Education for the FastTwitch Generation

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Education for the Fast-Twitch Generation
Laurie Ayre Education Department Kings
College United States lmayre_at_kings.edu   Marian
W. Boscia McGowan School of Business Kings
College United States mwboscia_at_kings.edu
Presented at the Technology, Reading and Learning
Difficulties 23th Annual International
Conference January 27 29, 2005 at the Grand
Hyatt, San Francisco, CA
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Purpose

• This presentation is designed to raise
  elementary and secondary educators awareness of
  the influence of various medias on todays
  students literacy(ies) and learning styles and
  to introduce ideas and resources that can help
  instruct these learners.

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Introduction

• The average American child lives in a household
  with 2.9 televisions, 1.8 VCRs, 3.1 radios, 2.6
  tape players, 2.1CD players, 1.4 video game
  players, and 1 computer.A great deal about the
  lives of children depends on their race, sex, and
  social class, but access to major media does not
  (p. 17).
• Gitlin, T. (2001). Media unlimited how the
  torrent of images and sounds overwhelms our
  lives. New York Metropolitan.

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Introduction

• Report of the Kaiser Family Foundation (1999)
  Kids Media _at_ the New Millennium
• Excluding media used in school for homework,
  children spend 38 hours immersed in media a
  week.
• Per Day.
• Children in the study used media for five hours
  and 29 minutes.
• Boys and girls had equal exposure to media.
• Minority children spent six hours eight
  minutes, while white children spent five hours
  eight minutes.

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Introduction

• Creators of commercial media for todays under-19
  crowd, such as Marc Prensky, founder and CEO of
  Games2train, have identified their target market
  as the fast-twitch generation.
• Description
• This generation grew up on video games ("twitch
  speed"), MTV (more than 100 images a minute), and
  the ultra-fast speed of action films. Their
  developing minds learned to adapt to speed and
  thrive on it.
• Resource Prensky, Marc 1998. 10 Cognitive
  Style Changes of the Fast-Twitch
  Generation.Across the Board (January 1998)
  available on line at http//www.marcprensky.com/wr
  iting/Prensky20-20Twitch20Speed.html

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Introduction

• When childrens experience changes
  significantly, so will their brains. Part of the
  brains physical structure comes from the way it
  is used (p. 15).
• Healy, Jane M. (1991).Endangered minds Why our
  children dont think. 1st touchstone ed. New
  York Free Press.

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Introduction

• This presentation will
• Discuss how and why the so-called fast-twitch
  generation is unique.
• Share ideas for using technology and other
  approaches to meet their learning needs.
• Invite you as audience to comment and share your
  ideas on these vital topics.

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10 Cognitive Style Changes of the Fast-Twitch
Generation

• Twitch Speed vs. Conventional Speed
• Parallel Processing vs. Linear Processing
• Random Access vs. Linear Thinking
• Graphics First vs. Text First
• Connected vs. Stand-alone
• Active vs. Passive
• Play vs. Work
• Payoff vs. Patience
• Fantasy vs. Reality
• Technology as Friend vs. Technology as Foe

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Important Suggestions for Educators

• Get to know children better.
• 2. Create exciting, meaningful experiences in
  the classroom.
• Be open to all the modes of expression technology
  provides. Consider Digital Literacy.
• Intrator, S. (2001). Teaching the media child in
  the digital swarm. Media Literacy and Arts
  Education 102(6), pp. 25-27.

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1. Twitch Speed vs. Conventional Speed

• This generation is accustomed to speed.
• They want faster delivery, less time spent on
  tasks, and shorter lead times to success.

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Twitch Speed vs. Conventional Speed Meeting
Students Needs

• Technology can be used to exploit students
  twitch speed.
• Examples Streaming video of news stories
• CBS news at http//www.cbsnews.com/sections/i_vide
  o/main500251.shtml
• The FeedRoom at http//national.feedroom.com

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2. Parallel Processing vs. Linear Processing

• Students are accustomed to multi-tasking.
• Much of the under-30 generation grew up doing
  homework while watching TV and doing almost
  everything while wearing a Walkman. (Prensky,
  1998).
• Examples of multi-tasking content
• CNN News
• Bloomberg TV News

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Parallel Processing vs. Linear Processing
Meeting Students Needs

• Maybe we shouldnt feel that we have to demand
  what to us would appear as perfect attention when
  we lecture.

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Parallel Processing vs. Linear Processing
Resources

• Huitt, W. (1998). Critical thinking An
  overview. Educational Psychology Interactive.
  Valdosta, GA Valdosta State University.
  Available at http//chiron.valdosta.edu/whuitt/col
  /cogsys/critthnk.html
• Rubinstein, Joshua S., Hughes, William J.,
  Meyer, David E. and Evans, Jeffrey E.
  2001.Executive Control of Cognitive Processes
  in Task Switching. Journal of Experimental
  Psychology Vol. 27, No. 4, 763-797.Available at
  http//www.apa.org/journals/xhp/press_releases/aug
  ust_2001/xhp274763.html

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3. Random Access vs. Linear Thinking

• The under-30 generation is the first to
  experience hypertext and clicking around.

