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Learning Strategies for the Media Generation Coping with Homo Zappiens
Wim Veen
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Who is Homo ZappiensThe generation using three tiny devices from early childhood on …
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Who is Homo Zappiens It is the generation playing games
Riven, Atlantis, Planetarion, Unreal Tournament, B&W, PlayStations I and II
Communicating with SMS, MSN, chatrooms
The generation that mixes f2f and virtual friends
The generation for which learning is playing and having fun
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Playing games in
worldwide teams
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Chatting in three rooms
at a time with different
electronic personalities
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Sending e-cards including text,
music, voice, and images
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Finding out about the
latest earthquakes
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Who is Homo Zappiens
The generation that invents games Without winners or losers, without a clear start or end, and
creating their own rules and changing them whenever they like
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Who is Homo Zappiens
The generation that is skeelering up the stairs, instead of down the stairs
The generation that is surfing the waves of the sea, and snowboarding in stead of skiing.
The generation considering school as a
meeting place rather than a
learning place
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Schools Complaining Homo Zappiens
Short attention spans They cannot even listen for more than 5 minutes!
Hyper active behavior They cannot concentrate on one task at a time!
No discipline Crushing their calculators, forgetting their textbooks, not
passing on letters from school to their parents!
No respect They consider teachers as their equals!
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In stead of looking at children from a point of view what they should do according to their parents and teachers, why not looking at them from the point of view what they actually do?
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Integrated scanning skills
Multi-tasking
Processingdiscontinuedinformation
Non-linearapproaches
Homo Zappiens at Work
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Integrated scanning skills
Multi-tasking
Processingdiscontinuedinformation
Non-linearapproaches
Homo Zappiens at Work
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Scanning texts, sounds,
movement, colours, and
images
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Integrated scanning skills
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Homo Zappiens at Work
Integrated scanning skills
Multi-tasking
Processingdiscontinuedinformation
Non-linearapproaches
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Homo Zappiens at Work
Listening hisfavorite music
Phoning to his friend
Surfing the Net
Doing his home-work
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Homo Zappiens at Work
Integrated scanning skills
Multi-tasking
Processingdiscontinuedinformation
Non-linearapproaches
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Processing discontinued information
Channel 1
Channel 2
Channel 3
Zapping TV channels is constructing interrupted visual, audio and textual information chunks into meaningful knowledge
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Homo Zappiens at Work
Integrated scanning skills
Multi-tasking
Processingdiscontinuedinformation
Non-linearapproaches
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Non-linear approaches
Linear
B CA E FD
Non-linear
B
C A
EF
D
Non linear approaches require a redesign of content according to new insights of learning and using multimedia technologies
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Do the Homo Zappiens skills relate to learning?
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About Learning
We learn by reflecting on our experiences creating ‘mental maps and models’
Learning is the process of adapting our mental models by including new experiences.
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Basics of Constructivism Learning is searching for meaning Constructing meaningful knowledge
demands understanding of the whole and its constituant parts
The aim of learning is constructing your own meaningful knowledge
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Brain based Learning
Human brains are neural networks acting as complex systems (adaptive, non-linear, and self-organizing)
Learning is a non linear process of adaptivity of the system using associative and creative thinking
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Brain based Learning Learning is enhanced by
confronting learners with complex, interactive experiences, high level content within an authentic context, and fitting the learner’s interests or needs
a challenging content and learning activities
Activating learning methods foster internalization of information
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Summarizing……...• Learning is an active mental process of the
learner • reflection with the ‘inner self’, and through
communication with others• transforming information into meaningful
knowledge• Teaching is enabling students to be active,
communicating, thus constructing knowledge
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First Conclusion Homo Zappiens prepares for future Education is underestimating the Homo
Zappiens Education does not recognise the
screenagers’ learning skills Education will have to adopt entirely new
learning approaches
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Second Conclusion
….The skills that screenagers develop while scanning computer screens, zapping the TV channels, multitasking, ‘cross reading’ texts, and thus rapidly processing huge amounts of information, will guarantee the survival of our civilization in the 21st century.
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New Approaches for Teaching
Flexibility of content Flexibility of learning models Flexibility in time/scheduling Flexibility of goals and assessment Flexibility of the learning community
Preparing for a creative society instead of an industrial society
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Flexible Content
Defining new ‘core’ content OECD’s study on what pupils should know for future
Using any resources available from everywhere Good bye to the linear traditional textbooks
Using the communication facilities for asking, finding out and discuss Hello mobile devices for new learning services
Ministries to provide guidelines in stead of detailed curricula
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Flexibility of Learning Models
Teacher led Community led Learner led
Teachers to become ‘side-by-side’ learners, facilitators, and the ‘guide on the side’
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Flexibility in Time/Scheduling
7 lessons a day each lesson is 50
minutes each week is the
same 40 weeks a year
Less whole classroom teaching
Subject oriented timeslots
Varying periods for individual and group working
Schools to become autonomous institutions
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Flexibility of Assessment Students own their learning process Schools may define competencies Students can take responsibility
formulating and checking their own learning goals
Students can prove their competencies by submitting (multi media) materials showing their
competencies e.g. in electronic portfolios
Secondary students to learn and work from 16+
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Flexibility of Learning Communities Opening up schools
e.g. Tesco’s 2000 Network Learning Communities: learning with parents, external experts, governmental authorities: the extended learning community
Schools will loose their primacy of educational services
Schools, multimedia companies, TV broadcasters, and other private companies to establish ‘Public Private Partnerships for Learning’
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