Effectively engaging with Generation Z students

Generation Z (born 1997-2012) is transforming the landscape of higher education through distinct cognitive, digital, and behavioural traits. Characterized by nonlinear information processing, immediacy-oriented learning, and deep integration of digital tools, Gen Z students are both technologically fluent and pedagogically demanding (Hammad, 2023; Nuttall, 2025). While highly familiar with generative AI, many Gen Z learners lack the metacognitive strategies needed to apply these tools critically (Chardonnens, 2025). The distinct characteristics of Generation Z?such as their need for instant access to information, preference for visual and interactive content, and high levels of digital multitasking?profoundly shape a learning style that values autonomy, personalization, and technology-integrated instruction.This study addresses the central research question: How does increasing AI fluency among Gen Z students reshape their expectations toward instructional design and the role of educators in higher education?Drawing on the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) principles, the paper analyses qualitative data from two student cohorts (2024 & 2025, N=63/56). The findings show a measurable increase in AI tool use and digital confidence, alongside a consistent desire for structured, human-centred learning. Project-Based Learning (PjBL) and Problem-Oriented Learning (POL) emerge as pedagogical formats particularly suited to Gen Z?s values of collaboration, application, and feedback (Weimer, 2021; Hmelo-Silver & Barrows, 2020). Simultaneously, students report a continued need for structured learning environments and emotionally intelligent instruction.Notably, the study highlights a role inversion: students often surpass instructors in AI fluency, creating a ?digital competence gap? that challenges traditional hierarchies (Chan & Lee, 2023; Selwyn, 2023). Students increasingly view faculty not as content authorities, but as facilitators, tool mentors, and guides in reflective practice (Tang & Saade, 2023)What distinguishes this study is its time-sensitive comparison across cohorts and its linkage of behavioural data with instructional design. It confirms earlier calls for AI-integrated, learner-centred ecosystems that balance autonomy with supportive structure (Zawacki-Richter et al., 2021; Chardonnens, 2025). The paper concludes with evidence-based recommendations for repositioning faculty, redesigning assessments, and aligning future-proof pedagogy with the cognitive and technological profile of Generation Z.