Are digital natives a myth or reality?

My first driving question is “Are digital natives a myth or reality?”. Digital natives are “native speakers of the digital language of computers, video games and the internet” (Prensky, 2001, pp.1). A digital native is basically someone who has grown up with technology as part of their lives since they were born. On the other hand, the complete opposite of a digital native is a digital immigrant which is someone who has adapted to using technology over time.

 

I believe that digital natives are not a myth but rather a reality as today’s students really have grown up in an era of technology with many heavily relying on mobile phones and social media platforms for their everyday life. When compared to those of an older generation such as grandparents or even some parents, it is evident that they are digital immigrants when it comes to their use of technology. In particular, I see many older citizens not carry a mobile phone on them, whereas those of the younger generation always have one in their back pocket if not, permanently in their hand.

 

A positive of being a digital native is that they are known to be able to multitask and handle the pressures of multiple situations at the same time which is helpful in such a busy lifestyle as many of us live today (Safer, 2008). A negative of being a digital native is that student’s brains have developed so much that our education system is not designed to teach them (Prensky, 2001). This creates a problem as many teachers struggle to educate digital natives whose brains are developed differently from those they have taught in the past.

 

In Marc Prensky’s article titled ‘Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants Part 1’, he explores how students have changed and no longer process information like their ancestors did. This highlights the difference between a digital native and a digital immigrant. Digital natives have spent their “entire lives surrounded by and using computers, videogames… cell phones and other toys of the digital age” (Prensky, 2001, pp.1). This shows that the younger generations are reliant on technology due to not knowing a life without it and would therefore struggle without a variety of information technology products. Similarly, in another article, digital natives are said to expect high motivation levels “as motivation is seen as a key element to success in life” (Au-Yong-Oliveira et al., 2018, pp.961). The desire to be motivated further displays that digital natives have the ability to multitask and continuously need to be encouraged to further develop themselves. Motivation enables individuals to “persist in the face of frustrations”, showing that digital natives need a driving force behind them in order to persevere (Goleman, 1995, pp.956).

 

Understanding digital natives needs and desires, has encouraged me as a future educator to try and incorporate technology in the classroom to engage all students. Through using platforms that students are familiar or interested in, will ensure that I capture their attention. As digital natives believe that high motivation leads to success, goal setting could help students further learn and drive them to succeed within the classroom environment. 

 

References:

 

Prensky, M. (2001). Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants Part 1. On the Horizon, 9(5), 1-6.

 

Au-Yong-Oliveira, M., Branco, F., Gonçalves, R., Martins, J. (2018). The social impact of technology on millennials and consequences for higher education and leadership. Telematics and Informatics, 35, 954-963.

 

Goleman, D., (1995). Emotional Intelligence – Why it CAN Matter More Than IQ. Bloomsbury Publishing.

 

Safer, M., (2008). The “Millennials” are coming. CBS News.