Millennial Quiz and What it all Means

I read the articles listed in our instructions Information Age Mindset, the ECAR Study, and the Pew Research Millennial article. I found them all very interesting. I appreciate that in all of these writings there are calls for change in our society to move from the old to a new way of instructing, and living. However, I believe the change will take longer than those people that are early adopters believe. My score is below. No surprise on the test. As I read most of the questions I already knew what answer would give a higher score, although I did answer truthfully. But, I am someone that not only embraces change, but runs toward it! That is not to say that my views and ways are the best or only right ways, just that they are my ways. My score:

To give you a personal example, in the 80's I was forever promising my fellow employees that we would become paperless offices any day now. However, I sat in horror as I watched a secretary printout all of a Telecommunications Vice President's emails each morning and place them on his desk for him to read and then for her to file! In the 90's I was forever promising my fellow employees that we would become paperless offices. However, in my first year at an Information Technology firm, I was told over and over again by the Software Development Lead to not send him electronic copies but to print them out and place them on his desk! If people at the leading edge of technology resist the changes brought about by technology, then why would we expect others to change even faster?

So, how will having this information about the Millennial generation, the use of social media, the cloud, and the increase in hand held devices change education at both the secondary level and in higher education? Very slowly I fear. I believe this is for two reasons. First, people that are comfortable in their present condition are not in a rush to change. True of all people, not just educators. Second, the personality types of educators are not over all the type of people that want to give up standing in front of a captive audience expounding on their wisdom. For many of them, that is why they went into education. Why would someone that has the power in the classroom want to share that power?

I have been in education for 8 years now. I have been frustrated with how slow public education has been to effectively use technology and to appreciate the depth to which this information age has changed the children they are now teaching. On the other hand, I also have discovered that educators have other strengths that are so needed in public education. Even after 8 years I can still be surprised at the depth of compassion and caring that teachers have for all children that enter their classroom. The amount of hours that a teacher will put into helping a single student is the opposite of the fast paced technology age, but is so much needed. So, I believe education will continue to be one of the last bastions of our society to be pulled into the Information Age. After 9 years I have accepted this and no longer push others in my profession to embrace the newest wave in technology. It will happen eventually, just not quickly enough for an early adopter like myself.