Changing Role Of A Teacher In The New Net- Generation !!!!

In recent times we are dealing with learners who are The NET GENERATION or the DIGITAL NATIVES…!! With their increased ability to multi-task and their increased aptitude for the use of technology, the role of a teacher has become more of a mentor and a facilitator. 

Today’s students represent the first generations to grow up with this digital technology. They have spent their entire lives surrounded by modern gadgets like smartphones, iPads, iPods, computers, videogames, digital music players, and all the other toys and tools of the digital age. 

Today’s children spend fewer hours reading, and more playing video games, mobiles & TV. Computer games, email, the Internet, cell phones, and instant messaging are integral and non-separable parts of their lives. 

The first thing they view in the morning after they wake up and the last thing they see before going to bed is the mobile. They might not wish Good morning to their parents living in the same house but will be busy sending GM messages to people across the globe. 

This change in role has been caused and also impacted by rapid transformation in global technologies & rapid shift in pedagogies. Thus to strike balance among various generations there is a need for a more amicable atmosphere to be creative. 

If Educators want to survive in today's knowledge economy then we need to be lifelong learners and we need to learn to adapt to the rapid pace of change. A growth mindset amongst educators to teach tomorrow’s generation is the need of the hour. 

The problem arises when Digital Immigrant teachers assume that learners are still the same as they have always been and that the same methods that they have been using for ages and worked for the teachers when they were students will work for their students who are digital natives now. But that assumption is no longer valid. The newer generation requires an environment of approachability and openness so that they can clearly share their preferences, concerns, and inhibitions with their teachers.

A positive environment created in the class builds confidence and a sense of belonging in students. The feeling that teacher is always there for advice and guidance in itself brings out the best in them. 

Educating the Engineer in the 21st century is focused more on learning by the student than teaching by the faculty. A good teacher instills in the student a lifelong sense of learning based on curiosity and ability to think on their own leading to a confident self to take on the world.

Progressing from the outdated model to the "21st-century" model will involve entire educational systems. As educational purposes change, curriculum frameworks, instructional methods, and assessments must also undergo drastic changes. 

It is rightly said by John Dewey - If we teach the students the way we taught them yesterday we rob them of their tomorrow !!!!