An unprecedented demographic shift is now occurring in higher education as four generations of students are learning “side by side” in traditional and virtual classrooms: Matures/Traditionalists (born 1900-1946), Baby Boomers (born 1947-1964), Generation X (born 1965-1982) and Millennials (also known as Generation Y, born 1983-1991). The initial research and the literature on generational differences show some stark contrasts between these four populations in terms of attitudes, learning preferences, goal orientation, work assets, views on work/life balance, and interpersonal interaction. The research also indicates that methods and techniques from andragogy (the art and science of teaching adults) can be very effective with each of the four groups. This presentation will discuss the differences and commonalities among the four learning cohorts, the challenges of helping each learn, and the use and adaptation of andragogical facilitation techniques in face-to-face and online environments to serve the needs of these diverse learners.
