kind of be able to demonstrate knowledge, right, Like,
is that what we're looking for? Are we looking for
like some superficial And I think the data is still
(13:18):
kind of not really clear about whether grades and like
test scores actually demonstrate mastery to us, right, And so
I think the whole grading system itself is like developed
because it's the best thing we have. I don't know
that it is actually a true measure of success though.
Speaker 2 (13:36):
That's a good point and it's something I've had to
reflect on, as Like in college, I had a note
taker because I have a hearing disability, and so sometimes
I would also have additional time if things involved like
audio or somebody speaking and things like that, And it
did make me reflect on before having those accommodations knowing
(13:58):
that something was wrong, but feeling this gratification that I
was able to overcome that struggle without asking for help.
And it brings me to my second question, does struggling
make us stronger? Or can unnecessarily struggle hurt us? So
I think there is this romanticization of like, well, I
(14:18):
had to do it this way, and that's how it
should be done, because it gave me the fortitude to
be the person I am today, but doesn't really have
to be that way for everyone else.
Speaker 1 (14:29):
Yes, And I think that that is a particular danger
for us as black girls, right, because so much of
struggle has been romanticized, right in this idea that like
we have to work twice as hard to get abb
as much, and so so much of our lives have
been an upward battle. So I think that we are
overdue for something that's a little softer, right, for a
(14:50):
little bit more grace. And so I do think that
there is danger in this idea that if I had
to struggle, then everybody else has to struggle, because I
don't think that that's the only way that you can
learn stuff, right, Like, of course, there is a thing
as post traumatic growth and resiliency is something that is
just a part of the human experience. But I'm not
actually convinced that tough times and struggle are the only
(15:13):
way for us to learn anything. In particular, I think
that we can also learn from the examples and experiences
of other people. I think that we can learn from
validation and praise, and so I don't think just running
ourselves into a brick wall, like working as hard as
we can are the only ways that we can actually
learn anything that's consequential.
Speaker 2 (15:33):
So I'm curious if removing fear of failure actually makes
young people or people in general more willing to take
risk and learn, because that's also what it seems like
is going on here, Like part of it is, oh,
I can take this class, and I can do this
thing out of my wheelhouse because I won't be judged
(15:54):
as harshly. And I've always viewed college as yes, you're
getting a degree, but you're also kind of searching who
you are. And it's like, Okay, I can take this class,
and I can sign up for this club, and I
can take this internship. And so I'm curious what removing
that fear of failure does. But what are also other
ways we can encourage young people but also ourselves to
(16:16):
take more risk and not worry about the outcome.
Speaker 1 (16:20):
Mm hm, So I think you know built into this system.
At least the way you outlined it, it sounds like
it's only for the first semester, so there's only so
much of this that you're going to be able to
play with anyway, right, So I think it feels like
there are already some guardrails in place to make sure
that this is not something that completely tips the scale.
But I do think you have a good point, right, Like,
if you know that there's not going to be a
(16:40):
negative consequence in terms of a hit to your GPA
because you tried a chemistry class because you weren't sure
if you want us to do that as a major
and your major really is English, I think that does
encourage some risk taking, right, And so I'm like, oh,
let me see if this is something that I might
like or that I might be successful in. And so
I do think that that is one way to promote
(17:00):
risk taking and to explore, which I agree with you
is a valid part of college, though I think we
have seen less and less of that as college has
become more expensive, Right, It kind of feels like there
is no real time to be exploratory anymore, because Okay,
this is you know, sixty thousand dollars a year, and
you gotta get in and get out. And so I
(17:21):
do think that this is one way to do that.
But I also think that there is a way to
do some risk taking just through hobbies or listening to
people's podcast interviews that are interesting to you, right like
other people that have done things that you think that
you might want to do, listening to you know, their
kinds of interviews, setting up interviews for yourself. Like, I
(17:42):
think that there again are lots of ways we can
learn through other people without us being the ones kind
of in the seat of taking risks. And I think
for ourselves we also have to normalize like making mistakes
and not being great at everything and just understanding that
that is a part of life, right Like, there are
lots of things we're gonna be good at and a
lot of things we're really just gonna suck at. And
(18:04):
I think when we get into this loop with feeling
like we have to be perfect and excellent at everything,
we really set ourselves up for failure because that's not
how humans work. We're not actually robots, and so understanding that,
you know, failure and making mistakes is a normal part
of being a human and giving ourselves grace just like
we would give other people is something that's a really
(18:24):
important skill for us to learn.
