Stephanie A. Hultquist The Need for Change: Impacts of Digital Evolution on 21 st Century Learners & Educators

Stephanie A. Hultquist Learning to Change-Changing to Learn

Stephanie A. Hultquist The Need for Change: Research Overview Need for Change Digital Divide Developmental Differences Educational Response

Stephanie A. Hultquist Digital Divide Need for Change Digital Natives “students who are growing up in a digital age and assimilate with digital tools and methods of communication easily” (Prensky, 2001) Digital Immigrants “often older adults in society who did not grow up with digital technology tools but are faced with learning the language” (Prensky, 2001)

Stephanie A. Hultquist Developmental Differences Need for Change Neurobiological Changes Digital stimulation has led to changes in brain plasticity Students are developing “hypertext minds” were cognitive structure that is not linear or sequential rather parallel (Moore & Winn, 1997) Social Psychological Changes Exposure to technology experiences has increased with the digital era and easy accessibility to digital tools Digital as a second language is altering traditional communication (Tye & O’Brien, 2002) Commercial technology distributors are adjusting game programming and television to accommodate digital literacy (Prensky, 2001)

Stephanie A. Hultquist Educational Response Need for Change Teacher Retention Flight of “digital immigrants” NEA (2003) suggests to increase retention of seasoned and new educators preparation in technology integration is necessary for the development of teacher confidence NEA (2003) calls for the creation of inductee programs, staff development opportunities and the presence of technology coaches to assist in the modernization of educational pedagogy

Stephanie A. Hultquist Will you bridge the digital divide? “We have within our society all the ingredients for American individuals to thrive in this world, but if we squander those ingredients, we will stagnate.” (Friedman, “The World is Flat,” 2005)