Engaging the Net Generation

It has been quite exciting (and exhausting) to read up on what educators have been doing with technology and what are the trends in learning for this generation of youths.

Yesterday I read up on digital literacy and critical digital literacy and realised that the idea of literacy at this day and age may not simply be limited just to words and texts. It has expanded to include codes and symbols and our youths are reading, writing and breathing them daily. How can this be incorporated into the SST Language Curriculum? (noticed I have started to mention Language Curriculum - we really feel there is no need to segregate as any individual should be proficient enough to use whatever language means available to make and to convey meanings)

Don Tapscott talks about the Net Generation (people born from 1977 to 1997) and how this people grew up with technology and are now changing our world. My guts tell me he is right and I am worried how I can go about engaging them in the classroom (suddenly noticed I used the word "classroom" - why should learning take place in a "classroom"? I really must try to wire myself to think differently!!). But then the students coming into SST would be considered the last of the Net Generation and in 2011, the Generation Next would be entering SST...what sort of individuals would we be seeing then?

Anyway, back to engaging the Net Geners - We will have to use the tools they are most familiar with - text messaging, chatting, creating and co-creating content on the Read/Write Web. But my concern is really on the assessment that learning has taken place. How do we go about doing it? I know there is assessment (of/for/as) learning but how can that be implemented?

That is for another day. Really right now, I have to complete my first assignment and wish me luck for that!