My Generation

“The outlook of those we teach has changed, and thus the way in which we teach must change.The world in which we all live has changed, and thus the content we teach must change” - Frand, 2000, p2

By:KA Johnston

“The outlook of those we teach has changed, and thus the way in which we teach must change.The world in which we all live has changed, and thus the content we teach must change”- Frand, 2000, p.2

http://www.my-generation.org.uk/

Judith Addo & Michael Railton• Explored the Net Generation's learning styles;

the perceptions of these learning styles held by faculty members and how to treat the ensuing gap in perceptions in order to better facilitate the education of the

Net Generation

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Generations DefinedMatures Baby Boomers Generation X Net Generation

Birth Dates 1900–1942 1943–1960 1961–1981 1982–1991

Description Greatest generation Me generation Latchkey

generation Millennials

AttributesCommand & controlSelf-sacrifice

OptimisticWorkaholic

IndependentSceptical

HopefulDetermined

Likes

Respect for authorityFamilyCommunity involvement

ResponsibilityWork ethicCan-do attitude

FreedomMultitaskingWork-life balance

Public activismLatest technologyParents

Dislikes WasteTechnology

LazinessTurning 50

Red tapeHype

Anything slowNegativity

Oblinger & Oblinger,

The omnipresence of technology has shaped the way the Net Generation views life, learning and society

Faculty staff Students

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Y Generation

Generations DefinedBaby Boomers 1943-60 Generation X 1961-1981 Net Generation 1982-1991Raised at time of rise in substance abuse, crime rates and sexual risk taking rose whilst academic achievement declined

Raised in a time of failing marriages when welfare of children fell to the bottom of the priority list. “latch key kids”. As a result tend to be more self dependent, preferring freedom to bureaucracy

Heaviest influence on their upbringing has undoubtedly been the proliferation of the internet technology and its adoption in the home, at schools and at work

Bay of Pigs, Vietnam War, Cold War, Kennedy Assassination and Watergate scandal

Fall of the Berlin Wall, emergence of Hip-Hop culture, emergence of AIDS and the Web

Gulf war, AIDS pandemic, Y2K, dot-com bubble, global warming, Clinton sex scandal, 9/11, Iraq war

Father knows Best family order, so were far more liberal than parents today

Trying to construct the kinds of strong families that they lacked, as a result, the upbringing of the Net Generation more structured

Grown up as part of a “globally connected, service- and information-intense, digitally based culture”

Became a generation that sought self-perfection and deeper meaning

High levels of risk taking amongst the youth resulted in soaring teen pregnancy rates

Gravitate toward group activity. Focused on grades & performance; fascinated by new technologies; diverse group; identify with parents’ values and feel close to them

Frand; Howe & Strauss; Oblinger & OblingerAnd they smoked….. No one size fits all 6

Y Generation

Net Generation behaviours Computers are not a technology, computers are an

assumed part of life.Internet is better than TV: spend more time online than

watching TV.Reality no longer real: Things that appear real over the

internet may not really be, and the content may or may not be accurate.

Doing rather than knowing: Results & actions are considered more important than the accumulation of facts.

Nintendo over logic: Nintendo symbolises a trial-and-error approach to solving problems.

Frand7

Net Generation behaviours Multitasking way of life: Students appear to be

comfortable when engaged in multiple activities.Typing rather than handwriting: penmanship has been

superseded by keyboarding skills.Staying connected: Students stay in touch real time using

a variety of devices.Zero tolerance for delays: Students expect service to be

available 24/7 in various modes.Consumer/Creator blurring: There’s a general assumption

amongst this generations that digital resources are everyone’s property.

Frand8

Research QuestionsFaculty Members• How do South African faculty members prefer to learn?• What perceptions of student learning styles do SA faculty members have?• How do SA faculty use Educational Technologies to facilitate their teaching?Students• How do SA students belonging to the Net Generation prefer to learn?• What are the preferred learning styles of SA Net-Gen students? • What learning technologies do SA students expect faculty members to use in

their teaching?Bridging the Gap• What are the differences between the perceptions held by faculty members of

how students prefer to learn and the preferred learning styles of students?• Is there a discrepancy between students’ expectations of faculty use of

learning technologies and the faculty members’ comfort with using these technologies?

• What corrective measures need to be taken (if any) to remedy the discrepancies? 9

Research Design• Builds on other studies - Oblinger & Oblinger• Quantitative approach• Use of two questionnaires (Faculty &

Students) – approved by ethics committee • Electronic questionnaires distributed to UCT,

Wits & CPUT• 307 student respondents and 15 IS faculty• Variety of statistical tests used

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Faculty

• Number of Courses Taught –ranged from 1 to 4 per semester

• Years of Experience – discontinuous distribution beginning at a range from 4 to 6 years (27% of respondents) whilst 40% had between 7 and 12 years of experience, remaining 33% had been teaching for more than 21 years.

