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Natives are good multi-taskers, who are savvy with social networks and other Internet technology and work well in non-hierarchical teams, Palfrey said. Those qualities can appear as both pros and cons for employers. While digital natives’ different expectations can lead to arguments with older bosses in hierarchical organizations, Palfrey suggested figuring out what those young workers are good at and then harnessing their good qualities.

Dave Crenshaw discussed his latest book, The Myth of Multitasking. Crenshaw makes a strong distinction behind “background tasking”—reading a magazine while waiting in line, for instance, or listening to music while coding—and “switch-tasking.” Most of the time, when we talk about “multi-tasking,” we’re actually talking about the very costly practice of “switch-tasking.” Every time you switch your attention from one place to another—even from one browser window to another—you take a significant hit to your focus

Switch-tasking, he definitively proves, causes you to execute each task more slowly than you would otherwise, with more errors

pecifically, what can parents, teachers, and employers do to help their kids, students, and employees focus their attention more effectively? As a kid, student, and employee myself, I have to say that I believe the solution is emphatically not to limit access—at least not for older teens. Rather, I think the key lies in laying out the facts and discussing strategies. Information overload and the allure of infinite access, after all, are challenges that affect everyone with an internet connection—not just young people. And, though writing a stellar book report might not be a cause compelling enough to warrant total focus, every young person will at some point find a pursuit worth paying attention to. Maybe it’s writing short stories; maybe writing music. Maybe it’s making art. But when that pursuit comes along, they’re going to want to know how to firewall their attention, focus their efforts, and—for once—stop switching.

Several local teachers and professors see Second Life as a tremendous opportunity. There are educational islands in Second Life where teachers can go to digitally swap ideas, conduct research or attend real life conferences.

However, a teacher can take students on a virtual field trip in Second Life - using his or her own login - to places like the Alamo or the Louvre Museum, both of which have been impressively recreated in Second Life.

The University of Alabama is using Second Life too. In fact, Professor Rick Houser, Chairman of Educational Studies at the Capstone, is working on building an entire virtual University of Alabama campus in Second Life.