FORUM: Instructional Communication and Millennial Students: Millennials, Teaching and Learning, and the Elephant in the College Classroom

The essays that comprise "Communication Education's" Forum on Instructional Communication and Millennial Students provide excellent summaries of existing research on this new generational cohort as college students. Taken as a whole, the writings paint an intriguing picture of this cohort, including both challenges and opportunities to maximize teaching and learning for these students. The essays have several common themes that relate to millennials' behaviors and learning preferences in college classrooms; however, one omnipresent characteristic of this cohort, hinted at in the essays, can be taken further--what we choose to refer to as the "elephant in the college classroom"--the ubiquitous presence of technology and its impact on their lives. Today's traditional students are often referred to as "digital natives," the "Net Generation," or "Generation C"--students who are connected, content-centric, computerized, community-oriented, and, most importantly, continually clicking (Trend Watching, 2004). Given millennials' immersion in communication technology and the six essayists' descriptions of their unique characteristics, a potential research agenda can be created. This article provides recommendations that are intended to serve as a general organizing framework for a communication-based research agenda. [For the other essays in this forum: (1) FORUM: Instructional Communication and Millennial Students: Scripting Knowledge and Experiences for Millennial Students (Angela M. Hosek, Scott Titsworth, EJ1102964); (2) FORUM: Instructional Communication and Millennial Students: Hoverboards and "Hovermoms": Helicopter Parents and Their Influence on Millennial Students' Rapport with Instructors (T. Kody Frey and Nicholas T. Tatum, EJ1102970); (3) FORUM: Instructional Communication and Millennial Students: "Me"llennials and the Paralysis of Choice: Reigniting the Purpose of Higher Education (Marjorie M. Buckner and Michael G. Strawser, EJ1102967 ); (4) FORUM: Instructional Communication and Millennial Students: Managing Imposter Syndrome among the "Trophy Kids": Creating Teaching Practices that Develop Independence in Millennial Students (Kirstie McAllum, EJ1102980); (5) FORUM: Instructional Communication and Millennial Students: Millennial Students in the College Classroom: Adjusting to Academic Entitlement (Zachary W. Goldman and Matthew M. Martin, EJ1102950); and (6) FORUM: Instructional Communication and Millennial Students: Teaching Communication to Emerging Adults (Paula S. Tompkins, EJ1102974). Also available is another response: (1) FORUM: Instructional Communication and Millennial Students: The Power of Language: A Constitutive Response to Millennial Student Research (Kyle C. Rudick and Scott Ellison, EJ1102961).]