Speaker 2 (18:26):
Well, thank you for that sermon today, doctor Jarvon. We
got a little bit of a sermon with all three topics.
Like we know, representation matters, but it's good for us
big girls to keep creating in the age of AI
and most importantly, take risks. Don't shame other people who
may have had an easier path, because I think that's
part of life. Like it sucks, but we did need
(18:48):
people to say, like, hey, it kind of sucks being
a freshman in college. It's really hard. How can we
take pressure off of you know, these young people to
get to a point where we're reconsidering you know, grades
and great that feel like very punitive. So thank you
for giving us those reminders.
Speaker 1 (19:03):
Say you're welcome. Thank you, Lithise were great questions. I
really appreciate the curation of the topics here. And if
there are things that are coming across your timeline or
things that you're thinking about that you'd like to hear
our thoughts about you can always send those to us
at Therapy for Blackgirls dot com slash mailbox, and until
next time, take good care of yourself.
Hey, y'all, welcome back to I Have Some Thoughts, a
weekly mini solo series where we cover all things pop culture,
but of course from a mental health lens. And I
am joined today again with Elise. Hey, Elise, Hey, doctor Joy.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
I'm super excited for today's topics, especially because we are
kicking it off with some talk about black Disney princesses.
So this past weekend, Disney hosted its Disney Princess Celebration,
bringing together some of the women who have made history
as Disney princesses. One of the biggest moments was a
(00:42):
performance featuring Brandy, who became Disney's first Black Cinderella in
nineteen ninety seven, Anika Noni Rose, who voiced Keianna in
The Princess in the Frog, and Hallie Bailey, who portrayed.
Speaker 1 (00:54):
Ariol in the live action Little Mermaid.
Speaker 2 (00:58):
Seeing the three of them share this day created a
full circle moment for black Disney fans, particularly young black
girls who have grown up seeing these women redefine what
a princess could look like and then Cherry on top.
Shortly after, Marvel announced Maya Void as the new Storm
in the upcoming X Men film, And so I've always
(01:20):
just been so curious about what does seeing yourself represent
it as powerful, beautiful and worthy do for a black
girl's sense of self. We know representation matters, especially for
children to see characters that look like them growing up,
but why does it feel equally as powerful for adults?
Speaker 1 (01:39):
So first of all, at least I did not know
all of this news, so I knew about storm, but
I did not know that there was a Black Disney
Princess celebration. So even my heart is fluttering thinking about
I want to see footage of this now, and also
how do we get on the guest list because I
want to be at the next Blade celebrations. There was
our impact, right, right, But I think that that really
(02:02):
speaks to your question, right that you know, of course
there are other children who are children now, but all
of us have a little person inside of us, right,
that we continue to want to foster throughout adulthood and
staying connected to that sense of curiosity and wonder and play.
And I think that that is why representation feels so
important again, both for little people but also I think
(02:23):
for us, right. I think we can think about maybe
when we grew up at a time where there was
not the same representation, And so to think about what
kinds of different decisions might you have made, what kinds
of ways could your imagination have been foster if you
saw characters that look like yourself. And so I think
that there is both the celebration but also some sadness
(02:43):
and grief related to the kinds of things that maybe
weren't an option for you. And so I think that
when we see these kinds of things, it really just
taps into our inner child.
Speaker 2 (02:52):
Absolutely. And another question that I have for you is
how do we continue to help black girls develop a
strong sense of so especially when it does feel like
the media around them doesn't reflect or affirm them. I
see so many teen shows coming out and I'm like,
oh my goodness, where are the black girls. It's like
they got everyone else up in this friend group.
Speaker 1 (03:13):
But not us. That's a great, great point. And I
think we've talked about those kinds of things, right, like
what kinds of media exists for young black girls today?
And it feels largely absent, And so I think that
that means that we just have to work harder to
be kind of living representations of that media for them. Right, So,
of course you know we have the few and far
between princesses and things that we do have in the media,
(03:36):
But I think the conversation has to go beyond media, right,
Like what kinds of interactions are young girls having with
the black women and girls in their lives that they
can see in touch? Right? Like, so are we volunteering
in our elementary schools? What kinds of things are we
involved in in the community, so that girls have access
to different women who are doing different kinds of things
and impacting the world in lots of different ways. Because media,
(03:59):
of course, is one thing, but I don't think we
can overstate the power of having somebody in your community
who's doing some really cool things that you're able to
have a conversation with and maybe see on a regular basis.
