Next Generation Learning

1. how technology is going to affect how your students are going to be learning
2. how you as a teacher will be learning.

Irregardless whether we are teachers or students, we ARE all living in a technological world. And both parties have to equip themselves with latest technology skills to deliver and learn respectively in the academic world.

It is obviously seen that the PACE of learning is getting faster and faster. This is due to the accessing of internet nowadays, that make information searching just a one click a way. And obviously, though it is more common for secondary students, but primary pupils as well, are very much exposed to the usage of internet to search information. Unlike the older days, books were the only and more common way to search for information. But due to the convenience, abundance of information and eficiency that internet offer, the phenomenon is that students will search information from internet rather than books. So this is the first point of how our pupils in near future or even now is going to learn.

Second point is, the 'old' technology, eg Video tape, television, radio etc would slowly be regarded as 'out-of-date' even by pupils. This is especially for city pupils. As they are greatly exposed to hi-tech gadgets such as plasma tv, computers, lap, fancy handphones etc; the older gadgets will hardly catch their attention and interest anymore. Thus, moving along with the development of technology, Tv, overhead projector these kind of teaching aids should be replaced by the usage of ICT for teaching and learning activities.

While for the question 'how we as a teacher will be learing', i guess along with more clickings on the mouse together with the younger generation on internet for information, it is of our urgent need to learn the latest technological skills. The basic one would be the setting up of the LCD in class. The rest will be the mastery of operating various mechanism that the computer has to offer: MS Excel, Power point, MS outlook, video making and editing and other teaching and learing-related programmes.

Other than self-exploration, teacher should make use of the opportunities offered in the school to follow up various training courses in this aspect, and if such offer is not available, teacher has to take his/her own initiative to learn the latest technological skills. Teacher him/herself should be the consistent user of all these technological gadgets, so that the expertise and confidence in using them are being built up.

Most of all, as in the real scenario, teachers, especially of older generation, should break the inner fear and ignorance towards these kind of new learning. As these technology 'bloom up' only later in their life, and because of the fast-pace-learning that it requires and complexity of its nature, fear is bloomed in them to catch up with these latest technology. They should break the barriers in them and move along with the younger generation.

It seems that teachers have lots more to do and more effort is required of them to zoom into the next generation learning. They have no choice but to cope up with all these new challenges, or they will soon feel that they are being inefficient as a teacher in the 21st century. While for the students, computer-table-bound is unavoidably be the lifestyle that they are going to be as far as the learning in the academic world is concerned. Anyhow, both parties, have their own roles to play in coping up inhis technology-oriented generation, so that technology in this generation will be their friend instead of enemy.