Today's youth are growing up as digital natives, being exposed to
computer and mobile technology from a young age. Students are
connected in ways that transcend many adults', including educators',
understanding. Students evolve immersed in social networking, online
gaming, and in the use of mobile technology for texting, talking, and web
browsing. They have both a local and global sense of community,
spending as much time in virtual environments as in environments that
are reality based. Many develop friendships from all parts of the world.
Exposure and use of technology is changing the way students think
and learn. As educators look to the future of teaching, do current
educational practices meet the needs of these digital natives?
This is a difficult question to answer. The 21st century student no
longer learns according to the industrial models of education
that are so prevalent in American society. New teaching methods
or pedagogies need to be adapted that foster skills of critical thinking,
collaboration, problem solving, and self-reflection -- skills demanded
of the 21st century graduate. This can be achieved through a learner
centered classroom where teachers work to partner with students
in learning instead of teaching by telling (Prensky, 2010). This is the
concept of the 4G classroom, a classroom that integrates student
centered learning models with mobile and web based technologies
that foster necessary 21st century skills.
Esquared Consulting offers a variety of training programs to assist
both educators and administrators in the development of a
comprehensive program for learning with technology, according to the
research based 4G model.