The 21st Century Learner

The 21st-Century Digital Learner

How tech-obsessed iKids would improve our schools.

BY MARC PRENSKY

http://www.edutopia.org/ikid-digital-learner-technology-2008

I read the article, the 21^st-Century Digital Learner: How tech-obsessed iKids would improve our schools. The title caught my attention right away. The author of the article, Mark Prensky, conducts panels about improving schools for other educators and administrators. What is unique is that he does a question/answer panel with students from area districts. He asks the students questions such as: What experiences in school really engaged you? How do you use technology in school as opposed to outside of school?

The article points out that our educational system does a poor job getting input from students about how their schools and teachers are doing. It is suggested that students hold the key as to what helps them learn the best while we as educators struggle in this area. The author suggests to us that technology has become a driving motivator and a daily activity for children today. Lectures and Power Points no longer keep students attention and many find themselves shutting down or not listening. A common statement that students shared in the panel was that they were bored in school and didn’t feel teachers were engaging enough. With today’s students being raised on computers and technology, teachers and those in the educational system need to realize that technology is a huge part of students lives and possibly a great way for students to stay engaged and learn while in school. One of the students on the panel stated that technology is a “foundation, and the basis of everything we do.”

I found this article to be very interesting and relevant to incorporating more technology into the educational system. I feel that there is a huge push for technology to be used in all classrooms and across all districts. I agreed with the author when he stated that we don’t listen to our students enough. Only the students know the key to what will motivate them to learn the best. We, as teachers cannot make those assumptions for them. Maybe this means we push to change up the curriculum to incorporate more technology as a means to engage the student’s better. The article points out that students today have been raised on computers and cell phones and incorporating technology maybe a much-needed change. Perhaps this may require more trainings or continuing education for teachers to keep up with times, but I for one am always interested in learning more about the advances in technology today.

We as educators need to step back and listen to the voices of our students. If technology is the key to better education and engagement then I think we need to do whatever we can as educators to take that step. Ultimately our goal is to get students to learn and students won’t learn if they are not engaged. Overall this article shed some new light on the issues and concerns of technology with the children raised in the 21^st century. I’m started to see that technology can be the key to helping our students enjoy education more, instead of them dreading going to school. I would recommend all people in the educational system to read this article and think about how technology can impact and change a student’s learning.

-Alissa Holland