And so I think when in the absence of media,
that means that we have to be more present. Oh,
I really do like that.
Speaker 2 (04:16):
I think it was beautiful and I hope that's something
that we're doing with this podcast, just showing kind of
like the range of career paths, career paths within the
mental health field.
Speaker 1 (04:26):
But also outside of that.
Speaker 2 (04:28):
Right, So moving on to topic too, If I had
to wager it feels like over this year at least
thirty percent of the topics will somehow involve AI. O
the things that are going on with AI.
Speaker 1 (04:43):
It's a mess.
Speaker 2 (04:44):
So rapper Tiga released an album called Starface last week
and shortly after received a zero out of ten rating
on Pitchfork. This the first time in almost twenty years
the publication has rated an album a zero. They are
reasoning centered around the fact that Taiga openly admitted to
using AI to make the album. While he says the
(05:04):
vocals and songwriting was him, some of the musical elements
were AI. Aside from this particular album, the rating has
led to a broader conversation surrounding how we balance artistry
in a world where AI and AI usage is developing
very fast. So I'm curious on your thoughts on how
can artists protect their motivation when they see technology producing
(05:27):
in seconds that took them years to learn. You know,
like if you learned how to play the saxophone or
the piano, and that is so integral to how you
view your artistry. And now people are saying, hey, I'd
rather just use this generative AI. How does someone recommend.
Speaker 1 (05:43):
That, Oh, gosh, I mean this is so difficult, I think,
especially when you're talking about something like the arts, right because,
as somebody who I think is very connected to the
arts and who has some very kind of convoluted eyes,
I think feelings about AI and the ways that it
is showing up in these spaces. I think that you
(06:05):
can't actually replicate artistry, right, Like you might be able
to produce the same sound that somebody makes with a saxophone,
but I don't know that that's artistry. And I think that,
especially as opportunities are being taken away, and you know,
people are paying for this because it's cheaper, right to
have a machine do a track than an actual artist,
(06:26):
I know that it can be really hard and be
very demoralizing. I think to say, Okay, I'm going to
stay focused on my artistry. But I think there has
to be an inner knowing that what AI is doing
is not actually art. It is a replication of what
artists have done. And this is why I think we
(06:47):
have to also be very careful about welcoming AI so
haphazardly into our spaces, right because I don't think that
what AI produces is going to give us the same
feelings and move a the same ways as the work
that true artists have done with musical instruments, with the
ways that they have written, with the songs they have composed. Like,
(07:09):
I just don't think that it's possible, And I think,
as hard as it may be, it will be really
important for artists to kind of stick to their artistry,
right because even if machines can do some of what
you can do, I don't think that they can actually
replicate fully an artist.
Speaker 2 (07:26):
Yeah, And I think it is a very dicey conversation
when it comes to the arts generally, because I think
about like what producers do when you're using kind of
like a track machine. You're like, Okay, I'm pressing this drum,
but that's still a human interaction in that it's like okay,
we've recorded this drum sound, now let me mix it up.
And now it seems like we are taking the human
(07:48):
away from that and just saying like I want a
song that sounds like oh three jay Z without finding
and building a relationship with the person who can do that.
And I think about it in terms of podcasting too,
like do people set up workflows for their show? Absolutely,
But if you don't have your own curiosity it's like
(08:11):
you cannot replicate a human conversation and that human curiosity.
And so even when I think about our work that
we do here, it can be very frustrating that it
seems like everyone wants to get things done so fast
and not think about how maybe artistry and maybe the
ways we think about the world are in opposition to
(08:31):
that speed. And that brings me to my next question.
How do you keep developing your craft and how do
you tune out the noise? And what would you say
to someone who feels this pressure to use AI to
like automate their processes and to move faster in a
world that's telling us, hey, if you don't do this,
you're going to be left behind.
