Teaching Millennials

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Teaching Millennials

“The Net Generation”

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Who are Millennials ?

• Mil-len-nial– Noun

• Plural noun: Millennials• A person who reached young adulthood in the early 21st century

• U.S. Census Bureau defines the Millennial generation as “Children born between 1982-2002”– 18 to 35 years old– 81 Million are in college– The largest generation since Baby Boomers (1)

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Parents of the 1950-1960’s “Authoritarian”

• Children expected to follow strict rules established by the parents– Failure to follow rules usually resulting in punishment– Authoritarian parents did not explain reasoning behind the rules

• “ Cause I said so! That’s why!”

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Inclusiveness Parenting of 1980-2000’s

• Inclusiveness Parenting also called Authoritative Parenting– Provides and encourages critical thinking and appropriate

levels of independence– Parents have high expectations

• Provide the resources to achieve expectations

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Authoritative Parents:• Listen to their children• Encourage independence• Place limits, consequences and expectations on

children’s behaviors• Express warmth and nurturance• Allow children to express opinions• Encourage children to discuss options• Administer fair and consistent discipline

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Comparison

Authoritative• Permeable rules• Give-and-take• Set standards their children can meet• Open dialogue

– Explains meaning• Demands maturity from children

Authoritarian• Restrictive • Harsh Punishments• Parent maintains complete control• Do not explain rule

– “because I said so”• Parents insist on unquestioning

compliance

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“The ME Generation”Perception

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLpE1Pa8vvI&sns=em– Lazy– Entitled– Selfish– Shallow

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLpE1Pa8vvI&sns=em

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The Truth…• Approximately 10,000 Net Gen’s will turn 21 everyday in

America• By 2018, Millennial’s will have the most spending power

of any generation– Expected to eclipse Boomers in spending power at 3.39 trillion

dollars • 50% of Millennial college students say they “don’t” need a

classroom (2)

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The truth…• Millennial’s are the most educated generation in American

history with over 63% having Bachelor’s degrees• By 2025, 3 out of every 4 workers globally will be

Millennial’s• In the past 5 years: 87% of Millennial workers took

management roles, vs 38% of GenX and just 19% of Boomers (2)

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How does this affect higher education?

• Gleason (2008) said “The Net Gen is poised to impact American culture in profound ways and one of the greatest impacts is technology in education” – Students are becoming more technology advanced– Faculty must keep up (3)

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• Significant difference in the life experiences, expectations, and technological expertise of many faculty and the students they are to teach– Shift from emphasizing teaching to emphasizing learning– Purpose of education is to produce learning

• Not deliver instruction (3)

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– Net generation students are under great pressure to achieve:• They are expected to attend college and succeed• Competition is stiff for college admissions and scholarships• Parents value education and molded their children for college success

from an early age. – Parental involvement has resulted in millennial students who

are:• Sheltered• Protected• Dependent• Extremely high achievers (3)

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Characteristics of Net Generation Students

• Described as “digital natives”– Depend on technology– Fluent in acquiring information

instantly– Using many technology tools for

everyday living and communication

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• Barnes, Marateo, and Ferris (2007) reported that Millennialsare so saturated with technology that by age 21 they average:– 10,000 hours playing video games– 2,000 hours watching TV– 10,000 hours on cell phones– Sent or read 200,000 emails

• Nilson (2010) stated Millennials have spent 1,000’s of hours Facebooking, shopping, surfing and entertaining themselves electronically (3)

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• Today’s students are not only technology advanced– The ways they live and learn are much different than previous

generations– Extremely diverse group of culturally, economic, and

geographic backgrounds• Nilson (2010) contended they are “the most diverse

generation-economically, politically, ethnically, racially and culturally-that North American institutions of higher learning have ever welcomed” (3)

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• That diversity will not only impact the classroom– But the entire campus as we try

to meet student needs

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• Millennial students have grown up in sheltered environments– Fear of abduction and crime

caused parents to keep children close

• Time spent indoors:– Playing video games – Watching TV– Using computers

• Parents continue to be protective – Stay close to children, even in

college years

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• Elam, Stratton and Gibson (2007) described millennial parents as “helicopter parents” – Involved in every facet of children’s lives– Constantly monitoring child’s academic progress all the way

through school• Remain involved in children’s college education from:

– Research– Admissions– Graduation

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• According to Gleason (2008) “This generation is motivated, goal oriented, assertive and confident” – They are high achieving and

know what they want (3)

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• Net gen students are more knowledgeable than previous generations– Have quick access to vast amounts of information– Quickly absorb and organize acquired thoughts– Quick thinkers, react at a moments notice – Are accustomed to structuring time– Work from schedules– Follow rules (3)

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• Gleason (2008) reported that busy lives of Millennialsoften create problems in time management and procrastination– Many work more than 31 hours/week– 60% report sleep deprivation (3)

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• Another problem we face:– Personal attention and immediate service expected from

students and parents– Confidence, independence, and autonomy make millennials

more assertive• Qualities that affect how they learn in the classroom (3)

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– Barnes (2007) contended “ These students make conscious choices about what learning techniques work best for them”

