Reaching the 21st Century Learner

Reflecting on “Reaching the 21^st Century Learner,” I definitely think that technology has had a profound effect on the processes that we all take to learn in this digital age. Our world is one of instant gratification and information is, most literally, at our fingertips. So many adults, and even kids, have smart phones that if a question is raised, many instantly go to the internet and find an answer quickly and efficiently. We have a certain amount of reliance on the ease of access to so many resources for information that is sometimes good and others not so great. We should not become so dependent on technology that we lose our creativity and innate knowledge.

I would like to believe that most educational environments are becoming more in tune with the way a 21^st Century learner works. At my school alone, we now have class sets of netbooks, iPads, iPod touches, and Promethean Boards in all rooms. Our students have come to expect that they have the latest and greatest to learn from and they are sometimes the best teachers in the digital worlds.  If students are so interested in the technology of tomorrow, we need to have it accessible for them in order to motivate their learning.  Many people believe that in order to learn the lessons necessary, you must take notes, you must have textbooks, and you must take tests. I am seeing a completely different learning environment at the school where I teach and it is so exciting, for both students and teachers, every day.

I really feel like the terms digital native and digital immigrant are really not as opposite as some would like to believe.  It is truly all about having an open mind and a positive attitude. The majority of my students do not have computers at home and technology in every moment of their lives because their families cannot afford it. However, they are so open to learning about it, they are instantly successful. You will never hear them say, “I can’t,” when working with the technology at our school. They are so persistent and I feel like the adults that are “scared” of technology and would be considered a digital immigrant should take a page from my students’ books. 

I really enjoyed the video interviews, in total, on the PBS: Digital Nation-Life on the Virtual Frontier website. These were very informational and gave great insight into where our students are coming from in the digital world of today. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/digitalnation/

Additionally, I think my best, favorite, and most informative resources on the subject are the students that I work with daily.  They are ever changing and are so open minded about the world we live in.  I learn as much from them every day as I teach them. They are a great motivation and inspiration for learning much about the digital nation.

Digital Natives
by: rldoty