• Academic Area –60% teaching IT courses and 40% teaching business courses

20%

20%53%

7% Admin StaffJunior LecturerSenior LecturerHead of Department

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StudentsRace (%) Gender (%) Age (%)

Sample W B I A O F M 17-19 20-22 23-26Overall Students

23 53 10 4 10 56 44 48 40 12

CPUT 7 70 4 3 16 63 37 15 70 15

UCT 35 42 9 7 7 46 54 80 17 3

Wits 31 45 21 0 3 66 34 46 32 22

HEMIS ‘06 26 67 6 54 46

Class Level (%) Specialisation (%)Sample 1st 2nd 3rd PG IT Soc.Sc Sc. Bus OtherOverall 44 29 20 7 28 3 1 63 5CPUT 50 49 1 0 43 0 0 54 3UCT 86 6 2 6 12 0 0 81 7Wits 40 34 0 26 33 5 2 45 15

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Learning preferencesLearning Preferences Overall Students Faculty Members Diff

Mean St. Dev Mean St. DevTake a class or attend a demonstration 4.10 1.01 3.20 1.21 *CUWHave a friend show me 3.41 1.10 2.93 1.39 UJust do it and see what works 3.07 1.33 4.07 1.21 *CUWRead a paper instruction manual 3.01 1.24 3.27 1.22Read an online instruction manual 2.73 1.09 2.87 1.36

* - Significant difference between Overall Student and Faculty responsesC - Significant difference between Student and Faculty responses at CPUTU- Significant difference between Student and Faculty responses at UCTW- Significant difference between Student and Faculty responses at Wits

Class Friend Just do it Read paper Read online2

2.53

3.54

4.5

Overall Student MeanFaculty Mean

Learning Preference

Stre

ngth

of A

gree

men

t

1 12 233 44 5 5

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Learning StylesStatement Students Faculty Diff

Mean St.D Mean St.DHaving access to IT will be very important for students’ career 4.68 0.65 4.80 0.41 WHaving access to IT is very NB for students’ academic success 4.52 0.74 4.60 0.51Students are only interested in course material that is relevant to

real life4.42 0.68 3.40 1.18 *CUW

Students would prefer to attend a university that uses the latest technology to support their learning

4.30 0.91 3.67 0.98 *CUW

Students learn best when there is a variety of visual material presented in class

4.26 0.79 3.93 0.80 CW

To learn best, students need face-to-face contact with instructor 4.23 0.84 4.00 0.85 CStudents get frustrated when they cannot get the information they

need quickly4.15 0.91 4.13 1.06

Resources on the internet have greatly decreased students’ need to go to the library

3.83 1.09 4.27 0.59 *CW

Interacting with fellow students in class improves student learning 3.77 0.97 4.00 0.93Resources on Internet do not make a good replacement for faculty 3.39 1.01 3.67 0.82 CStudents prefer to learn independently, not working with others 3.15 1.17 2.67 0.82Online discussion boards & forums are not useful in learning 2.81 1.02 2.07 0.62 *CUWInstructor-student interactions in class do not improve learning 2.03 0.91 1.40 0.51 *CUW

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Interactive Learning (Statements: 6, 9, 11, 12, 13) Practical Learning (Statement: 3) Visual Learning (Statement: 5)

Online Learning (Statements: 8, 10, 12) Perceived Importance of Technology (Statements: 1, 2, 4) Patience (Statement: 7)

in learning

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Use of Educational TechnologiesTechnology Students Faculty Members Diff

Mean St. Dev Mean St. DevPresentation software in class 3.47 0.66 3.73 0.46 CA course management system 3.37 0.73 3.57 0.65Communication with students via email 3.06 0.91 3.53 0.92 *CWCourse discussion boards 2.99 0.82 3.43 0.76 *UDelivery of most course content online 2.79 1.05 3.00 1.20Internet in class 2.65 0.78 2.80 0.86Online chat 2.36 0.86 2.14 1.29Instant Messaging 2.28 0.95 2.21 1.37

Present sw Course Mgt Email comms Discuss board Online delivery Class Internet Online chat Insant message1.5

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2.5

3

3.5

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Educational Technology

Rank

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Recommendations• Top learning preferences of SA students:

– Use of classes and demonstrations & – Peer demonstrations in groups

• Top learning preferences of faculty members are:– Use of hands on approaches - learn by doing & – Paper instruction manuals

• Faculty should focus on classes and use peer demonstrations

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Recommendations• Need to adopt teaching methods to meet learning styles of Net

Generation– Teach using relevant material which can be applied in practice– Use visual methods of teaching– Make educational material available to students on internet– Facilitate interactive educational environments– Facilitate fast access to information

• Use of Technologies– Make use of presentation software in class -PowerPoint– Use a course management system - Vula– Communicate with students via email – not notice boards– Have course discussion boards– Deliver course content online

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Video – my Generation

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The following is a video that was submitted in a contest by a 20 year old. The contest was titled "u @ 50". Apparently this video won second place

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42E2fAWM6rA