The reality is that we must find balance in our teaching. Yes, students are learning through technology in my classroom, but that isn't all of it. Wheeler points out that by putting our Digital Natives into a category, we are creating a self-fulfilling prophecy that ends up hurting our students. I work to find a ways to incorporate meaningful technology into all areas of my curriculum, but I also look for ways that gets my students talking and interacting.
Another thing that Wheeler had me thinking about was how much we label our students. I've seen our school counselor have the students take the "learning styles" survey (I even remember taking that same survey as a kid). She has the students stand up for each different style. I always wondered what purpose it served. How many students give up a task before even really trying because the activity doesn't match their learning style. It becomes an excuse to not do anything.
So while Prensky has labeled me a Digital Immigrant, I will continue to be true to myself as a learner and teacher. I'm always changing and learning new things and while my "accent" may be there, it's ok. Diversity is a beautiful thing. When everyone brings something different to the table, we expand our learning and become better people.
A convenient untruth by Steve Wheeler
Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants – Part II: Do they really think differently? On the Horizon, 9(6). Retrieved from http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky%20-%20Digital%20Natives,%20Digital%20Immigrants%20-%20Part1.pdf
McKenzie, J. (2007). Digital nativism: Digital delusions and digital deprivation. From Now On, 17(2). Retrieved from http://fno.org/nov07/nativism.html
Reeves, T.C. (2008). Do generational differences matter in instructional design? Online discussion presentation to Instructional Technology Forum from January 22-25, 2008 at http://paeaonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/10c-Gen-Diff-Matter.pdf
Diversity is indeed a beautiful thing! I think Prensky's presentation comes across too black and white for the grey area that is education. I do agree that there is a rapid shift occurring in society and that education will need to make changes to meet our learners needs, however I don't think it's as drastic a shift as he states. We don't need to abandon ship and throw all of the sound technique and meaningful learning we've been doing overboard. We just need to (as you mentioned) incorporate some digital language into what we're doing to help students see relevance and importance to what they are doing.
ReplyDeleteThis reminds me of another article I read recently. Many times we can get swept up in the idea that everything is changing and that it will be immediate, when in fact change can be quite slow in its completion.
DeleteWhen I entered into teaching a few years ago, one thing that everyone kept saying was that education was a pendulum. It's always swinging drastically from side to side. We want to try things new and so dump what we have, but eventually, we realize what we were doing wasn't so bad.
DeleteI agree we need to find the balance. My own digital native daughter would not flourish in a video game classroom. She needs the personal interactions with her peers and her teacher for growth.
ReplyDeleteVideo games are great, but they are not the only instructional strategy. Kids need to be exposed to a variety of teaching methods.
DeleteI really agree with this! If we do not acknowledge our students' strengths and backgrounds, we are doing them a disservice. But if we attempt to teach them only familiar material or in familiar ways, we are doing them a disservice, as well. Students need to grow, and we can begin with what they know to help them.
ReplyDeleteI think this is why continuing education for teachers is so important. We need to be learning and growing so that we can be the best teachers.
DeleteI really like how you comment on a student's need to develop social skills using verbal communication and interaction with one another. I think some of that is lost with texting and email. I know quite a few of my students feel uncomfortable with making a phone call because why call when you can text? There is also the issue of students using text speech/shorthand when emailing. It drives me crazy to receive emails with "i", "u", "bcuz", "thx"! It's our job to make them well rounded students which means sometimes including technology and sometimes leaving it out.
ReplyDeleteI spend the first month of school working with my 5th graders about not using text talk on essays. It's crazy! You are right that kids are very uncomfortable calling anyone. They'd rather text. I can remember spending HOURS on the phone as a kid. It will be interesting to see what communication looks like in 10-15 years.
DeleteWow, I'm not a teacher, but it's been really nice to read through these posts like yours and how teachers do reflect on how they teach and how it impacts their students. Presky's attempt to discuss digital native and digital immigrants and his reflections on technology is his perspective form 2001. I still remember using the free AOL CDs with 60 minutes of Internet during that time. We've now come a long way with technology. I think it would be helpful to review new research on this generation.
ReplyDeleteAh yes, AOL. It was my first introduction to the internet. Can you imagine today's youth waiting for dial up? :) Research definitely needs to happen, but do you think the results will be outdated before it's released?
DeleteI've seen the same thing with ipads at my school. There are so many ways to utilize them besides games. There honestly needs to be some PD to give teachers ideas for use before bringing them into the school.
ReplyDeleteI like your point about easily being sucked into believing the "new" idea that comes up and wanting to drop everything. At my old school the district would find the "new" idea without doing further research and then we would implement it. They would do this every six months and we had to drop everything to put it in place. It was frustrating for both the teachers and the students, and did not benefit anyone. As teachers we need to make sure we look at the options and make sure it is best for the students. I think as long as you make technology meaningful and understand that each student is different, then you are doing your job as a teacher.
ReplyDeleteYou're right, it's not fair to anyone. How can they even see results if they are switching after 6 months?
DeleteI liked your post. Having an accent is okay. While we are learning new things, we can still do the things we know. I think that will be best for our students. If we are so concerned learning every new tech resource at one time we might spread ourselves too thin, and that could be detrimental to our students.
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