Global Achievement Gap ch. 5

• Kids have no respect for authority thye have a lack of work ethic.  They do not give all their effort in jobs or in school.  They do not proofread their papers and talk during class.
• kids have grown up with technology and using it regularly.  Teens use computers for entertainment.  College students use them for work.  In 2001 John Seely Brown hired 15 year olds to help with research.  He noticed that they multi task all the time (electronically).  Instant Messaging has made kids today inpatient.  It has also made spelling and language skills drop.
• The net generation employers need to find ways to interest their young employees and allow them to do things differently, not a 9-5 desk job.
• Students learn differently too.  They will not read lengthy texts or instructions, but if you outline things and present them in ways that appear shorter, their scores will increase.  Video games make kids think through problems like scientists, they must hypothesize and get a reaction.  Designers need to find ways to incorporate more learning and less violence.
•  Kids not longer have to talk face to face because of their use of technology, and social skills may be deteriorating.  They are becoming unable to relate to people who are different than they are.
• “High school teachers need to have kids do real research and experiments.  Instead of being receivers of knowledge, they need to be participants.  Let them be scientists, a historian.”
• If you can tap into kids interests, they’re very motivated.  For example, kids learned more about writing and editing by doing the school newspaper than in their English class.
• Many net generation kids are willing to be paid less to do ore meaningful work.
• Parents and adults must find out what interests their kids and use that to help them learn and develop.