GENERATION Y-PATIENCE
How does an instructor help a student from generation Y that does not know how to be patient and take their time when an important skill needs to be learned? Because these students are so used to getting answers instantly from the internet they also think it applies to every aspect of their learning experience. It is great that they are so brite but they have problems when things don't come easy to them. They want to give up to soon and quit. I find myself spending a lot of time encouraging them to keep going and not give up when they can't find the right answer or get a hands on skill mastered after the first or second try. Is there a way to help them understand that everything may not come easy and sometimes you have to work hard to reach your goals?
John ,
I too have noticed that they like to get to the facts & what they view as the important information.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
If I give Gen Y students information that they directly use in their assignments or projects , they seem to engage more. They are good at filtering thru a lot of stuff and grabbing what they see as useful for their particular needs. I just have to demonstrate or convince them what I am providing is the stuff they need.
Donna,
critical thinking development is one of the most important ideas/concepts that our students can learn in this generation & is so important for us to help them with.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I try to enforce critical thinking in the classroom. Although this can be accomplished quickly it encourages more thought on the part of the student and allows them to open their minds to other options.I also feel it is important to encourage our students to come up with more than one answer and more than one resource as an acceptable answer to a question. This will allow them to realize that the first answer is not always the right answer.It also allows them to open their minds to other alternatives.If all of the students are spending a little extra time answering a question an individual student might not feel left out. I feel this will help encourage the students to work together as a team and teaches them patients.
