Listen to the Natives

This blog is a summary of an article, "Listen to the Natives," written by Marc Prensky. A requirement of the class Integration of Tool Software.

Overview

In his article “Listen to the Natives,” Marc Prensky advocates for the increase of technology in American schools, but more appropriately, the increase of knowledge about technology among educators. He claims that educators in America have one foot in the past and one foot in the future, making it hard for them to make the leap into the technological world of the 21st century. Prensky insists that educators must stop trying to use 20th century tools to teach 21st century material. And once they make the shift, Prensky maintains that they will truly be maximizing student learning. In the move to shift educator’s teaching strategies, he claims that one of the most powerful tools offered are the students themselves. Prensky emphasizes throughout the article, the important roles students play in educators transition into teaching with 21st century tools. He offers an ultimatum for educators: Either shifting over to 21st century tools or loose the students’ interest in their own education.


Reference Points

1. Digital native refers to “native speakers of technology, fluent in the digital language of computers, video games, and the Internet” (p. 9).
2. Digital Immigrants “refers to those of use who were no born into the digital world” (p. 9)
3. Countries around the world are “already using mobile phones as learning tools” (p. 9).
4. “Faculty or administration meetings can no longer be effective without student representation in equal numbers” (p. 11).
5. “Adaptivity, along with connectivity, is where digital technology will have its greatest impact on education” (p. 11).
6. We need to start teaching our students how to use their 21st century tools before our schools become a place for students to go while their parents are at work.

Reflection

Although Prensky is in fact right about most educators in America being stuck in the 20th century, there is no question that his suggestions are not realistic. It seems like an ideal world to transition into, but it’s a leap that will have to take place very gradually. Prensky makes it sound like this issue is something that can change as soon as educators acknowledge that they need to change and take their first step in changing. However, there are so many hurdles that need to be jumped that Prensky neglected to mention. After all, we are still battling with the use of computers in some public school in America for simple word processing tasks due to conflicts with students’ religious beliefs, not to mention all the budget issues that creep up when we even mention to word technology. Prensky is absolutely right when he talks about using 21st century tools to effectively grab the interest of students. However, in order to grad the attention of educators and administrators, a plan of action needs to be organized and laid out or else the goal will seem too far-fetched with the resources we have available to us now. Educators and administrators need realistic goals with realistic time frames in order to effectively take advantage of such a possibility.