SHAH ALAM, May 16 — Teachers today must be more creative in capturing the attention of Generation Alpha students, who are growing up immersed in social media, the internet and digital technology.
Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Faculty of Education dean Assoc Prof Shireena Basree Abdul Rahman said those born between 2010 and 2024 tend to prefer visual, fast-paced and interactive learning, making teachers appear to be “competing” with platforms such as TikTok in the classroom.
She said the fast-paced nature of social media culture is also shaping students’ attention spans, creating new challenges for educators.
Overly long, one-way teaching methods can cause students to lose focus more easily and become bored quickly, she added.
“For example, TikTok content is fast and short, so it challenges teachers to match that pace.
“If teaching is too drawn out, students start looking elsewhere and lose focus. That’s where they begin to feel bored,” she said during the Bicara Semasa programme produced by Media Selangor.
Shireena added that teachers need to integrate technology and interactive elements into lessons to ensure learning remains relevant and engaging.
“In today’s classrooms, technology elements are necessary to attract students’ attention. Traditional methods alone are no longer sufficient."
Human touch still needed
However, Shireena said the learning process cannot depend entirely on technology, as education still requires communication and human interaction.
She said traditional teaching methods such as “chalk and talk” remain relevant if adapted to current developments and combined with more interactive approaches.
According to her, conventional methods are still effective when blended with videos, questioning techniques and interactive activities.
“Education still needs a human touch. There must be teachers who talk and interact with students.
“If teaching is combined with questions, videos and interactive elements, I think traditional methods are still relevant."
Shireena advised parents not to use gadgets as a tool to keep children quiet, as excessive and unsupervised device use can affect communication skills and emotional development.
She stressed that parents should regulate gadget use from an early age through consistent rules and monitoring to ensure technology is used in a healthy and balanced way.
“Sometimes parents give gadgets so children stay quiet, whereas time with family is when we should be talking and spending time with children. That is better,” she said.
