Are students have changed Essay

Our students have changed radically. Today’s students are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach. (Prensky,2001). Prensky further stated that children in the 21st century are classified as Net-gen, and digital-gen but the most useful description Prensky found for these children is Digital Natives. This is evident because in the 21st century children as young as three years are mastering the uses of computers, videogames, internets, tablets, mobile phones and other technological devices. According to Janssen (n.d) digital native is an individual who was born after the widespread adoption of digital technology. Technology is so advance and useful to students it seems like they get so addicted to it and felt like they can’t do without it and the other hand it helps students to improve in learning. Three changes that are seen with the first century learner regards to technology, they are more dependent on technology, misuse of information and unli mited thinking skills. Firstly, the internet is known as one of the greatest invention of modern age; a gateway that is magical to resources, information and communication unlike anything we previous dreamed of. It is claimed by many that it is the greatest single technological advance for education, as it opens opportunities for studying, learning and discovering. But as time goes by and the first generation of students grows up with modern internet technology from birth to teenage years, questions have been asking are children being dependent on technology. The internet provides students with  enormous advantage of a world of information at their finger tip. A single tap of the finger on the keyboard can deliver a hundred of articles under a second; far hours from when students would spend time spinning through library books and journals in days passed by. With the ease of access, the internet comes with disadvantages such as false and incorrect information that is easily distributed and can be difficult to trace sources and support the information. On, on the other side the volume of research materials online can make students to find information they need too easy, allowing them to compile these information by copying and pasting without understanding and analysing the information they are sifting through at all. While students from twent y years and beyond would have to read and absorb a huge amount of information such as putting together a report on tree frogs. These students have to use different sources for each part of the project; while on the other hand digital natives would discover everything needed to know by the internet site, picking up a little knowledge in the process. According to Jannsen (n.d) people believes that children who are digital natives think differently due to their early exposure to technology and have become accustom to using technology to solve the repetitive tasks that form the basis of traditional learning With the rise of different technology, and the fantastic way that produce communication from mobile phones to iPods to Skype and face book, modern students have become available to a wealth of education opportunities. Pupils from Jamaica can now hold an online debate with a class of their contemporaries in United States and others, interactive group webpage, class blogs, and programs that design interactive online animations which allowed educational communication to form. The reliance on the mobile phones and the laptops is taking toll on areas in education such as literacy and writing skills. This is said to be suffering as children write less and more text message expression take preference over their grammar. Also the suffering of simple communication skills and understanding of personal interaction as young people spend more time online communicating using their keyboards rather face to face contact. The reliance of such method for communication can cause students to form unhealthy relationships with others, concerned about critics that was said, and open up possibilities of cyber-bullying that is very dangerous and persecution of people online. Secondly, the expansion of the use and easy  availability of technology makes it easy for society to do negative activities that often violates the law. The main problems are the misuse of copyright, distribution of forbidden materials, violation of privacy or personal data and other serious activities. This activity can be seen in education field where the increase of plagiarism among students. Students can find information on the internet free and plagiarize other’s work whether if it is intentionally or without realising it. According to Lindemann C(2013) among students in grades 7-12, 21% have turned in a paper downloaded from the Internet. More than a third (38%) copied text from a website. The more students rely on the internet such as Google and Wikipedia answers to answer their home work questions, they are required to use less of their minds to come up with independent thoughts and opinions. Instead they simple click, copy and paste. Plagiarism is not the only way of cheating. The internet is not the only way; students can used other technology such as mp3 players, mobile phones, calculators and other technologies. In gaining information using phones this can be done by emails, texts, Bluetooth, as well as phone calls. According to Takahashi (2011) many educators perceive them a slacking more formal ICT skills. The availability and ease of use of technology makes cheating possible. The environment opens possibilities for academic dishonesty which can be difficult to discover. Students find simple and fast way to get through their studies, such way is to share materials, results, papers, information about exams. A majority of website offers a variety of finished work materials for essays, seminar papers, reports, and even degree works, answers to test for final exams in bachelor or master courses. These website are made for students to upload their work voluntary and the provider usually do not get benefit from the sites; while some sites will offer small benefit for uploading the work. Downloading the work can also be free without registration, if not unless the provider creates a user account or a fee. The reason why students plagiarize is the overload of information. The more information you have leads to the first step towards good school paper. Technology is used by teachers and professionals to increase the quality of leaning. The growth and progress in ICT changes education compare to decades ago and introduce methods that increase in students learning. From this students need to learn how to deal with information for assignments,  work tasks, research tasks and other information problems. Thirdly, technology affects students thinking skill. According to Wolpert S (2009) as technology has played a bigger role in our lives, our skills in critical thinking and analysis have declines, while our visual have improved. Thinking is the ability to reflect, draw on conclusions, knowledge, reason and insight. It is what makes students communicate, build, create and become civilized. Thinking is based from learning, observing, remembering, questioning, arguing, judging and others. The exposure of technology as changes learners. Because of students’ brain still developing and malleable, the