As culture and technology have undergone massive changes in the last two decades, so has the makeup of the learners in our classrooms, courses, and programs. Today’s learners span from Baby Boomers to Gen Alpha. They come to us with vastly different experiences and expectations shaped by their always-on world.
They are students—though not exclusively. They are also workers, caregivers, and career changers. Accustomed to a highly personalized world, they want relevant curricula and experiences on their terms and timing. We’re serving a more diverse collection of learners than ever, and this diversity will only grow.
They are “The New Learner.” And for our institutions and organizations to support The New Learner, we must first understand the major influences on why they are the way they are.
“We’re serving a more diverse collection of learners than ever, and this diversity will only grow.”
Learners have (permanently) changed
Let’s look at three factors reshaping how learners take in information, apply it, and expect to grow from it over a lifetime. The generational span, neuroscience, and learning contexts are critical pieces of the puzzle we must consider if we want to meet and support The New Learner on their educational journey.
1. The generational shift
Each generation comes to us with different motivations, digital fluency, and expectations. Considering the generations we serve and how they differ helps us avoid a standardized experience that misses the mark and may even risk losing learners entirely.
The New Learner includes Baby Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, Gen Z, and Gen Alpha. That’s a nearly 80-year span of people in our learning environments, whether a preschool class or an online course for a new skill post-retirement. Gen X and Millennials find themselves in the throes of work and caregiving for their children and parents. Gen Z is entering a rapidly shifting labor market, while Gen Alpha brings their digital native skills (and need for developing those skills) to the classroom.
A Millennial upskilling through an online training program likely prefers microlearning, while a Pearson study found that a majority of Gen Z prefer learning from videos rather than printed books. These nuances are crucial insights into developing courses and instructional materials that embrace the generational divide and allow learners to feel more comfortable in their learning environment.
2. Brain science
Thanks to breakthroughs in neuroscience, we know the brain is far from fixed. It adapts constantly, even into late adulthood. Neuroplasticity thrives on novelty, relevance, and feedback, rewiring in response to experiences. This has big implications for how we meet and support The New Learner.
Neuroplasticity gives us a foundation to work from as we create and evaluate learning programs. The New Learner can adapt, unlearn, relearn, and grow. Our role is to explore beyond traditional learning theories, make space for metacognition (“thinking about thinking”), and provide valuable feedback.
Consider these five ways to activate neuroplasticity in your learning environment:
Change and Novelty - introducing new ideas, contexts, or formats sparks curiosity and strengthens neural connections by challenging the brain to adapt. |
Intention - learning with clear goals and purpose signals the brain to prioritize and encode new information more effectively. |
Specific Attention - focusing deeply on a concept or skill activates the neural pathways needed for lasting learning. |
Retention and Intensity - repeated practice paired with meaningful engagement reinforces connections and builds durable memory. |
Time - spacing learning over time and connecting new information to existing knowledge allows the brain to consolidate knowledge and transform short-term insights into long-term understanding. |
It’s not a formula to follow, as specific learning experiences may lean on some more than others or jump around. But these five guiding principles can help us support The New Learner and all the wonderful ways their brain works.
3. Learning environments
The “always on” world has saturated the digital and physical settings where learning happens, creating distractions and competing demands. Some of us used to pass notes back and forth while the teacher wasn’t looking, admittedly missing some of what was presented. Now, the career-changing Gen Xer logs into an online portal but must look away from their email, mute their notifications, and ignore the demands of their home. Similarly, the Gen-Zer feels the pull to check their phone or watch an unrelated YouTube video while in class.
These environmental factors profoundly impact student engagement, attention, mental well-being, and, ultimately, learning outcomes. Attention is a scarce resource. The endless scroll of social media apps overstimulates cognitive processes, and complex tasks are more difficult than they used to be. Neuroscience shows us, however, that this isn’t permanent or irreversible. It’s our task to reimagine learning environments (with as much control as we have) to minimize distractions for The New Learner and allow for intention, attention, and deeper thinking.
The New Learner and a personalized world
The New Learner lives in a hyper-personalized world with custom playlists, curated feeds, and tailored recommendations. And they now expect the same from education.
This doesn’t mean every learner needs a wholly unique curriculum. However, we must consider their lived experiences in a personalized world and how that influences our systems, courses, and classroom activities. This level of flexibility, relevance, and responsiveness will require energy and thoughtfulness. But the payoff is learners who feel seen, supported, and empowered to take ownership of their learning journeys.
“We can foster deeper engagement, accommodate the diverse needs of The New Learner, and cultivate critical skills for a dynamic world. But to do this well, we must start by understanding our learners like never before.”
Start with understanding The New Learner
The New Learner is already in our classrooms, programs, and workforce pipelines. They are diverse in age, have highly adaptive brains, and live in a world vying for their attention. These three influences can inform our institutions and organizations to create better learner-centered experiences. We can foster deeper engagement, accommodate the diverse needs of The New Learner, and cultivate critical skills for a dynamic world. But to do this well, we must start by understanding our learners like never before.
I’m excited to continue this conversation at CanvasCon Europe next week, where we will be discussing how to better strengthen our practices and approaches to suit The New Learner. Because our learners have changed, and so can the learning experiences we create for them.
