In terms of analogies, the ‘Digital Native/Digital Immigrant’ paradigm remains eloquent, intuitively engaging, and economically understandable. The images of a child using an iPad and a teenager hooked to their phone readily fit into the larger story of the digital native. By concentrating on generational stereotypes, both the diversity and complexity of individuals and the technology they employ are diminished. It is too simple to generalize about students and assume that familiarity with one type of technology equates to mastery of others, or to disregard the very real issues that may confront students who may not have had the access, skills, or confidence that are assumed of them at the outset of their education.
However, The digital native fallacy resembles early notions of ‘learning styles’ in numerous ways. The notion that individuals may have ‘visual,’ ‘aural,”verbal,’ and ‘physical’ learning styles has been frequently debunked by scholars. Despite the fact that early understandings of learning styles were rudimentary, they nonetheless gave terms and shape to something fundamental, namely that various motivations, routines, preferences, and perspectives will unfailingly influence how individuals learn and perceive the world.
It is essential that we keep testing the validity of our presumptions on the relationships young people have with various forms of technology, regardless of whether or not we refer to them as “digital natives” or instead harbor more implicit and unchecked prejudice. To put it another way, when we use technology for learning and teaching, are we doing it for the right reasons, and is there assistance for students who lack confidence or resources? If we utilize a platform or an app, is it because it is the most effective approach to enhance students’ learning, or because “students like apps” or “Facebook is cool”? When we add new modes of assessment, such as multimedia assignments, blogs, and ePortfolios, we may say the same thing. Within the confines of the typical written essay or report, what kinds of assistance do we provide to students who feel worried, and what kinds of options do we give them to choose from? When we pose these questions, we are not implying that there should be a default return to teaching without the use of computers; rather, we are arguing that we should continue to investigate how we utilize technology and determine what will and will not work for all of our students.
It is natural to search for labels and metaphors that simply explain the changes that are taking place in the world around us as a result of the rapid pace of technological advancement. However, as students and technologies continue to become not less varied but rather more diverse, it is essential that we continue to verify that we are planning our teaching for actual students and not the preconceptions that we have imagined about students.
By: Marjorie C. Trance | Teacher III | Olongapo City National High School
