Learning styles of the next generation – and what it means for our collective future

Our last blog post identified some of the main characteristics of Millennials, as observed by their teachers and administrators in school and documented in the outstanding work, Generational Learning Styles by Julie Coates. (The book’s main findings are summarized here). 

This post reviews Coates’ findings, which identify best practices in helping this cohort learn. In the subsequent post, we will speculate on how this information is changing the way the next generation works, consumes information and makes purchasing decisions.

Among Coates’ findings from teachers and pedagogues, a few stand out, some surprisingly, some less so.

Put mildly, rote learning and passive transmission of information is the least effective means of connecting with Millennials. Throughout their education, the practices that have worked– and to which Millennials respond best — are experiential. They explore ideas most effectively through small-group discussions, team projects, peer-to-peer presentations, debates, field experiences, simulations and case studies.

Millennials learn in communities – this also happens to be how they socialize and how they form opinions, including their views on potential purchases. Even so, they appear to thrive on structure, having been driven at regular intervals to music lessons, sports practices and games, Sylvan Learning Centres, play dates and assorted other activities with clearly defined expectations and timeframes. So, they reject passive, lecture-style learning, and expect and demand interactive, engaging learning activities – but with clearly defined processes, goals and benefits. The defined parameters of these activities are continually reinforced by another expectation of Millennials: incessant feedback that tells them they are on the right track or needing to reconfigure their efforts.

Technology is a given. Millennials have grown up with technology and have fully integrated it into their lives. A classroom without technology will not meet students’ expectations for variety, stimulation and easy access to information. Teachers have found that incorporating games as learning tools is particularly effective.

Millennials demand relevance. Theoretical materials that are unlikely to have direct applications in helping Millennials meet their goals are not likely to be appreciated or absorbed. They are “big picture” learners, who want to start with the biggest outcome and work from there to fill in the specifics. They are efficient, non-linear, verbal and very visual learners. Even so, their learning material must be clearly presented, with anticipated outcomes and key points clearly highlighted in a rational way that allows them to organize their learning.

Teachers have been the frontline in discovering the phenomenon that is the Millennial generation. It is through interacting with Millennials as learners that researchers like Coates have been able to identify the unique characteristics of the upcoming generation. In our next post, we take the observations of teachers and apply them to the Millennial generation in their next phase: as consumers and as workers. For businesses, for marketers, and for employers, understanding how Millennials think and behave will make the difference between success and failure.

To predict how Millennials will behave in the marketplace and the workplace, a good place to start is analyzing their behavior in school

Before they were analyzed as consumers or employees, Millennials (or “Generation Y” – 18- to 30-year-olds) were the subject of study by teachers who needed to find new ways to have an impact on a group of young people who are unlike any who have come before.

One of the best resources to understand how this generation learns is Generational Learning Styles by Julie Coates (the core themes of which are nicely summarized here). By understanding how Millennials learn, we can ascertain much about how they behave as consumers and employees.

While any attribution of characteristics to entire groups is fraught with potential for oversimplification, anyone who knows people in this age cohort will recognize at least some of the traits Coates identifies. Among them:

Millennials tend to have close relationships with their parents – far closer than rebellious previous generations – to the extent that, when asked to name a hero, one in three will mention a parent, before a pop culture personality, sports celebrity or historical figure.

It is probably their most obvious characteristic that Millennials are multi-taskers. They tend to consume more than one media at a time – with music and TV playing in the background while working on their computer, texting on their smart phones and maybe interacting in real life with a friend over coffee. Even so, while this may appear to older observers as too much distraction, in Millennials it is apparently a necessity to prevent boredom. The level of stimulation they need in their lives translates into a need for stimulating learning environments – and that is already translating as a need for stimulation in their jobs as Millennials enter the workforce.

This age group tends to be attentive and respectful of others, partly because they have been raised in a crowded world and encouraged to work in teams – at school, in recreational activities, when socializing. They do not thrive in hierarchical social settings.

Their success-oriented “Boomer” parents have placed enormous pressures on Millennials, but also surrounded them with encouragement, support and the resources to achieve. Nevertheless, pressure to succeed has its negative effects: 81% of college mental health service directors reported an increase in students with serious psychological problems over just five years.

This age group believes they can make a positive difference in the world. While they are not intensive consumers of news, they are socially conscious and involved in their communities and the world around them. While they vote in lower percentages than their elders, they view their purchasing habits as having an impact on the world, as “voting” with their wallets.

These, according to Coates’ book, are some of the identifiable traits Millennials display. Our next blog post continues to mine her book, Generational Learning Styles, for explicit lessons from those who have observed Millennials most closely … and we will extrapolate important lessons for marketers and anyone else seeking to understand how this group acts in the marketplace.

Understanding What the ‘Cool Kids’ Want

As described in “Who is the Gen Y Hipster?” by Carol Phillips,
there are three categories that make a brand “cool” and attractive to Millennials.

1. A grounded/nostalgic brand from the past. For example, Converse’s Chuck Taylor shoes.

2. A brand that represents change and is headed for the future. For example, Apple’s products.

3. A brand that appeals to Millennials’ “inner nerd.” This brand engagement offers a more authentic interaction as opposed to a rigid, corporate interaction. Millennials respect brands that can relate to their dorky side. Trader Joe’s has won the attention of Millennials by doing things their own way and by being quirky. At the retail level, Trader Joe’s employees wear tacky Hawaiian shirts and interact with customers on a relatable level. They also publish a newsletter called the “Fearless Flyer,” which is a sort of newsletter, catalogue and comic book all in one, providing customers interesting information about products while incorporating witty tidbits and retro cartoons, making the newsletter engaging for Millennials.

In order to reach the “cool” kids, marketers must relate to their authentic demeanor. Today, the cool kids are more about being authentic as opposed to unconventional. Focus groups have defined Gen Y as “doers”— the ones who are fixing, leading, changing, advocating, entrepreneuring and making a difference in the world. Reaching them effectively requires entirely new approaches on the part of marketers, a combination of smart brand positioning that appeals to Millennials’ unique sensibilities, and a form of engagement that appeals to their sense of social responsibility.

To learn how to reach Millennials, register for the Millennial Marketing – Online, On Campus Newsletter and keep up with important insights and trends about marketing to Millennials.