The students Who are our students? What is it that they want? What is it that we want them to become? How can we realize our vision for them?

Our Students: The Generation Z Who are they? They are born into a digitized world where instant access is everywhere. (1994-2010) They are children that have never known a world without internet services and modern technology They are a generation of instant gratification, but a group of kids that welcome diversity, change, and accept that things cannot and will not last forever.

Understanding Generation Z Children in Gen Z have immediate access to publishing their thoughts and ideas through social media such as Twitter, Facebook, blogs and You Tube Able to multi-task and process large amount of data but it must be broken into pieces Must be taught to be creative and imaginative

64% have constant internet access Spends 8-9 hours per day connected to at least one form of media 90% of secondary students have mobile devices, 20% of elementary students The most independent generation: the majority spend time alone because of a parent’s job and with the use of digital technology spend the least amount of time in human history using conversation to get ideas across

Have developed their own vocabulary and language as a result of technology View marriage as less important but parenting as more important in life Have more purchasing power than any previous generation at the same age Are less healthy, more obese Make rapid decisions use very little time to contemplate consequences

What is the point? As educators, We need to understand them because they have evolved differently. No longer will a pen, paper and book satisfy the needs of this group who thrives in a media rich environment. We need to create a world inside the classroom where they can hear, see and feel what we teach them in their highly digitized world.