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Digital Natives: Real or Myth?

Good Ole Prensky    

Marc Prensky coined the term "digital natives" in 2001 in the article "Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants" published in On the Horizon. Prensky does explains that those born into this more technologically advanced age are digital natives due to the fact that the children grow up with these new digital devices and interact with the devices their whole, albeit young, lives. Those born before this time frame, or 1984 as Kirschner believes, are digital immigrants due to the fact that they lived lives before the advancement of the digital world and are in face new and must assimilate to the digital world. The graph below does a good job of explaining the ways that digital natives and digital immigrants consume information.

 So, by this logic, I myself would fall into the digital native category. I feel like I would disagree with Prensky if it was based on my experiences alone. Although I consume too much digital information, more than what is definitely recommended by my doctor, I still learn in what Prensky would call the old ways. I have found that while I desire instant gratification that the digital native does and the fact that I prefer video games to serious work, does not mean that I learn better by using a reward system or multi-tasking while learning. I would classify myself as a middle child of the digital debate. I love consuming information as quickly as possible but when it comes to mastering a craft or learning a skill, I need to focus and work on the project steadily. Usually, my best method of studying comes from writing down the information and then creating my own questions on the subject. The idea of playing a game to learn how to code would frustrate me in that I play video games to escape, not to be the best at the game, or to learn. 

But Wait, Here's Kirschner

Paul A. Kirschner on the other hand states that although a person may be designated a digital native, it does not necessarily mean that they are digitally literate. Kirschner brings up the fact that all of Prensky's data was from observations and not necessarily on in-depth research. When studied, it has been shown that the digital natives do not learn differently than the digital immigrant. Kirschner points out that "social media is a passive source of information reception". (2017) So it goes to show that although the digital native might consume massive amounts of social media and digital information, it does not correlate with learning better by using these means. When it comes to multi-tasking, studies have been done that show the constant switching from subject to subject actually limits the amount of information one can absorb. This means that "there is a need to teach pupils, students, and teachers about the importance of focus and the negative effects of multi-tasking on learning" and the importance of understanding the risks of multi-tasking. Kirschner does a great job of explaining the pitfalls of learning in the digital native way. For further reading, attached is an article the Kirschner wrote along with Tim Surma on the importance of LEARNING during the pandemic.  

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