When Pensky draws this line between generations as Digital native and digital immigrants he makes numerous assumptions about youth. He says that young people are able to access and process at the same times, usually because webpages have multiple and random access points to gather information. Digital "natives' use graphics first and rely on them to gain comprehension or new knowledge. According to him, they also see no separation between the real world and the online world, it's all one world for them.
Becoming literate in a networked age requires hard work, regardless of age (Boyd, 2014).
Boyd argues that the terms digital native and digital immigrant comes with serious consequences. He argues that using the terminology of native vs immigrant hold historic context. Is the intent to destroy the youth's technology practices or are we celebrating their assumed tech savviness? An assumption is made that all youth come into school with the knowledge of working a computer. However, this does not mean that youth has the tools to think critically about online content.
"Digital Native" ??
I would side with Boyd in this argument. I think the access to technology at a young age is a privilege and even a political issue. In my opinion, it would be inaccurate to say that children are now born with the capabilities to flawlessly maneuver through technology. I also agree that as educators, for me especially in a low- income community, it is important to advocated for access to technology for my students. It is even more important to then push for changes in curriculum so that educators can help the youth in increasing their digital competencies.
Great post Priscilla! I agree that there are too many assumptions made that youth are technology literate. All of my students live in poverty, many of whom have never had experience with ANY technology until they reach my High School. I end up spending much of my English class, which I enjoy and of course is important, teaching nuts and colts of computer literacy. I agree with advocating for more technology and technology classes in low-income schools.
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