Curriculum for the EPIC Generation

The author determined the characteristics of students of today using Grounded Theory methodology. Data were gathered from student outputs, from key informants and from literature regarding students’ life style positioning and peculiar characteristics. From the data collected, key points were marked with a series of codes extracted from the text and grouped into similar concepts. From these concepts, categories were formed, which became the basis for an acronym to describe the peculiar characteristics of today’s generation of learners. At saturation point the acronym “epic” was chosen to convey the four emergent themes. “Epic” may literally mean, “Extending beyond the usual or ordinary especially in size or scope”. Indeed, the present generation is of unprecedented size in its interconnections via World Wide Web. Secondly, this generation is fittingly called Epic Generation because of its members’ peculiar characteristics: experiential, participative, image-driven, and connected.