Naomi Sato-Dame
Professor Booth
HUM 142
24 May 2011
Account of Different Generations in a Digital Society
Mr. Marc Prensky emphasizes “Digital Natives” they have spent their entire lives surrounded by and using toys and tools of the digital age. “Digital Immigrants” who were not born into the digital world but have at some later point in life become most aspects of the new technology are, and always will be compared with “Digital Natives”. I am a “Digital Immigrant (also I emigrated from Japan)” and my children are “Digital Natives”. When I started to read the guide for Lesson 1.2 it kept my attention. Suggested by Tim Berners-Lee “The Web doesn’t force anything down your throat. If you are worried that your children are going to read low-quality information, teach them. Teach them what to read. Teach them how to judge information.” This applies for all digital technologies not only the Web and is a very important issue we should understand.
The bottom line is we introduced this “Digital World” to a younger generation which included “Sesame Street” to “Wii”. Studies show that a human’s brain maintains its plasticity for life (Prensky 2.2). We adapt to life style and habits. I am not sure about Mr. Prensky repeating suggesting “It’s just dumb (and lazy) of educators (Rensky 1.6)”. My experience with education at QCC and all my professors was not like that at all. Even my children’s school teachers as well. So I cannot completely agree with Mr. Prensky. They take up a positive attitude regarding new technologies.
With “Digital Natives” speed is the key (Prensky 1.5) and the way to study (Prensky 2.5). I saw many students, creating a report, texting with the thumb, earphones in ear and surfing internet with no problem at all. The students who were listening to music and creating a report may be doing so with efficiency. Also he or she is trying to research through the internet and asking communicating with a friend by texting. As a consequence, the student is crowned with great success, which we like to see.
We “Digital Natives” and “Digital Immigrants” do not have common experiences, but “Digital Immigrants” had been experienced analog and digital. “Digital Natives” need proper orientation lectures for education and moralities from “Digital Immigrants” The digital tools cannot teach human feelings, emotions, sentiment or passion. Everybody knows it is very important to bring up children in a wholesome and healthy way. We do not want to embrace the cartoon mixing real life with cyberspace. “Here you are – I’ve been all over the Internet looking for you.” (Woman talking to husband, who is reading in living room.)
One last thing, I have an Optical Fiber connection for Internet. And my study times will be daytime and after 8 pm without my children around me.
Works Cited
Prensky, Mark. “Digital Natives Digital Immigrants”. On the Horizon OCT. 2001. NCB University Press, Vol. 9 No.5.Web. 23 May. 2011.
Berners-Lee, Tim. Scientific American. W3 Consortium.