Generation Y

I'm working on a presentation for a conference in February. It's turned out to be a really neat topic. The topic is "Generation Y and the Culture of Entitlement". I was invited to present this topic (exactly why ME, I'm not sure, but someone had to do it because it's been highly requested) I wasn't too excited because I really didn't know anything about it except that it's starting to come up a lot when PDs get together.

But it has turned out to be fascinating. One of the most interesting pieces is the concept of "digital natives" (GenY, iGen, Millennials, whichever name you favor) and "digital immigrants" (those of us who did not grow up with a computer). Thought processing and learning are SO different in the two groups. And guess what? The Millennials (most of you?!) think we're pretty boring. I'm still wondering how to bridge this generation gap... it's not easy to change the way you process information. Not to mention that I do not have the computer skills GenY does! It's a case of the younger you are, the more you know.

So I've been researching wikis and (dread!) MySpace and others. Fortunately, I already knew about Flickr, iTunes/iPods and blogs. I was a little familiar with MySpace because I know a few people who have them, but I've never been crazy about the concept myself. I like my blog. The wikis still have me at a loss. And they seem to be the most directly education-related.

So now I'm curious... what do you think about all the Web 2.0 tools? Medical education and GME will be a decade behind the high schools and colleges, maybe I'll be retired by then, but it sure is interesting to me.

And another question... are Thursday afternoon lecture times headed out the door? Should we just be having Web 2.0 assignments instead? I think Thursday afternoon is as much about the camaraderie as anything. Tell me your thoughts...