Then...

The majority of today’s educators were born in the year 1961. As documented on The People History website (2009), a new home cost $12,500, yearly income was $5,300, the cost a new car was $2,850, and gas was 27 cents per gallon. Television shows of interest were Mister Ed, The Adventures, and I Love Lucy. Popular movies included The Parent Trap, 101 Dalmatians, and West Side Story. Elvis Presley was a hit and teenagers were dancing to the Jerk, the Frug, and the Pony. This year marked the first human to travel into space, TWA showed the first in-flight movie, and IBM introduced the Selectric typewriter. The world was in a cold war, Americans built bomb shelters, and the civil rights movement was hopeful of integration despite intense race riots. 

By the time today’s teachers graduated from high school in 1979, the price of a new home was $58,100 (4.6 times 1961). Yearly income was $17,500 (3.3 times 1961). The cost of new car was $3,800 (1.3 times 1961), and a gallon of gas was 86 cents (3.2 times 1961). The first oil price crisis caused a panic buying with a record high of $24 the price per barrel. Television shows such as The Waltons, Happy Days, and The Little House on the Prairie were standards. Popular movies included Every Which Way But Loose, Rosemary’s Baby, and Easy Rider. Teens were listening to the music of Michael Jackson, Rod Stewart, and Pink Floyd. Personally accessible technology was introduced with the Sony Walkman and cost $200.00. Communist supporters organized a march and white supremists killed five marchers, the Three Mile Island nuclear accident caused dangerous radioactive materials to be released into the atmosphere, and China instituted the one child per family rule to help control it's exploding population.

Now...

Today’s high school seniors were born in 1991. Compared to their teachers the price of a new house was $120,000 (2.1 times 1961). Yearly income rose to $29,400 (1.7 times 1961). A new car cost $14,000 (3.7 times 1961). Gas cost $1.12 per gallon (1.3 times 1961). These students were born watching television shows such as Seinfeld, The Cosby Show, and Beavis and Butt-head. Popular movies were Terminator 2: Judgment Day, The Silence of the Lambs, and Thelma & Louise. Hit musicians were Pearl Jam, Whitney Houston, and Phil Collins. The internet was available to approximately 1 million computers on the net, Microsoft released MS Dos 5.0, and substantial shifts were observed in the Arctic and tropical rainforests. Fifty percent of India’s population was living at or below the poverty line while in the United States the Dow Jones average topped 3,000 for the first time. A University of Iowa student went on a rampage and killed five people. Police brutality was the focus in the Rodney King arrest case. The Soviet Union officially ceased to exist and Apartheid was dismantled in South Africa.

Today’s 2009 graduating high school students compared to their teachers, according to the U.S. Census Bureau (2007-2008), find the average price of a new home is $313,600 (2.6 times 1991). Yearly income is $50,230 (1.7 times 1991). A new car costs $25,000 (1.8 times 1991). Within a months time, gas prices have ranged from $1.50 per $5.00 per gallon (1.3 to 4.5 times 1991). Oil prices have varied from $45.00 per barrel to over $100. Actual 2009 data is volatile given the current housing, automotive, and economic crisis’s. High school graduates watch television programs such as Heros, House, and Lost. Popular movies include Slumdog Millionaire, Milk, and The Reader. Current popular musicians are Taylor Swift, AC/DC, and Lil Wayne. Personally accessible technology is ubiquitous in society around the globe. Google Search, Google Maps, Smart phones, iPods, Texting, YouTube, Facebook, LinkedIn, iChat, handheld GPS devices did not exist ten years ago – however, this technology now seems to be indispensible. For the first time in the history of the United States, a president of color is in office, the federal government has promised the auto industry billions of dollars in aid, unemployment rates are the highest rate since 1974, and the United States Postal Service is in financial turmoil and faced with the reality of discontinuing Saturday deliveries.