Up to this point, I have never thought
about the technology divide between students and teachers in this way – Natives
vs. Immigrants as well as technology being referred to as a “language.” But it
makes complete sense. Technology has become an integral part of students’ daily
lives due to the fact that they have been immersed in it since their early beginnings.
For those of us who were not raised
using these technological advances on a daily bases it becomes more of a
challenge when we try to incorporate them into our lives and the lives of our
students. There tends to be a greater “learning curve.” I suppose it may be
because we must first “unlearn” the ways of the past and strive to replace our old
learning/actions with new, more productive, and up-to-date approaches. In the
article Prensky raises this very question, “which is harder – “learning new
stuff” or “learning new ways to do old stuff.” ” (2001).
Marc Prensky brings up a good point
when he states, “the single biggest problem facing education today is that our
Digital Immigrant instructors, who speak an outdated language (that of the
pre-digital age), are struggling to teach a population that speaks an entirely
new language.” (2001). I am aware that in order to be an effective educator, it
is important for me to learn how to effectively communicate with my students.
The challenge lies in learning to reprogram my brain to allow for the changes
that are necessary to facilitate this new, faster paced world we are currently
immersed in. Prensky (2001) suggests that, “Digital Natives like going faster,
less step-by-step, more in parallel, with more random access.” This can be
challenging, to say the least, for digital immigrants such as myself who are
used to structure/order and who need more time to adequately process new
information.
When students are engaged they become
motivated to learn new information and their attention span increases. Marc
Prensky (2001) suggests that inventing computer games to teach digital natives will
increase their attention span because they are actually learning in a way that
interests them. I have mixed feelings about computer games being used as
educational tools. If used properly computer games can enrich content and foster
a greater sense of motivation for student learning. It is when these computer
games are devoid of meaning and context that I do not support their inclusion.
Prensky, M.
(October, 2001). Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants. On the Horizon (NCB University Press), 9(5).
