"Today's students – K through college – represent the first generations to grow up with this new technology. They have spent their entire lives surrounded by and using computers, videogames, digital music players, video cams, cell phones, and all the other toys and tools of the digital age."
Marc Prensky, 2001
Children and adolescents in digital societies are growing up in a world where digital technologies are ubiquitous.
Internet is used by net-generation also for education and learning purposes, often outside the classroom.
This emergence of digital native learners has major potential implications for Education.
Games and Digital Resources in School is an important and serious goal in the 21st century focus on the changing face of Education.
I am a "digital pioneer" teacher. I can not be called a "digital immigrant" . I did not grow up with Technology. Technology grew up with me, and I was there every step of the way. A "digital pioneer" who is doing an enthousiastic job infusing technology meaningfully into teaching and learning, in and out school.
I am a tech educational researcher and a learning author for quite a time! I practise formal and informal learning called blended learning.
After previewing the digital resource, created by myself or choose by myself, I put it in context phase, that means in the classroom and out school, observing my own students as they interact with the digital resource selected.
The selection must be the most desirable in terms of educational objectives and constraints.
I could feel the enthousiasm of the "N-Gen", when the Web 2.0 entered into my lessons as being part of the curriculum.
I teach on formal (face-to-face teaching) and informal learning (web 2.0). Never missing a new way or option to use digital resources in Education.
My students can reach me by email, on Messenger since 1999, texting, blogs or Moodle plataform since 2002.
As an tech-savvy educator, I am teaching to the current generation of digital natives in ways that support these students varied learning styles.
Rick Wilking/ Reuters 2009
Reseachers and teachers recognise that learning is ongoing and seeks to provide digital resources of quality to support learning on schools.
The assessment of these new tools and devices in curricula is crucial! These digital resources must be certified by experts in IT & Education who have the knowledge of school curricula contents .
The feed-back of experimentation done by teachers and students have an enormous impact.
The objective of the assessment is to analyse the N-Gen - "new learning generation" in the classroom and out school, understand their expectations and attitudes facing the "new ways of learning", using educational digital resources.
Expert teachers must analyse needs and goals carefully, specify the requirements, and finally, test digital resources in the classroom, with different students.
Digital resources, games, virtual worlds, web 2.0 technologies used in Education, after being analized and tested in real contexts, could join a kind of repository for teachers, parents, and students.
Something is already done by Merlot (Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching).
Also European Schoolnet in cooperation with the I
nternational Software Federation of Europe (ISFE) organised an European Conference on the use of electronic games in schools on 5 May 2009 in Strasbourg, France.
Conference "Games on Schools"
John Dowell (University College London) concluded by raising the point that some argue from generation to generation that our intelligence is evolving2) and indeed rising. If this is true, intelligence is also evolving into different forms, such as games and may even be driven by this kind of popular culture.
Well, "Digital games in schools" has been published with the support of the Interactive Software Federation of Europe:
Written by Dr Patrick Felicia, a researcher at the Waterford Institute of Technology in Ireland, the handbook is intended for teachers interested in using digital games in their lessons. It provides the necessary information to understand the educational benefits of digital games and to learn how to use them as educational and motivational resources. The handbook is available in digital version below and can be ordered in print against a small fee to cover shipping cost.
Games in Schools Community of Practice report is now available in PDF (english version) here
I'ts a very good step on this long way from good practical examples!
"Should we create a parallel curriculum for 21st century learning? Games can surely contribute. Perhaps on EU level, we need to build such a curriculum?"
John Dowell
Some thoughts:
I don't know if we must create a parallel curriculum. I think it's very important to create new curricula crossing traditional pedagogy and digital tools for digital natives if we want keep our students focus on school time!
I have received notable recognition for using games, videos, blogs, web 2.0 technologies to inspire the students in educational contexts: school curriculum. They were creative and follow my innovation in school and out school (at home).
Now, I am a Certified Expert ICT and Curricula recognised by my pedagogical experience and scientific articles in the field of Education. I am a speaker at several national and international conferences.
The impact of Digital Educational Resources on cognitive skills and on learning expectations, and the evolution of social values and lifestyles are important issues.
G-Souto
References:
Prensky, Marc, Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants, on Horiozon (MCB University Press, Vol. 9 No. 5, October 2001
Souto, Gina, Assessment of Digital Resources use in Education: Anatomy of Digital Resources in Learning Generation, Research, Reflections and Innovations in Integrating ICT in Education, Vol. 2, Formatex, Spain, April 2009
Palfrey, John, Publications
Games in Schools, European Scholnet, ISFE
