Teaching the 21st Century Learner

Roger Von HolzenDarla Runyon

Northwest Missouri State Universityhttp://cite.nwmissouri.edu/presentations/

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Goals

• Describe 21st century learners

• Discuss how to teach the 21st century learner

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Pop Quiz #1

What do these chat acronyms stand for?

– B4– LOL – POS– GNSTDLTBBB – CUL8R – KSUSHYGEMA

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Pop Quiz #2

What do these emoticons mean?;-)

>:-( 

^5

(((((name)))) 

(::()::)

@[_]~~ 

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Us vs. Them• http://www.sciencemag.org• http://www.brainpop.com• http://www.yahoo.com• http://yahooligans.yahoo.com• http://www.ask.com• http://www.ajkids.com• http://www.hgtv.com• http://www.nick.com• http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com• http://www.sikids.com

Digital Generations

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Children age 6 and under…

• Spend 2:01 hours / day playing outside• Spend 1:58 hours using computers• Spend 40 minutes reading or being read

to• 48% of children have used a computer• 27% 4-6 year olds use a computer daily• 39% use a computer several times a

week• 30% have played video games*

Kaiser Family Foundation, 2003

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By age 21…

• The average person will have– sent 200,000 emails– watched 20,000 hours of TV– talked 10,000 hours on a cell phone– spent under 5,000 hours reading– played 10,000 hours video games*

Prensky, 2003

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Technology & the New Learner• Do video games pose a challenge to

education?– The time and money that students

spend on gaming indicates pervasive role of entertainment in our culture

– Insight into engagement, not entertainment

• Video games challenge K-12 and higher ed to foster engagement in learning*

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Today’s Learners…

• Crave interactivity

• Read visual images– Weak reading skills

• Visual-spatial skills

• Parallel processing

• Inductive discovery

• Fast response time– Short attention span*

Prensky, 2001

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Technology & the New Learner• By the time today’s

kindergarteners graduate from grade 12– information will have doubled at least

seven times– technological power will have

doubled itself nearly nine times*

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CH

AN

GE

We are here

Singularity:Digital Technology

Our Lives

TIME© 2005 Marc Prensky

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CH

AN

GE

Our Students’ Lives

TIME© 2005 Marc Prensky

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Teaching the New Learner• Requires:

– much less emphasis on the amount of material memorized

– much more emphasis on making connections, thinking through issues, solving problems*

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Teaching the New Learner

• Learning now a life-long process of coping with change

• The content of a particular lesson less important than manipulating content resources

• Learning how to learn is the basis of education*

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Teaching the New Learner• Multimedia format pervades nearly

every part of life– Television– Audio– Animation– Text

• Students live in a world of digital, audio, and text– They expect a similar approach in

classroom, which they often don’t get*

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Students:• Multitasking

• Pictures, sound, video

• Random access

• Interactive and networked

Faculty:

• Single or limited tasks

• Text

• Linear, logical, sequential

• Independent and individual*

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Teaching the New Learner

• Teacher’s Role:– No longer the professor dispensing

facts and theories • Old model: primary challenge of learning

is to absorb specific information

– A participant in the learning process• Faculty role will be unbundled--teacher

to mentor• Facilitate peer-to-peer

learning*

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Teaching the New Learner

• Instructional implications– Movement toward blended courses– More collaborative learning

approaches – Continuous and formative

assessment– Greater flexibility and customization

of course content to meet learner needs*

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Teaching the New Learner• Interactive course site features

– Online quizzes– Forms for providing feedback or asking

questions– Online voting– Games– Features for sharing pictures or stories– Virtual discussions through threaded

discussion boards, blogs, wikis, and chat– Features for creating/adding content– Videoconferencing– Online collaborations via whiteboards*

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Learning Spaces• Wireless technology enabled learning

spaces within the classroom– Projection screens– Document cameras– DVD players– Video conferencing tools– Tablet PCs– Collaborative classroom software such as

OneNote– Student response systems*

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Learning Spaces• Library modules within the building and

virtually within the course management system– Dual monitors for group work and

collaboration in pod designs– Library research units/modules that can be

duplicated into any course site– Library course sites for

specific content delivery– Online library support*

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Pedagogical Approaches• Blended instruction and learning

– Face-to-face interaction and activity– Online interaction and activity– Experiential interaction and activity

• Allow learning to happen easily outside the classroom– End of class is a transition to another

learning space– More time spent with content*

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Pedagogical Approaches• Collaborative learning through

group/team projects– Developed using multimedia processes– Provides a more powerful learning

approach than a term paper—authentic learning

• Looking for practical applications, real-world context

• Focus more on applying classroom lessons to real-life problems, institutions, or organizations

– Allows students to focus on their learning style strengths*

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Faculty Training

• We need to have a new set of expectations of faculty

• Foster a technology culture– Need for continuous faculty training– Resources and support should be

available

• Reward innovation in technology-rich learning environments*

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Adults look at going online as entering a foreign place called cyberspace.

21st Century Learners look at it as where they live.

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The New Technologies

• Can help create a learning culture in which the learner enjoys enhanced interactivity and connections with others

• Central issue: How can technology be organized around student learning?– Use tools to help students think and

communicate effectively*

Roger Von Holzenrvh@nwmissouri.edu

Darla Runyondrunyon@nwmissouri.edu

Northwest Missouri State Universityhttp://cite.nwmissouri.edu/presentations/