Digital learning

I would consider myself a digital immigrant leaning towards a digital native. I have used projectors that have the capacity to project movies in the classroom in China to using the blackboard to write assignments for the class. Technology in the college setting was perhaps more useful only because of the advancements made during that time period. I find that it was very useful but at time overdone.

Mark Prensky says it best in his online article, “The “digital immigrant accent” can be seen in such things as turning to the Internet for information second rather than first, or in reading the manual for a program rather than assuming that the program itself will teach us to use it.” (http://webct.cu-portland.edu/webct/urw/lc9140001.tp0/cobaltMainFrame.dowebct,2001) I noticed that I was a digital immigrant when I saw this. I have been moving towards using the internet but originally I would have never thought about it.

I started to change my mind about technology in my future classroom when they discussed legacy and future teaching. Legacy teaches the classics such as reading, writing, and arithmetic. The future class teaches, “Digital and technological including software, hardware, robotics, nanotechnology, genomics, etc. it also includes the ethics, politics, sociology, languages and other things that go with them.” .” (http://webct.cu-portland.edu/webct/urw/lc9140001.tp0/cobaltMainFrame.dowebct,2001) This leads to the type of teaching styles that need to be incorporated into my classroom.

“Why not make the learning into a video game!” (http://webct.cu-portland.edu/webct/urw/lc9140001.tp0/cobaltMainFrame.dowebct,2001) This quote is exactly the type of innovations that we as modern teacher are going to have to adapt. It is not important of what kind digital learner you are but what direction you are going to take that style of teaching. I believe that technology is the next big barrier between students and teachers. We have the choice to learn and adapt to it or fail as teachers.