LESSON 3 Understanding Technology Learners

The first statement of Lesson 3 of Lucido’s book, “Today’s learners appear smarter, yet they can’t read as their parents do and they are addicted to the Internet”, is it really true? As today’s learner, do you agree? I could just laugh about it. I will explain why. But first let us first tackle the content of lesson 3.

The concern for the new learners is valid. On the other hand, it is to be admitted that our learners today generally use the traditional education program applicable to learners of the past, acquainted with linear, textual, and sequential learning. They fail to realize that the new generation of the 21^st millennium is not the kind of learner that they were, but are information technology or digital learners.

In case, the concern for digital learners is not well understood, it serves to know what scientists say, as follows:

• There are positive benefits derived from the use of information technology or digital resources and these counterbalance possible negative effects of technology on children.
• Daily exposure to high technology-personal computers, video games gadgets, cellphones, Internet search sites – stimulates the brain by strengthening and creating neural circuits.
• A current technological revolution is creating an intellectual revolution, faster and better than ever before. 

Jean Piaget

The 19th century psychologist Jean Piaget presented a chart from childhood to adulthood with the first two years of susceptible minds, six years of acquiring communication skills, teenage years of transition concrete thinking, and adult years of abstract thinking and reasoning. 

Given the digital age today, Piaget's traditional learning chart may have to be redefined. 

There is a phenomenon of the young generation taking on multi-tasking as they perform tasks simultaneously: watching videos, chatting on line, downloading pictures and music, surfing the web, and etc. Research show that multitasking can be detrimental since this prevents concentration and the completion of specific tasks. However, multitasking characterizes professional work in the new world of information technology. There is the need therefore to balance the good and possibly unfavorable changes observed among new learners of this information technology age. 

Digital learner doing multi-tasking.

Let us go back with the statement on the first paragraph of this blog post now that we are done with the content, “Today’s learners appear smarter, yet they can’t read as their parents do and they are addicted to the Internet”. I totally disagree with this one. Why? The youth now are underrated by the statement. As a digital learner (I am still young, okay? Haha.),  comparing the past from the present is quite a common scenario but is it evenhanded if technology is included as a measure of that comparison? What I mean is, with the technology in the past is quite sure that our elders or our parents used the traditional way of learning different from us now that we are all equipped with the gadgets we needed to learn. I believe that it is wrong to say that learners in the past are more shall I say, intelligent than to this generation considering that the two generations took place far more different from each other. 

I often hear phrases like, "Maypa sa amoa sauna.. (It's better way back then..)". We hear it from our parents, uncles and aunties, grandparents, and from our teachers. They keep on comparing our generation from their's. It's better that they would learn to appreciate and cope up with the now than keep on comparing the now and the past. Right? For me, as a future educator, I will be the one to cope up with my students when we talk about this matter. It is one of the things we should consider in teaching. And we all need to change. As the common saying goes, change is the only thing that doesn't change. It will be a challenge but who would dislike that challenge when it will be the good of the majority? 

One of my experience about this is when an instructor of mine required us to prepare a report but the funny thing about it is that she doesn't want a PPT presentation, which is the easier and usually used nowadays, but a visual aid using a Manila paper. Can you imagine? Although, it is not that obsolete but the fact that it will be easier if we use PowerPoint but we didn't because our instructor is more onto the "taplak-taplak" system of reporting. It is very hassle by the way, after we reported our prepared Manila papers were trashed aand wasted. We cannot use it again. 

So with this, I realized that dealing with the digital learners, like myself, it is more okay if the teachers are the one to cope up with usage of technology. Aside from we are now in the IT Age, we should think of the advantages and disadvantages of  technologies we are going to use and should consider the student first and foremost. It will be hard for the students if you will not be understand their way of learning right now, and also with you, the teacher, you will have a difficult time teaching the lesson if you don't know your students.