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Random Access vs. Linear Thinking Meeting
Students Needs

• Teaching Through Technology Middle School
  Projects at http//www.ecb.org/ttt/middle.htm
• Move the goal of comprehension of texts from the
  big ideas to shared ideas.
• Research
• Enciso, P. (2000). What will be the influences of
  media on literacy in the next millenium? Reading
  Research Quarterly (35)2, pp. 278-280.

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4. Graphics First vs. Text First

• Todays students have grown up in a media-rich
  Internet environment.
• For them, text explains visual images.
• People who do not have internet access rely on
  television and print materials for information.
• With books and magazines, visual images
  illustrate the more important text.
• Todays students often find learning more natural
  when it begins with images.

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Graphics First vs. Text First Meeting
Students Needs

• The burning of a Viking longship available from
  http//www.teachingideas.co.uk/history/contents.ht
  m.
• Virtual Tours at http//www.virtualfreesites.com/
  tours.html
• Media integrated in PowerPoint example La
  geografía de España--Segunda Parte.ppt

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5. Connected vs. Stand-alone

• Fast-twitchers are accustomed to world-wide,
  asynchronous communication using
• E-mail,
• Messages boards and blogs,
• Chat rooms, and
• Internet searches.
• Information is richer, but harder to evaluate.

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Connected vs. Stand-alone Meeting Students
Needs

• Example
• Global SchoolNet Foundation provides a
  registration site for online collaborative
  projects, organized by topic, grade, and project
  date. Their Web address ishttp//www.globalschoo
  lnet.org/index.html

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6. Active vs. Passive

• The fast-twitch generation uses the heuristic
  When in doubt, read.
• The fast-twitch generation is fearless they
  click everywhere.
• They have learned to hunt for hidden surprises or
  "Easter eggs."
• Go on an Easter eggs hunt with hints from
  Eeggs.Com and EggHeaven2000.Com

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Active vs. Passive Meeting Student Needs

• Classroom Resources in Technology Websites
  compiled by Sue LeBeau athttp//www.suelebeau.com
  /techresources.htm
• Electronic Response Systems
• For an overview and list of vendors go
  tohttp//www.foundationcoalition.org

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7. Play vs. Work

• Prensky observes For today's younger
  generation, play is work, and work is
  increasingly seen in terms of games and game
  play.
• Fast-twitch students enjoy games that reward
  problem solving, achievement, and
  competitiveness.

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Play vs. Work Meeting Students Needs

• Develop learning through games, e.g.,
  Jeopardy-type format games those of ones own
  invention
• Economics Jeopardy.ppt
• (Developed by Jason Menghini, Kings College
• for Social Studies Methods with Maureen Gaffney)
• JMR Jeopardy Template.ppt
• (Reworked by Jackie Ritzko, Penn State
  Hazleton, PA)
• La geografía de España--Introduction.ppt
• (Developed by Dr. Anne Massey, Kings College)

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8. Payoff vs. Patience

• Fast-twitch students expect to be rewarded.
• Feedback is particularly important
• Give them opportunities for more feedback.

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9. Fantasy vs. Reality

• Much of the favorite entertainments Fast-twitch
  students is based on fantasy
• Harry Potter,
• Chat-room conversations,
• Online video game play.
• Rather than admonish students to "grow up and get
  real." teachers should look for new ways to
  combine fantasy and reality.

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Fantasy vs. Reality Meeting Students Needs

• Role Play Examples
• Becoming an Archaeologist at http//www.teachingid
  eas.co.uk/history/becominganarchaeologist.htm
• Pavlac, Brian A. 2004 A Witch Hunt Germany
  1628 by at http//www.kings.edu/womens_history/wi
  tch/hunt/index.html

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Fantasy vs. Reality Meeting Students Needs

• Role Play Development Resources
• Ip, Albert Linser, Roni and Naidu, Som 2001.
  Simulated Worlds Rapid Generation of Web-Based
  Role-Play. In the Proceedings of the Seventh
  Australian World Wide Web Conference, Opal Cover
  Resort, Coffs Harbour, 21-25 April 2001.
  Available online at http//ausweb.scu.edu.au/aw01
  /papers/refereed/ip/paper.html

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10. Technology as Friend vs. Technology as Foe

• Young people today embrace technology, while
  their parents and teachers are more afraid of it.

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Technology as Friend vs. Technology as Foe
Meeting Students Needs

• Integrate technology and ask students to be the
  experts!

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10 Cognitive Style Changes of the Fast-Twitch
Generation What do you think?

• I. Twitch Speed vs. Conventional
  SpeedII. Parallel Processing vs. Linear
  ProcessingIII. Random Access vs. Linear
  ThinkingIV. Graphics First vs. Text
  FirstV. Connected vs. Stand-aloneVI. Active vs.
  PassiveVII. Play vs. WorkVIII. Payoff vs.
  PatienceIX. Fantasy vs. RealityX. Technology as
  Friend vs. Technology as Foe

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10 Cognitive Style Changes of the Fast-Twitch
Generation What do you think?

• Please email your ideas to
• Laurie Ayre at lmayre_at_kings.edu or
• Marian W. Boscia at mwboscia_at_kings.edu

The End