Speaker 1 (08:48):
Yeah, I think that it is hard, right, especially when
you feel like it's coming from every angle, right, like
AI moving all of these things forward. And I think
some of it is just like me being old school
and kind of like get off my lawn, right. I
am hesitant to kind of like completely throw everything to
the wind and like AI now revolutionizing everything, because I
(09:10):
think that there are some things that we have been
doing for a very long time that there was nothing
broken with it, right, And so if it's not rogue,
then don't fix it. And so I think that there
are some ways of course, you know, spell check and
like the things that it feels like makes sense for
like a machine to do. And then there are other
things that I think are more heartwarming that come from
the heart that just are not things that we should
(09:32):
really be allowing AI to kind of step into. And
so I think we will see a pendulum swing right
like it very much feels like this is the beginning
of everybody kind of riding this wave of AI take
over everything, and we've seen these kinds of things before, right,
But I think there will also be a swing towards
the other end, where true artistry will still have a place, right,
(09:55):
And so I think I would encourage people to continue
working on your craft right. Continue to learn how to
play a variety of instruments, Continue to learn how to
use your voice as an instrument if that is you
know how you're inclined, Continue to write, like, continue to
pour into yourself, into your craft, because I do think
that we will see another pendulum swing of true artistry
(10:17):
really being what is preserved.
Speaker 2 (10:19):
Thank you for that. I think I needed this.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
Personation more from our conversation after the break.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
Moving on to our last topic, University of Michigan announced
as starting in fall twenty twenty seven, students entering the
university's College of Literature, Science and the Arts will receive
past or no credit marks on their transcripts for the
first semester instead of traditional letter grades. The university says
the pilot program is intended to ease academic pressure, helping
(10:50):
freshmen adjust to college and helping them start strong and
curb the mental health crisis unfolding among college age individuals.
This was very jarring for me. I'm thinking through, are
we helping young people build resilience by giving them room
to fail or preventing them from developing resilience by protecting them?
And I remember being at USC and I think we
(11:13):
had maybe up to three classes we could take past
fail and it was like, Okay, that made sense. You
could spread it throughout your academic career there. But I
get it in some sense. But it does feel like
with this policy, in my opinion, there may be some
avoidance of just like the reality of this is my
hard work. Like if you don't know your grades, how
(11:34):
are you supposed to measure yourself against? What you should
or could be doing. And so my question is, you know,
it's a dicey kind of like policy, but why do
we interpret a lot of these accommodations for mental health
as coddling when others see them as necessary support? Or
is this even what's going on here?
Speaker 1 (11:56):
Mm hmm, Yeah, I think so much gets interpreted as
kind of when other people react to it, right, you know,
So I think when we look at supplemental services that
people need, right, Like, I think a lot of people
just like you mentioned, right, like, oh, this is what
I had to do, right Like a lot of us
are invested in the hard road that we had to
travel to get to a place, and so we often
(12:18):
see it as not fair if somebody didn't have to
do the same thing, right or like oh does their
journey match up to mine? When I don't know, I
mean so I would be very curious to hear what
kind of data prompted this kind of decision, right because
I wonder, like what was happening on campus that made
them feel like they needed to make a decision. But
(12:38):
I do know kind of generally on campus mental health,
you know, we have been seeing increases in like significant
mental health concerns. Sadly, there's no shortage of suicide on
college campuses every year, and so I do know that
students are under a tremendous amount of academic pressure, and
so I'm guessing that some of that is what prompted
(12:58):
them to maybe make this decision. But I think if
you still like pass or fail the class, it is
still giving you some indication of whether you have mastered
disinformation well enough to kind of be able to demonstrate knowledge, right, Like,
is that what we're looking for? Are we looking for
like some superficial And I think the data is still
(13:18):
kind of not really clear about whether grades and like
test scores actually demonstrate mastery to us, right, And so
I think the whole grading system itself is like developed
because it's the best thing we have. I don't know
that it is actually a true measure of success though.
Speaker 2 (13:36):
That's a good point and it's something I've had to
reflect on, as Like in college, I had a note
taker because I have a hearing disability, and so sometimes
I would also have additional time if things involved like
audio or somebody speaking and things like that, And it
did make me reflect on before having those accommodations knowing
(13:58):
that something was wrong, but feeling this gratification that I
was able to overcome that struggle without asking for help.
And it brings me to my second question, does struggling
make us stronger? Or can unnecessarily struggle hurt us? So
I think there is this romanticization of like, well, I
(14:18):
had to do it this way, and that's how it
should be done, because it gave me the fortitude to
be the person I am today, but doesn't really have
to be that way for everyone else.
