Teaching the 21st Century Learner Darla Runyon Northwest Missouri State University Dr. Roger Von Holzen Northwest Missouri State University

2 Goals Define 21st century learners Discuss how to teach the 21 st century learner

3 Pop Quiz #1 What does this mean? ROTFL –Pneumonic for remembering the 5 plant cell types –Reserve Officers Training Florida –Record of True Foreign Languages –Rolling On The Floor Laughing

4 Bonus 1 What do these chat acronyms stand for? –B4 –LOL –POS –GNSTDLTBBB –CUL8R –KSUSHYGEMA

5 Bonus 2 What do these emoticons mean? ;-) >:-( ^5 (((((name))))

6 Us vs. Them

7 Children age 6 and under… Spend 2:01 hours / day playing outside Spend 1:58 hours using computers Spend 40 minutes reading or being read to 48% of children have used a computer 27% 4-6 year olds use a computer daily 39% use a computer several times a week 30% have played video games Kaiser Family Foundation, 2003

8 By age 21… The average person will have –played 10,000 hours video games –sent 200,000 s –watched 20,000 hours of TV –talked 10,000 hours on a cell phone –spent under 5,000 hours reading Prensky, 2003

9 Games & Simulations Marc Prensky – data on learning with games (

10 Start Game The Natural Selection Game The Embryo Shuffler Game

11 Technology & the New Learner Do video games pose a challenge to education? –The time and money that students spend on gaming indicates pervasive role of entertainment in our culture –Insight into engagement, not entertainment Video games challenge K-12 and higher ed to foster engagement in learning

12 Dependence on Technology Are students becoming too dependent on technology to do spelling and basic arithmetic? –Technology empowers today’s students –They can add, subtract, divide, and multiply faster and more accurately than past students

13 Dependence on Technology If a device can do something better, more efficiently, more accurately, or quicker than we can manually, why not use it? –Isn’t that the true purpose of technology (cars and electricity)? Our focus must shift from the tools themselves to the capabilities of these new tools to empower students to do new things

14 The 21st Century Learner… Born in or after 1982 Gravitate toward group activity 8 out of 10 say “it’s cool to be smart” Focus on grades and performance Busy with extracurricular activities Identify with parents’ values; feel close to parents Respectful of social conventions and institutions Fascinated with new technologies Racially and ethnically diverse Howe & Strauss, 2003

15 Today’s Learners… Digitally literate Mobile Always on Experiential Social Computers aren’t technology Oblinger, 2004

16 Hypertext minds: Qualities Crave interactivity Read visual images –Weak reading skills Visual-spatial skills Parallel processing Inductive discovery Fast response time –Short attention span Prensky, 2001

17 Technology & the New Learner The amount of information grows almost as quickly as the new technologies We process more information in 24-hours than the average person 500 years ago would in a lifetime –Oldest universities established by AD 1500

18 Technology & the New Learner By the time today’s kindergarteners graduate from grade 12 –information will have doubled at least seven times –technological power will have doubled itself nearly nine times

19 Teaching the New Learner Requires: –much less emphasis on the amount of material memorized –much more emphasis on making connections, thinking through issues, solving problems Discard notion that schools can teach everything every student will need to know –Old model: primary challenge of learning is to absorb specific information

20 Teaching the New Learner Learning now a life-long process of coping with change The content of a particular lesson less important than manipulating content resources Learning how to learn is the basis of education

21 Learning Preferences Teams, peer-to-peer Structure with flexibility Engagement & experience Visual & kinesthetic Things that matter Oblinger, 2004

22 Learning Preferences Students want to learn through exploration Students want to be challenged to reach their own conclusions, find their own results

23 Learning Preferences The new technologies can help create a learning culture in which the learner enjoys enhanced interactivity and connections with others Central issue: How can technology be organized around student learning? –Use tools to help students think and communicate effectively

24 Students: Multitasking Pictures, sound, video Random access Interactive and networked Faculty: Single or limited tasks Text Linear, logical, sequential Independent and individual

25 Teaching the New Learner Multimedia format pervades nearly every part of life –Television –Audio –Animation –Text Students live in a world of digital, audio, and text –They expect a similar approach in classroom Faculty must abandon notion that a lecture and reading assignment are enough to teach a lesson

26 Teaching the New Learner Teacher’s Role: –No longer the professor dispensing facts and theories –A participant in the learning process Faculty role will be unbundled--teacher to mentor Facilitate peer-to-peer learning

27 Teaching the New Learner Must learn to communicate in the language and style of the students –going faster –less sequential, more parallel –more random access

28 Teaching the New Learner Instructional implications –Movement toward blended courses –More collaborative learning approaches –Continuous and formative assessment –Greater flexibility and customization of course content to meet learner needs

29 Teaching the New Learner Interactive course site features –Online quizzes –Forms for providing feedback or asking questions –Online voting –Games –Features for sharing pictures or stories –Message boards –Forums for offering and receiving information –Features for creating/adding content

30 Teaching the New Learner Diversity in structure, content: –singular unit should be kept short and alternating Course redesigns must be systematic Avoid incremental add-ons –Simply adding a few computer experiences costs more, is more work for the faculty, and adds to the students' burden True innovations change rather than modify systems Jack M. Wilson—Ten IT Commandments

31 Learning Spaces Classroom was the traditional learning space—physical Virtual space is now an option that can be included Connect the two learning spaces through a blended approach

32 Learning Spaces Provides an array of new pedagogical approaches –Wireless networking—mobility –Videoconferencing –Online collaborations via whiteboards –Virtual discussions through threaded discussion boards, blogs, wikis, and chat

33 Learning Spaces Allow learning to happen easily outside the classroom –End of class is a transition to another learning space –More time spent with content

34 Pedagogical Approaches Collaborative learning through group/team projects –Developed using multimedia processes –Provides a more powerful learning approach than a term paper—authentic learning Looking for practical applications, real-world context Focus more on applying classroom lessons to real-life problems, institutions, or organizations –Allows students to focus on their learning style strengths

35 Pedagogical Approaches Blended instruction and learning –Face-to-face interaction and activity –Online interaction and activity –Experiential interaction and activity Collaborative immersion through videoconferencing and whiteboard integration for group/team projects Support of cumulative learning through e-portfolios or repositories

36 Pedagogical Approaches Relevant, interactive technology –Facilitation of learning through practical uses in coursework –Applicable to content and activities –Makes it easier to move away from linear formats of learning

37 Learning Spaces Wireless technology enabled learning spaces within the classroom –Projection screens –Document cameras –DVD players –Video conferencing –Tablet PCs –Collaborative classroom software such as OneNote –Student response systems

38 Learning Spaces Library modules within the building and virtually within the course management system –Dual monitors for group work and collaboration in pod designs –Library research units/modules that can be duplicated into any course site –Library course sites for specific content delivery –Online library support

39 Learning Spaces Mobile technologies such as handhelds, iPods, and Tablet PCs All of these link well with the 21 st Century learner habits –Social interaction –Experiential and immersive activities –Technology use

40 Teaching Steps Confront the reality of the 21 st Century learner Determine how to implement changes in pedagogy based on this reality –Base instructional decisions on goals rather than traditions Determine priorities, execute plan, and evaluate the process

41 Faculty Training We need to have a new set of expectations of faculty Foster a technology culture –Need for continuous faculty training –Resources and support should be available Reward innovation in technology- rich learning environments

Adults look at going online as entering a foreign place called cyberspace 21 st Century Learners look at it as where they live

Darla Runyon: Roger Von Holzen: presentations