A Preliminary Study on Selected Malaysian Millennials: Their Characteristics and Its Implications on Teaching Innovation

Abstract

This paper addresses an emerging issue on the new and latest addition to the cohorts of adults learners studying in higher education institutes; the millennials. There are various terms used to describe this generation such as Generation Y, Nexters, Echo Boomers, Net Generation and Generation Me. Born between the years 1980 and 1994, the millennials are claimed to be innovative and prone to changes. Much research conducted on adult learners studying in higher education institutes have focused on the adult learners’ characteristics. This study on the other hand aimed at investigating the characteristics of the millennials studying in a public university in Malaysia and determining how their characteristics could suggest relevant innovation in teaching. The samples for the present study involved 122 students who were all doing the same pre-degree programme in one of the public universities. Their age range is between 18 and 20 years old. A survey method was employed resulting in the administration of 122 questionnaires which were all completed and returned. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics software. Findings include the confirmation of some millennials’ characteristics as reported in the literature. The salient findings include the millennials’ strong relationship with their parents, their need to depend on their parents for decision-making and their need for constant feedback. The findings suggest several aspects of teaching innovation deem necessary in order for the educators to stay relevant to the millennials. Practical suggestions on relevant teaching innovation are offered based on these findings. The top management of higher education institutes could also reconsider the curriculum they provide for the millennials based on the new findings.