In our school we have had to invoke a 20 minutes then change media in order to keep the Gen Y students interested. Lecture then Powerpoint then demonstration then discussion, then a hands-on period.
Stacie,
definitely a tough call & I want to make sure I'm careful in how I approach this. There definitely does appear to be an increase in these diagnoses. It definitely makes me wonder if it's false diagnosis or connected to the amount of technology usage & therefore decreased attention spans, etc. I'm really not sure & like I said, you want to be very careful with this.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I've noticed that
Generation Y learners seem to have an increasing number of IEP's and learning disabilities. I'm not sure if this is from false diagnosis or this is somehow related to their generation characteristics. Any thoughts??
Carmen,
you are so right. While there are many ways of teaching, we do need to make sure that we are trying to incorporate technology when possible.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
Robert,
yes & also to help them develop those critical thinking & problem solving skills.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
The characteristic styles really require us, as instructors, to think outside the box. I have tried to incorporate more technology into my classes to reach the millenial student in their comfort area. It is challenging to instructor to learn about technology to the degree that we can implement more of it in the classroom.
If you are fortunate enough to have a large number of GenY students you can have some real fun with technology in the class. Things like POD-Cast Lectures and online learning exercises will work well. Setting up a class for these students will free your creative spirit and allow you to explore all sorts of new delivery processes using technology. I am looking forward to seeing more GenY enter my classes. I am an old Boomer trying to learn some new technological tricks to make my life easier and the student experience more enriching.
They can't sit in class and listen for long periods of time! THe really need interaction and hands on experiences or they get bored very fast and you cannot keep them engaged!
With Generation Y I tend to focus on research skills, they are always connected I might as well make use of it. They see it as a form of a game that can get to the correct answer faster. This allows them to leverage both research skills as well as the technology skills have and treasure. I have them find a related news article based upon that topic.
For book work I give out a list of questions the chapter will answer. Creating some mystery, once you plant the question in a student’s head they must find out what happens. It's like telling a story then leaving out the ending they will have to know.
Since they are used to knowledge at their fingertips and fast-paced answers, it is important to integrate a variety of instructional methods into the classroom. This helps to maintain their interest while allowing for different venues of learning. Also, providing outside resources and activities that integrate technology helps them to engage more.
With PC's cell phones with web, these students are very informed and can access information at the drop of a hat. But hands on problem solving is an issue. Taking the time to promote self thinking and working through a problem is a big undertaking. Simple things like reading an anolog clock on the wall kind of floors me. Part of the learning is to teach them to be more aware of there suroundings to help solve issues in the learning process.
Jessica,
you definitely have to keep things moving with the Gen Y learner in order to keep them engaged & moving forward with the material.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
As an instructor I have to take into account all the Generations represented in the classroom and I incorporate as much technology and I can since that is what they will use in their career fields and what they are used to learning with. The downside in our school is that we have baby boomers and Gen X who didn't grow up with technology and find it difficult to learn from it our use it in their own presentations.
you have to vary your instructing. i lecture for 10 min and then open up for questions. I teach a lecture/lab class and i do the lecture/questions about 3 times then we break and go into lab.
Pamela,
yes some use of technology is a good idea with this generation. I have had some gen Yers tell me recently that they are getting a little tired of all the technology...interesting.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
You have to incorporate technology into the classroom (not just powerpoint)to keep their attention. Two techniques we use are games such as jeopardy (tailed for the subject) that can be played over using the overhead projector and
"clicker".
For my wine class there is an entry where the price of the bottle has to be filled in. I mostly have all the other information for the wine on the bottle except the price. Rather than look this up myself I have the class get out their smart phones and look up the highest and lowest price of the bottle and list what website they used.
Carla,
yes & this is when we must strive to be understanding & help the students in any way possible.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I too agree that with the diagnosis of ADD, ADHD, and Autism the dynamics of a classroom changes almost with each personality. Not only the person affected with the "disorder" need additional or modified attention/teaching but the others in the classroom are then affected by the differences in approach with the initial student. It can make for a complicated class.
james,
this is good advice as we seek to really connect with & help these students learn.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
