In the Thorne & Payne article they say the term digital native: "includes people born during or after the mid 1980s and who are socialized in the use of the Internet from early ages" (p. 379)
I was born in 1984, raised in the Midwestern United States and started using the internet in about middle school. I consider myself a very competent user of basic computer & internet functions as well as cell phones, but I think I am on the tail end of the "digital immigrant" generations because I wasn't surrounded by computers from birth, didn't start texting until late college/early grad school, and in some ways can't identify with my current students who don't seem to know or remember a life that doesn't include a Blackberry or iPhone.
I want to know if YOU consider yourself a digital native and why or why not. What is the salient factor? Age? Can you behave as a near-digital-native if you were born before the 1980s? Does it depend on what country you grew up in? Your socioeconomic status? Education level?
Blogs for Specific Purposes
12 years ago
When I was 11, in 1978, my friend and I would ride our bikes down to the Radio Shack and program the TRS-80, one of the first personal computers, using BASIC, to say things like 'Jon rules!' over and over. It totally confounded the older salespeople, who were overwhelmed with the very idea of a personal computer--they even asked my 11-year-old friend to program things for them. In the late 90s, I learned HTML and built webpages--I think this understanding gives me a better understanding of what's really happening behind the graphic interface. So I'm not really native, but I think I, like many non-native speakers of a language who teach it, have a better understanding of structures and functions than those who may be fluent users, but don't necessarily have awareness of the language they are using.
ReplyDeleteKatie--I was thinking about very similar questions when I read that part of the article. I was born in 1985, but I don't really think I can claim digital native status. I certainly know more about and feel more comfortable with technology than my parents, but when I see my 14 year old sister-in-law...she's got a whole different perspective. Like you said--she can't even imagine not having the phone, iPod, etc. I think it's not only my age, but also that I grew up in a home where technology wasn't prioritized. For example, I was the last person I knew to get a CD player, and my grandparents got internet before we did!
ReplyDeleteI think it is not the time (like mid1980s) that determines people digital native or not. It all depends on whether people have the access to technology. When I was born, my family didn't have any computer, and my parents didn't use cell phones. I started to use computer in my high school computer lab. Though at the same age, some of my classmates were very familiar with computer and Internet just because they had computers at home and got more opportunities to use them.
ReplyDeleteI definitely do not consider myself a digital native (and I am sure no one else would confuse me for one either!), but I feel comfortable with the amount of technology I have mastered so far. I have always sought opportunities to improve my skills and knowledge about technology in order to be more competitive in the job market, not because I necessarily love it, but because I know it is valuable and brings oppotunities. So, that is my motivation. And, when I was at UA as an undergrad, I used to have to go to the MAC computer lab to write my Russian papers, and I never had my own computer until I moved to Spain. I even worked at Intuit doing tech support for Quickbooks, and I would put people on hold and ask my co-workers to help me with a call- they were an interesting group of people, but I learned a lot. I have no fear.
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