"Boring" and "dry": these are two words that today's students often use to describe their experiences in school (Prensky, 2001, 2003). Oblinger (2003) asserts that these new students - individuals "raised on the Internet and interactive games" (p. 44) - may have expectations that are not met by the current "skill and drill" system of learning (e.g., Gee, 2003; Steinkuehler, 2005). They, and more specifically the Net Generation or the Millennials (Carlson, 2005; Oblinger, 2003), come into the classroom equipped with different attitudes toward education, as well as a diverse array of technological skills. These individuals want more than the traditional lecture format; instead, they are seeking out authentic and active educational experiences, like those found in video games.
According to the Entertainment Software Association (2007), the typical game player is 33 years old and has been playing games for more than 10 years; 38% of these games players are women. But, this is not to say that younger individuals are not playing games. They are, and as Lenhart, Madden, and Hitlin (2005) report, the majority of teenagers are now using the Internet; further, 81% of these teens (or approximately 17 million individuals) play games online (p. 35). More importantly, though, the exposure to certain technologies, like video games, may have altered the minds of these students, or "digital natives," in such a way that educational theories that worked in the past may not in today's world (Prensky, 2001).
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