Views on Digital Natives and the Net Gen. Do they learn differently? How do you feel about these new concepts? Are they radical or do they make sense? Explain.

Being a 40 something Digital Immigrant, I have to say that both names given to these tech savvy youngsters are very ingenious. I especially like the analogy used about the Digital Natives vs. Digital Immigrants. I have a distinct accent of being an immigrant, on many levels. (Including the fact that I am probably not posting this information in the right place!). My eyes have been opened to a new way of thinking about my 14 year old son's constant texting! More than that, though, I have a new appreciation for the youth of today and I am excited to learn their language. Digital Natives and the Net Generation learn differently from any other students through history, and in order to keep them motivated to learn, we, as teachers, must learn their language and incorporate technology and the "hands on" experiences in the classroom. I was still delighted to see , though, that students wanted a 50/50 split of lecture and technology in school. They still derive the social interaction of a motivated and passionate teacher that can also deliver the information with technology and not by technology alone.

I believe to the older folks, these ideas are a bit radical, as well as very intimidating. The research, however, says it all. The Net Gen/ or Digital Natives are wired differently than my generation was. I have a friend who teaches Nursing students, and she has confirmed that the surgeons of today are unbelievable with their hand/eye coordination, because they grew up during an age of video games. She said it is just amazing what they ca do without looking directly into the patient.

I certainly hope I can assimilate myself into this new culture, so I can motivate my students to be the best they can be without them catching on to my many "accents".