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Understanding what it means to be a digital native

24/06/2016


Understanding what it means to be a digital native

Being a digital native does not necessarily mean going online daily. So what exactly makes you be one? Digital natives may not be inevitably tech savvy, but their sense of knowledge of what's going on both digitally and culturally is what sets them up to be natives.

Marc Prensky, best known as the inventor and popularizer of the terms “digital native” and “digital immigrant” in 2001, told Mashable: “Digital immigrants are people who grew up in one digital culture and moved into another. Digital natives are people who grew up in one culture. They don’t have two cultures to compare.”

However, the term has evolved ever since. According to Lee Rainie of Pew Research Center, its meaning is now hotly debated. He explains that many definitions have emerged and they are often fairly contested.

“A native is someone who is totally aware and understands technology,” adds the center’s Director of Internet, Science and Technology. Rainie points out that many scholars and analysts believe even though digital natives are good at using platforms and social media, they don't necessarily always know how to code or how these apps work.

Perhaps the most fascinating aspect of the concept “digital natives vs. immigrants” is the fact that it mostly has to do with the background and surroundings — not so much with the age of the person in question. Rainie, whose team has been tracking digital patterns for the past 16 years, says the “native vs. immigrant” divide essentially comes down to desktop compared to mobile-based usage.

In short, to fully consider someone a digital native points to the fact that “these people are deeply immersed into this world,” Rainie explains. “They see everything such as the benefits — the love, emotional side — and at the same time, they see the cyberbullying and harassments.”

Read full article here.

 

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