Jasna Cvetković - Lay Jasna Cvetković - Lay psychologistpsychologist, , ECHA spec.ECHA spec.

CenteCenterr for Gifted Child Development for Gifted Child Developmentwww.nadarenost.net.www.nadarenost.net.

ZagrebZagreb

Characteristic of students, technology and values in the 21.st century

Digital Natives

The generation of children and youth today is often referred as „Digital Natives“ (Prensky,2001) or „n-gen“ (Downes,2005), or „Millennial Generation“(Schorn,2009) who have interacted with digital technology from an early age.

Grew up with IT

They have grown up in an environment of computer technology that shapes how information is developed and shared and how knowledge is gained and created.

Children & youth today are more creative and interactive, motivated by flexibility and resourcefulness of IT.

Interaction between a child and a computer

There has never been a media before that can show abstract concepts in such a concrete way like a computer can.

It does it better than the best teacher, holding the children on a challenging edge of their own possibilities and helps them develop their own competencies.

Interaction between a child and a computer

Some authors stress that when a child uses a computer “you can just see the learning happening”

(McCormick,1984) Some research show that even the best teachers in

their work usually use two to three out of seventeen possible learning strategies, while a computer uses them all!

(George,1995)

Interaction between a child and a computer

That is why the computer is especially suitable for gifted children whose capabilities, specific interests and motivation are on a higher level than their peers.

Interaction between a child and a computer

A computer can be used as an “electronic notebook” for young gifted children who show an early interest for reading and writing or artistic development.

It provides them independent choices, decisions and work in 3D.

(Mc Cormic; Pistrup, 1984)

Interaction between a child and a computer

For the older gifted children who want and can learn more at a faster pace than their peers computer can provide differences in speed, learning pace and control of specific bases of information making the process of learning individualized.

Interaction between a child and a computer

A computer is a “toy” which a child never outgrows with its capabilities. Suitable programs enable a free, playful and fearless approach to learning and thinking, often in a very imaginative environment.

It is particularly suitable for gifted children who stand out in their surroundings because of their creativity and personal traits.

Support to specific skills & talents by educational software

SPORE – Creature creator Gravity

Little Alchemy

Crayon Physics De Luxe

Digital Immigrants

Parents and teachers who provided computer technology to their children some authors are naming as „Digital Immigrants.“

(Prensky,2001)

Some comparative differences between children and adults in a digital age

DIGITAL NATIVES DIGITAL IMMIGRANTS - Born in a digital age- Grown in an environment of computer technology- Embrace new technology quickly

- Not born in a digital age- Have grown to use technology- Less eager to embrace new technology

PERSONAL LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS

IT technology allows us to create our „ PERSONAL LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS“ (PLEs).

(Atwell,2007) PLEs are network of connections to tools, data

sources, social networks and online collaboration on the Internet.

A new learning theory for a digital age is connectivism and a PLEs reflect connectivism.

(Siemens, 2006)

The role of a teacher

Teachers now have classrooms full of „digital natives“ who learn & create knowledge by using web tools and hand –held gadgets.

In the same time, students in general are found to be uncritical users of IT & Web information and requiring guidelines to become critical users of these recourses.

(Zhang & Duke,2011)

The role of a teacher

The role of teachers in the creative use of the vast information is critical as they can GUIDE the students through the information and make them meaningful, valuable and useful.

Unguided learning

Unguided learning is hardly optimal, more often even dangerous. Some examples of so- called „unguided missiles“ warn us to reconsider our values and educational goals.

Teacher trainings need to update teachers not only with new knowledge and skills that students are obviously very familiar with, but also to re-examine values which need to be supported in digital age.

Optimist International 21

In today’s world which is becoming more and more complex, old questions sometimes require new answers.

Re-examine values & prejudices

The prevailing social prejudice is that gifted children do not need any special help.

That is why especially undiscovered gifted individuals in a world of developed and accessable IT are in danger of becoming the so-called “unguided missiles”.

(Webb,1995)

Young hackers

An example of unguided giftedness in a digital age are young hackers with great skills who hack well secured computer systems.

An EXAMPLE: Croatian teen hackers break Pentagon codes

ZAGREB, Croatia (Reuter) Wednesday, 12 Feb. 1997.

Three teenage computer hackers in Croatia broke Pentagon protection codes and copied highly classified files from United States military bases.

They attend a school in the Adriatic port of Zadar specializing in mathematics and science. School principal said that „they had no criminal intent but extensive curiosity which had undesired consequences''. Computer-hacking is not illegal in Croatia.

Lack of guidance

From these and similar examples we can conclude what the gifted can achieve using advanced IT but also where a lack of expert guidance from a teacher can take them.

Research results

Research conducted on a population of gifted students (Cvetković–Lay, 2000) showed that they are aware of their special educational needs and what kind of teacher and program they want.

The ones that were asked to evaluate their IT teacher, mostly point out the following personal traits.

“ Gifted informaticians – how to proceed?”

Research results

That he encourages me to do individual work and to make small projects.

That he provides diversity in learning and teaches in an interesting way.

Posseses a lot of knowledge.

Research results

Research results confirm that gifted students prefer mostly: Independently iniciated projects Team work if it is motivating and creative Looking for new methods in relation to already

learned knowledge. Act and think like innovators and inventors

Most importantly, they want to be unobtrusivly guided with expertise from their competent teacher.

Adults’ responsibility

“ The responsibility for the direction in which gifted individuals will go, is on us adults. Let us ask ourselfs, what can we do to make them become more caring, attentive, compassionate and more responsible in relation with their environment.”

(Webb, 1995)

EXAMPLE 1: International Olympics in Informatics

IOI is an annual primary school competition. Student competitors are selected for national competitions. They compete independently and there are four competitors from each participating state.

Since 1993 young Croatian IT students have won 144 medals at the IOI.

EXAMPLE 2: First place at Robocup in the Netherlands won by a Croatian

robot who saved the victims

Croatian primary students won first place in the category of Rescue A and second place in the category of superteams

Croatia still neglects the youngest IT talents

EXAMPLE 4: Too young to be gifted ?

Dorijan, a 3rd grade student is a gifted programer, extremly skilled in program languages Logo i C++.

In 2012. he was the youngest winner of a state IT competition in history. But, he has still not been officially entered on the state winners list and did not recieve any aknowledgment.

He is even forbidden to participate in any competitions until he starts the 5th grade.

EXAMPLE 4: Too young to be gifted ?

Educational &Teacher Training Agency (ETTA) the authority for competitions, subsequently changed the rules of competition limiting rights of participation for students of lower classes.

The director of the ETTA gave an official statement on national television saying that early inclusion in competitions would negativly affect the childs social and emocial development despite its giftedness .