• They are self directed • Want input on their learning • Often jump from one idea to another• Struggle to read a textbook• Extremely visual• Want to see concepts instead of read about them (3)

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• Net gens:– Access to immediate answers– Expect immediate answers and feedback– Demand one-on-one attention from instructors/advisors

• Because parents have been over-involved in their lives– Often making all decisions

– Need constant stimulation and challenge– Often have short attention spans

• Discouraged when they are more technologically advanced than instructors

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• May also seem disrespectful in class– Sometime create disruptions

• Communicate differently• See nothing wrong with using internet/texting during class

• Murphy (2010) described a sense of entitlement felt by many students who have been praised and coached by parents and teachers

• Often have poor classroom attendance• Put forth minimal effort

– Expect good grades– Sometimes argumentative and challenge material (3)

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• In a study on millennial students in the classroom, Wilson (2008) determined the best way for teachers to reach students is to understand where students are coming from.– Want to learn:

• Information that is interesting to them• Information that is practical for their lives

• McGlynn recommended that instructors shift to experiential learning and service learning programs that allow student's to actively engage in learning and learning in groups (3)

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Strategies to Meetthe Challenges

• In the article Who is Training Whom?, Junginger (2008) suggested that in order to meet the challenges of teaching millennial students, colleges must discard traditional teaching and learning methods and ideas.

• “They (colleges) must embrace new, technology driven teaching by revamping curriculum and using advanced technology in their presentations”

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• “ To effectively train and teach the new generation, they must constantly be entertained while educated” Junginger (2008) – Faculty must find ways to deal with texting, talking, and moving

around the classroom- behavior millennial students see as normal and acceptable

– Murphy (2010) argued educators must face challenges firmly and fairly

• Teachers must realize that they themselves set the tone for learning• We should set an exemplary example of expected behaviors

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• The syllabus should detail:– All rules and policies– Expectation for behavior

including• Attendance• Assignments deadlines• Grade weightings• Penalties for: plagiarism, tardies,

missed assignments/exams• Policy on cell phones and computer

usage in the classroom

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• Teachers must:– Vary our teaching styles to meet the needs of our classrooms– Should permit students to be involved in the development of

learning activities and assignments– Allow student’s to use the technology they are accustomed to– Give credit for contributions they make in the learning

environment – Take full advantage of online tools such as Facebook, Twitter,

podcasts, YouTube, web blogs, group chat rooms, instant messaging and news feeds (3)

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R’s of Engaging Millennial Students

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1. Research-based methods:

• Research suggests millennials prefer a variety of active learning methods.– When not interested, attention quickly shifts – Many components of their ideal learning environment

• Less lecture• Use of multimedia• Collaborating with peers

– Some of the same techniques research has shown to be effective

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2. Relevance

• Millennials have grown up able to Google anything they want– Do not typically value information for information’s sake

• Instructor’s role is shifting from disseminating information to helping students apply the information

• One of our greatest challenges is to connect course content to current culture and make learning outcomes and activities relevant

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3. Rationale:

• Unlike Boomers raised in a more authoritarian manner in which they more readily accepted the chain of command– Millennials were raised in a non-authoritarian manner – More likely to comply with course policies when teachers

provide them with a rationale for specific polices and assignments

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4. Relaxed:

• Millennials prefer a less formal learning environment in which they can informally interact with the instructor and one another– In interviews the term “laid back”

was repeated used to describe the millennia's ideal classroom (4)

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5. Rapport:

• Millennials are extremely relational– More central to their parents’ lives than pervious generations– Used to having the adults in their lives pay great amounts of

interest in them– They appreciate instructors who show that same interest– They seem more willing to pursue learning outcomes when

instructors connect with them on a personal level (4)

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Breakout session

The 5 R’s in you’re classroom1. Research-based methods2. Relevance3. Rationale4. Relaxed5. Rapport

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Conclusion

• Educating adults of the net gen will continue to challenge faculty

• Challenges should be viewed as opportunities to learn and help our students

• Educator's should learn as much as possible about their students and where they come from

• Educators determine their student’s attitudes and desires about learning

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Conclusion

– While every member of the net generation will not have been afforded equal levels of financial and parental support, and students will have different levels of technological expertise, educators must strive to engage and teach students in the millennial world they are accustomed to

– Educators should embrace technology and change and develop new methodologies for motivating and training the new generation of workers

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Conclusion

• Nilson (2010) “Stating how much we want them to be successful and voicing high expectations of them will go very far in earning their loyalty and trust”

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Questions?

• Picture of my student’s here!

https://www.youtube.com/feed/history

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• 1. https://www.census.gov/topics/population/data.htm• 2. 22 shocking Stats About Millennials Ryan

Jenkins/Small Business• 3. Educating College Students of the Net Generation• Worley, Karen Adult Learning; Summer 2011; Research

Library: Science & Technology • 4. Faculty Focus Higher Ed Teaching Strategies for

Magna Publications Mary Bart www.facultyfocus.com/author/mary-bart/

https://www.census.gov/topics/population/data.htm

http://www.facultyfocus.com/autor

Teaching Millennials

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