Understanding the Digital Generation: Teaching and Learning in the New Digital Landscape

An innovative look at reshaping the educational experiences of 21st-century learners!

Inspiring thoughtful discussion that leads to change, this provocative resource for teachers and administrators examines how the new digital landscape is transforming learners and learning. It makes the case for rethinking teaching processes in the face of these emerging developments within an environment of standards, accountability, and high stakes testing, and for providing informed leadership that supports 21^st-century learning.

The book provides strategies, ideas, and compelling viewpoints to help leaders deepen their understanding of how educational thinking and instructional approaches must translate into relevant classroom experiences for today′s learners. Understanding the Digital Generation describes implementing educational approaches that build critical thinking skills, and discusses the role of digital media and technology used by students and how that fosters the crucial development of new 21^st-century fluency skills. In reader-friendly terms, the authors provide:

• A comprehensive profile of digital learners′ attributes
• An exploration of the concepts of "neuroplasticity" and the "hyperlinked mind"
• An approach to educational models that support traditional literacy skills alongside essential 21^st-century fluencies
• An examination of appropriate methods of evaluation that encompass how digital generation students process new information

For staff developers leading study groups, this text provides powerful chapter-opening quotes, built-in questions, and additional tools to generate reflective dialogue and an open exchange of ideas.

Ian Jukes has been a teacher, an administrator, writer, consultant, university instructor, and keynote speaker. He is the director of the InfoSavvy Group, an international consulting group that provides leadership and program development in the areas of assessment and evaluation, strategic alignment, curriculum design and publication, professional development, planning, change management, hardware and software acquisition, information services, customized research, media services, and online training as well as conference keynotes and workshop presentations. Over the past 10 years, Jukes has worked with clients in more than 40 countries and made more than 7,000 presentations, typically speaking to between 300,000 and 350,000 people a year. His Committed Sardine Blog is read by more than 78,000 people in 75 countries.

Ted McCain is coordinator of instructional technology for Maple Ridge Secondary School in Vancouver, BC. He also has taught computer networking, graphic design, and desktop publishing for Okanagan College, Kelowna, BC. He is the author of six books on the future, effective teaching, educational technology, and graphic design. In 1997, McCain received the Prime Minister’s Award for Teaching Excellence for his work in developing a real-world technology curriculum that prepares students for employment in technology directly out of high school. For the past twenty years, McCain has done consulting work for businesses and school districts on effective teaching for the digital generation and the implementation of instructional technology. His clients have included Apple Computer, Microsoft, Aldus, and Toyota, as well as many school districts and educational associations in both the United States and Canada. He is passionate in his belief that schools must change so that they can effectively prepare students for the rest of their lives.

Lee Crockett is a national award-winning designer, marketing consultant, entrepreneur, artist, author, and international keynote speaker. He is the director of media for the InfoSavvy Group and the managing partner of the 21st Century Fluency Project. Lee is a "just in time learner" who is constantly adapting to the new programs, languages, and technologies associated with today’s communications and marketing media. Understanding the need for balance in our increasingly digital lives, Lee has lived in Kyoto, Japan, where he studied Aikido and the tea ceremony, as well as Florence, Italy, where he studied painting at the Accademia D′Arte.