Abstract:

Nowadays, when digital learning and communication tools are everywhere, educators no longer need to teach Generation-Alpha (GA) learners how to approach and use them. Nevertheless, educators should focus on developing among their learners the cognitive and social skills that will allow them proper integration in society as adults. Moreover, educators need to look for innovative methods to maintain the GA learners’ motivation to acquire learning strategies that will contribute to their ability to study and investigate. A variety of researchers claim that while GA learners use different digital tools for different uses, their social skills are not developed as expected. There is a gap between the numerous advantages digital tools provide, and the social challenges GA learners deal with. Furthermore, these challenges become essential when wishing to promote inclusion of learners with special needs (SN).

Understanding that integrating the use of digital tools among all GA learners is the basis for all types of learning, this study examines teachers’ attitudes toward integration of digital tools promoting social skills among GA learners with SN, rather than focusing only on their academic skills. Twenty-one semi-structured individual interviews underwent qualitative content analysis. While all participants agreed that digital tools should be integrated daily in learning processes, they emphasized both advantages and challenges of using digital tools and shared their perspectives regarding possible effective use of these tools among learners with SN.

One of the challenges participants pointed out was their on-going need to be always updated with new digital tools in order to integrate them efficiently into their curricula, in addition to the essential need to be updated with other pedagogical and didactic methods. Whereas the use of digital and assistive technology tools allows learners with SN easier access to information, this is not enough when considering their social inclusion. Thus, because GA learners communicate mainly through digital tools with minimum face-to-face social interaction.

Specific analysis regarding participants’ views about promoting social inclusion of GA learners with SN revealed another challenge. This refers to the caution teachers should apply when using innovative digital tools, as of the deficiencies of the learners with SN.

For example, several assistive digital tools that were developed to allow learners with SN to learn independently and efficiently focus mainly on promoting academic rather than social skills. Another dilemma teachers must address with GA learners with SN is the need to find the balance between allowing learners with SN to use these tools and the goal to promote social inclusion. Beyond the above challenges, it is important to remember that the efficiency of learning processes of all GA learners (with and without SN), is dramatically influence by the development of digital tools their abilities to use them with proper critical thinking and judgments regarding how these tools should be applied.

Keywords:

Social-skills, Generation Alpha (GA), inclusion, teachers, education practices.