I see both the pros and the cons; they have short attention spans which means that you have to trim the fat of what you want them to learn. You also need to use the technology that they are familiar with if you want them to pay attention. They do not respond well to traditional learning modes.
From my stand point of generation y myself, I believe it all starts in the home. If a person has been brought up right with responibles and with discipline, they have a different result of personality and life outlook. But most lack those key building blocks.
I lover that they can find information so quickly and give me feedback on information i givethem that be different than what they founf on the net. this often leads to discussion and student involvement.
Visual and virtual learning seems to becoming a more popular way of reaching Gen Y students because they have grown up with lots of visual stimuli.
I think technology has made teachers change from
lecture syle teaching to a more
hands on approach or even a virtual approach to
increase both interest and information retention.
I like this statment; sometimes this Google mentality eliminates the rule of common sense or tends to make us a little more on the lazy side. I do like the benefits of the technology however there is nothing wrong with researching or finding answers the old school way as well!
Nicole,
one of the advantages to this is that, I've found, it has forced me to get real clear in my own mind about the really key concepts I need to get across.
Dr. Ryan Meers
jason,
and I think this is a great way to open the discussion on reliable & credible information vs just what is quick & easy.
Dr. Ryan Meers
I see the issue of "the easy way out" they don't use criticle thinking skills, they just want the answer and want it NOW!
I would agree the students want the most easy way and the quickest way to get the information,with the path of least resistance .The problem I see is that there is no crital thinking involved to get the information and this could be a problem for them in the future.If you were to take away the cell phones,with all the apps.they now have could they survive?
Good and bad. They have all the resources available to learn but everything seems to be handed to them and this makes them lazy and not wanting to work.
I think it is only helping. I like the fact that online classes are available. Life doesn't stop just to let you advance yourself. In this economy, even those who want to go back to school have to do it while still going to work everyday. Technology makes this happen very successfully.
I say positively. As a Generation Y learner, I used computer to take classes and teach classes. It's comfortable that I can teach and learn at my own time. I also like to use facebook to connect with friends. I play video games online for fun. Most of my life spend on the internet.
After reading a few comments I do agree that technology has impacted this generation when it comes to having the answers immediately and not doing the work. Yet, I also think this has helped this generation to be extremely knowledgeable on various subjects that took previous generations years to study.
As an instructor of Culinary, technology has its uses, but also has diluted some of the tasks that are important in everyday usage such as using a knife. Knowing how a machine works is great, but when it's broken and work needs to be done, nothing can compare with a skilled hand.
I see a lot of this too...they want the answers without going through the steps to get them.
As a parent of three teenagers and a long time adult educator I see where I believe we are doing a gross disservice to Gen-Y learners. I agree with the vast majority of the comments in this thread. I think that all too often the student takes the easy way out not taking the time to actually process the information. The philosophy seems to be "I'll bookmark it and if I ever need the information again I can look it up." Technology is a fantastic tool when used effectively. As for spelling and grammar it appears that they are no longer of concern for today’s students. It seems as if our technology may have exceeded our ability as educators to guide its usage.
I agree than in many cases technological dependence may indeed be setting future generations up for failure. As educators we need to embrace the technology while at the same time holding the student accountable for the retention of the information. I work with my children each day and get them to tell me about what they learned in school. I now this isn’t always practical; but, it is necessary. The same applies to our students. I talk to them at the beginning of each class in an attempt to reinforce the information presented on the previous day.
For Gen-X and its predecessors “look it up†meant in many cases finding time to go to the library and sit down with (which came to be closely acquainted with) Britannica, Funk and Wagnall’s. It took hours to gather all of the necessary information on a given subject. You made absolutely sure that you got all of the information you could and as accurate as you could possibly be because there was no way you wanted to spend another afternoon at the library doing research. During this there is a natural absorption that takes place and the information is more readily recalled. Such is not the case with Gen-Y learners. It seems that the majority will attempt a search for a given piece of information and if an answer does not present itself within 1-3 minutes they throw up their in disgust and declare that the information cannot be found.
I think technology is expected and you have to continually up it and look for new "sizzle" to grab the students attention.
I agree with Jackie, I like the technology and all of the benefits, but it's the social skills that the generation is lacking.
I feel it has positive and negative impacts on students. They are better multitaskers and more tech saavy, however, short attention spans are rampant. Basic skills are also lost because they rely too much on technology and not enough on basic "know-how". It's as though they learned to run before they could walk. Common sense and problem solving skills are lost.
Grace ,
I too have found that the creative problem solving skills seem to be rather lacking in this generation.
Dr. Ryan Meers
