I believe technology and being technological savvy is a great benefit in education, but I also believe it has made Gen Y students less adept at verbal and written communication.
Amelia,
I think this is a good way to incorporate the use of technology. As you said, it can get tricky at times & obviously the use has to be carefully monitored.
Dr. Ryan Meers
My students are addicted to their smartphones. Instead of fighting it, I've learned to help them ration their use, and I actively embrace the positive side. When a question comes up in the classroom that would benefit from a quick look at a dictionary or thesaurus, out come the smartphones, and someone has the answer in seconds. These students definitely expect answers right away. This is good when there is a short answer that can be comprehended quickly. It's trickier when there is a complex problem that requires reading and digesting a lot of information.
Holly,
this is precisely why we need to make sure that we are recognizing the value of the quick information era & helping them learn the value of the library & the "slower" information resources.
Dr. Ryan Meers
That all information are found at their tips can be a good thing. The problem is though, they cannot always store the information because they don't sweat to reach cliffs of assignments.
Technology has provided Gen Y students with the entire world for resources. The students go on the internet and find their needed information in seconds. Unfortunately, the Gen Y students do not know how to facilitate a library.
Marian,
this is definitely a challenge with this generation. The other part of this is making sure when they do find a solution that they understand how it solves the problem & works.
Dr. Ryan Meers
Gen Y learners are amazingly quick in finding solutions because information is so readily available via the internet. However, I sometimes find their solutions or ideas not of their own. They are very good at copying and plagiarizing. There seems to be a lack of creativity and free thinking.
Susan,
this is true & I've found that many of the Gen Y students are starting to realize this & I'm starting to see a swing back towards true face to face communication.
Dr. Ryan Meers
Yes, I believe it has. The impact has been both good and bad. The good part is that due to the technology that surrounds them, Gen Y students are very adept at using computers and learning software programs. The bad part is that I believe their social skills and ability to communicate clearly (both verbal and written) has suffered. Much of the Gen Y communication has taken place through the use of technology so face-to-face communication can be very difficult for them.
Jill,
I agree that this is a great strategy as it makes the expectations clear & teaches them to use a variety of sources.
Dr. Ryan Meers
I agree. I have learned when assigning reaction papers or projects to make one of the requirements to use sources OUTSIDE of Wikipedia/WebMD and they must use one physical book/journal/magazine source. I believe this helps them find more viable information and sets them up to remember more.
I believe that technology can be incredibly helpful, but at the same time very distracting. I think most of the time students are tempted to use technology for social uses, while at their same fingertips there is so much more the technology being used can be utilized for. It is unfortunate that they don't use their gadgets for all that they are capable of. Additionally, while I try to utilize technology for learning activities, I have a large mix of students in the classroom, not just Gen Y students, so technology isn't the way to go, if not everybody can engage in the learning activity.
For the Gen Y group I try to promote the use of gadgets for learning uses, such as the flash card apps.
Also, at times technology is used as a substitute for learning. For example, while teaching conversions for culinary math, students were utilizing their conversion apps on their smart phones rather than learning the information for themselves.
Jo Ann,
yes, much of their technology use is entertainment driven, rather than thinking.
Dr. Ryan Meers
Michael,
yes, unfortunately I have noticed this problem with the ability to connect in true interpersonal situations.
Dr. Ryan Meers
I agree that study skills are lacking; they often seem to expect all the information to be handed to them. I think it would be very beneficial for them to learn how to use all the technology they have with them everyday to help themselves study.
They certainly have a willingness to embrace new technology, which can be very beneficial in the classroom. On the other hand, I find they often think they know much more about technology than they actually do. For instance, they are very familiar with facebook and youtube, but cannot conduct online research and are typically not very proficient with production software.
As with anything else, there are good and bad impacts. Information is much easier to find, but we have to teach/learn how to assess that information for relevance and accuracy. There does seem to be less time spent in preparing for class. Technology can also interfere with attention span. The concept of connectivity can also have good and bad impacts. The connectedness to diversity is a good thing, but the ability to connect in face-to-face situations can be negatively affected.
liz,
I agree with you. We definitely have some new challenges with technology in this generation, but we also need to remember that not all of these challenges are all the way new.
Dr. Ryan Meers
This has been an interesting history course for me. I feel as though each generation has had the same struggles just to a different extent. As we've moved from one war to the next and seen the effects it has on each generation. I believe the biggest change has come from technology... We have such an opportunity to be aware of what is happening everywhere and have become so custom to gaining whatever it is we want instantaneously. In some sense its great to have the knowledge and convenience. But in others I think it has negatively affected our personal interactions and communication.