Speaker 1 (14:29):
Yes, And I think that that is a particular danger
for us as black girls, right, because so much of
struggle has been romanticized, right in this idea that like
we have to work twice as hard to get abb
as much, and so so much of our lives have
been an upward battle. So I think that we are
overdue for something that's a little softer, right, for a
(14:50):
little bit more grace. And so I do think that
there is danger in this idea that if I had
to struggle, then everybody else has to struggle, because I
don't think that that's the only way that you can
learn stuff, right, Like, of course, there is a thing
as post traumatic growth and resiliency is something that is
just a part of the human experience. But I'm not
actually convinced that tough times and struggle are the only
(15:13):
way for us to learn anything. In particular, I think
that we can also learn from the examples and experiences
of other people. I think that we can learn from
validation and praise, and so I don't think just running
ourselves into a brick wall, like working as hard as
we can are the only ways that we can actually
learn anything that's consequential.
Speaker 2 (15:33):
So I'm curious if removing fear of failure actually makes
young people or people in general more willing to take
risk and learn, because that's also what it seems like
is going on here, Like part of it is, oh,
I can take this class, and I can do this
thing out of my wheelhouse because I won't be judged
(15:54):
as harshly. And I've always viewed college as yes, you're
getting a degree, but you're also kind of searching who
you are. And it's like, Okay, I can take this class,
and I can sign up for this club, and I
can take this internship. And so I'm curious what removing
that fear of failure does. But what are also other
ways we can encourage young people but also ourselves to
(16:16):
take more risk and not worry about the outcome.
Speaker 1 (16:20):
Mm hm, So I think you know built into this system.
At least the way you outlined it, it sounds like
it's only for the first semester, so there's only so
much of this that you're going to be able to
play with anyway, right, So I think it feels like
there are already some guardrails in place to make sure
that this is not something that completely tips the scale.
But I do think you have a good point, right, Like,
if you know that there's not going to be a
(16:40):
negative consequence in terms of a hit to your GPA
because you tried a chemistry class because you weren't sure
if you want us to do that as a major
and your major really is English, I think that does
encourage some risk taking, right, And so I'm like, oh,
let me see if this is something that I might
like or that I might be successful in. And so
I do think that that is one way to promote
(17:00):
risk taking and to explore, which I agree with you
is a valid part of college, though I think we
have seen less and less of that as college has
become more expensive, Right, It kind of feels like there
is no real time to be exploratory anymore, because Okay,
this is you know, sixty thousand dollars a year, and
you gotta get in and get out. And so I
(17:21):
do think that this is one way to do that.
But I also think that there is a way to
do some risk taking just through hobbies or listening to
people's podcast interviews that are interesting to you, right like
other people that have done things that you think that
you might want to do, listening to you know, their
kinds of interviews, setting up interviews for yourself. Like, I
(17:42):
think that there again are lots of ways we can
learn through other people without us being the ones kind
of in the seat of taking risks. And I think
for ourselves we also have to normalize like making mistakes
and not being great at everything and just understanding that
that is a part of life, right Like, there are
lots of things we're gonna be good at and a
lot of things we're really just gonna suck at. And
(18:04):
I think when we get into this loop with feeling
like we have to be perfect and excellent at everything,
we really set ourselves up for failure because that's not
how humans work. We're not actually robots, and so understanding that,
you know, failure and making mistakes is a normal part
of being a human and giving ourselves grace just like
we would give other people is something that's a really
(18:24):
important skill for us to learn.
Speaker 2 (18:26):
Well, thank you for that sermon today, doctor Jarvon. We
got a little bit of a sermon with all three topics.
Like we know, representation matters, but it's good for us
big girls to keep creating in the age of AI
and most importantly, take risks. Don't shame other people who
may have had an easier path, because I think that's
part of life. Like it sucks, but we did need
(18:48):
people to say, like, hey, it kind of sucks being
a freshman in college. It's really hard. How can we
take pressure off of you know, these young people to
get to a point where we're reconsidering you know, grades
and great that feel like very punitive. So thank you
for giving us those reminders.
Speaker 1 (19:03):
Say you're welcome. Thank you, Lithise were great questions. I
really appreciate the curation of the topics here. And if
there are things that are coming across your timeline or
things that you're thinking about that you'd like to hear
our thoughts about you can always send those to us
at Therapy for Blackgirls dot com slash mailbox, and until
next time, take good care of yourself.
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