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Marc Prensky Digital Natives Analysis

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Originally used by Marc Prensky in 2001, “digital natives” is a term used to identify the generation for whom technology is an integral part of everyday life (Prensky, 2001). In order to have an understanding of what a digital native is, we need to examine several aspects of the subject: where the term originated, what qualifies someone to be part of the digital generation, and how digital natives use media.
Other academics have referred to the same group with terms such as the net generation or net-gen for short, the digital generation, and more. Instead of choosing one of these vague descriptors, Prensky chose the term digital natives because they are “all “native speakers” of the digital language of computers, video games and the Internet …show more content…

In her essay “Digital natives: where is the evidence?”, Dr. Helsper of the University of Oxford argues that “generation alone does not adequately define if someone is a digital native or not” and that a digital native is “someone who multi-tasks, has access to a range of new technologies, is confident in their use of technologies, uses the Internet as a first port of call for information and…uses the Internet for learning as well as other activities” (Helsper, 2009). In order to be a true digital native, the person would need to turn to the Internet and technology as a first source of information, not a second or third. Helsper believes that assuming all of those perceived to be digital natives have the same education and understanding of technology will be detrimental to those who do not have the knowledge and experience of their classmates, and that education and usage plays a greater part in understanding technology than generation (Helsper, …show more content…

In a study designed to see how digital natives viewed themselves, Penny Thompson found that digital natives have concerns for both themselves and the future. Although they had an overall awareness and positive outlook on the effect that technology has had on their lives, digital natives stated that, at times, they took “a deliberate and strategic approach to managing the distractions of technology” (Thompson, 2013). The digital natives also frequently expressed concern about the effect of young children having access to, and becoming immersed, in technology at such a young age (Thompson,

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