exposure of technology causes digital natives brain to be wire in ways different from previous generation. Reading encouraged the brain to be focused and imaginative; but pleasure for reading has decline in young people which enhances thinking and creates imagination that visual media such as video games, television cannot. The using of visual media will allow students to process information better but most don’t allow students to get the time to reflect, analyze or imagine. Reading develops reflection, imagination, critical thinking as well as the development of vocabulary. Through reading, these skills are developed. Students today are more visual literacy and are less print literacy thus many students are not being seen reading often and reading for pleasure. Technology strengthens student’s ability to scan information quickly and efficiently. An impl ication for teaching and learning is that workshops or seminars should be implemented for teachers so that they receive training to know how to integrate the different types of technology into their lessons and make learning more engaging for students. As we know that student gravitates to technology and we are living in 21st century. Attending these workshops teachers are able to know more about each technology such as the usage, programs and others. They are able to monitor the technology by themselves and by doing so they are able to carry out the lesson effectively and stimulate children learning. One implication for policy makers is that in order for the teachers to integrate the technology in the classroom to meet the need of his students, firstly you should provide or equipped the schools with the necessary technology. Without these, teachers will unable to do so, which he or she wants to; so that her students can grasp the concepts well. For the school to be equipped policy makers should also develop an infrastructure to  place the technologies. Provide the necessary security and to eliminate outdated hardware and software and replace them with up to date as the years are passing by. â€Å"When technology integration in the classroom is seamless and thoughtful, students not only become more engaged, the y begin to take more control over their own learning†. (Hertz 2014). Technology integration is the use of technology in the classroom that helps to carry out learning concepts and to manage the class, such technology are computers, overhead projectors, digital cameras, internet, tape recorders, and CD-ROMs. Digital camera is a great application in the classroom as it allows collecting and documenting exciting events in the environment. Integrating digital camera properly can help to link lessons to student’s lives. For example class letter, development of stories and community based research. Cameras can be share between classes and capture images quickly and easily, in which pictures provide important context for children learning experience. Images that are culturally relevant can be a very powerful strategy for students to learn about their community. For example teaching about vocabulary, teachers can send students outdoor with the digital camera to take pictures of events, objects or actions that represent the vocabulary that was discussed . Students can be asked to write sentences or paragraph highlighting new vocabulary. Which is a very excited way for students to increase their vocabulary and become better readers; and teachers could give students the opportunity to take pictures of events or actions that reflect in a story that was read to them, downloading pictures from the computer then allowed children to write a sentence or paragraph about each picture. Having students to take pictures of the story event or action will help them to relate what they reading to their own lives in their community. Digital camera can be used to do storytelling which produces narrated short films using music, photos and voices. The grade 3 lesson â€Å"who are the people in my community†, students and teachers can take a walk within the community with the camera and take pictures of community helpers and write sentences about each role within the community. The teacher and students can produce their story by downloading the pictures on the computer using programs such as Photo-Story, Windows Movie Maker, Powe rPoint, that include narration for each. The tape recorder and boom box can be used to engage student and help save time. One activity for the whole class is teachers can use a student to  become the classroom DJ. Using a microphone, the student announces the topic of the day’s lesson. With a book in hand students can read along with their teacher during reading time. Students can even listen to a recording of their teacher who record the book tape before. The boom box can be used to create electronic portfolio that showcase student’s best work and the learning progress during a time period. By doing this teachers can record the students reading or thinking process when solving a problem, a video clip of his or her oral presentation and a CD with the child digital story. The tape recorder can be used to record student’s reading of a text at regular intervals which is assessed at each interval and strategies plan to improve the reading fluency. The overhead projector is a display system that is used to present images, videos, texts to students. It helps to carry out concepts and for students to grasp concepts by which it stimulates learning by watching videos, interactive games and retrieving texts which aid in the development of different learning styles such as audio and visual learners. The teacher faces the students while the notes that are prepared previously revealed. The lesson becomes engaging and students are attentive or focus and not only that but the teacher becomes more efficient by sharing and creating reusable work. . An example of how teachers can make the projector a part of her lesson is if a teacher is trying to bring across the lesson of the topic family to a grade two class, students will watch a video of the family then have a discussion with the teacher, from the video students will define the term family in their own words. Students will use family related terms seen in the video to write at least five sentences. The family related terms are like: grandmother, brother and sister. References Prensky M (2001) Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants Retrieved February 19, 2014 from http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prens†¦igrants%2520-%2520Part1.pd Hertz MB (n.d) How to Integrate Technology Retrieved February 21, 2014 from http://www.edutopia.org/technology-integration-guide-implementation Wolpert S (2006) Is technology producing a decline in critical †¦ – UCLA Newsroom Retrieved February 21, 2014 from http://newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/is-†¦ducing-a-decline-79127.asp Lindemann C (2013) How to Stop the Plagiarism Plague | Education.com Retrieved February 21, 2014 from http://www.education.com/magazine/articl†¦cle/stop-plagiarism-plague Janssen C (n.d) What is a Digital Native? – Definition from Techopedia Retrieved February 21, 2014 from www.techopedia.com/definition/28094/digital-native Takahashi (2011) Academia.edu | Documents in Digitalian – Academia.edu Retrieved February 23, 2014 from www.academia.edu/Documents/in/Digitalian