Are You A Digital Native?

Digital natives were briefly mentioned in my Advertising Media Administration class at Sheridan College and the concept got that little engine in my head going (yes, I know that can be dangerous because once that engine starts its pretty difficult to put the brakes on). The idea of a digital native shouldn't be all that surprising since we live in an age where technology has engulfed so many areas of our lives. Since I majored in Media, Information and Technoculture at Western University, which is a fancy way of saying that I studied communication methods and society's reliance on technology, I immediately recognized the label as being heavily associated with how much we daily interact with technology. It's hard to escape the temptation of everything being right at our fingertips now that we've had a taste of it, but what about the most recent generation that is growing up with touch screens and google searches?

"Upside Learning"

You may be asking yourself, what is a digital native? Google defines a digital native as… "a person born or brought up during the age of digital technology and therefore are familiar with computers and the internet from an early age." It is an interesting concept to think about especially since I used the technology mentioned in the definition to define the term itself. I grew up with the Internet and computers but I used them to play games on websites for Polly Pocket World or Neopets when I was a child. Does anyone else remember those? Anyway, the new technology never stopped me from being active and involved with sports (I was awesome at basketball… I really tried at soccer). I still play recreationally and go running in the warmer months at twenty-two years old.

I have two younger sisters and watching them grow up with the advanced technology is fascinating. Mandy is thirteen years old and Leeza is seven. Mandy absolutely adores learning. When she first received her laptop two years ago, much earlier than I owned a laptop by the way (no, I'm not jealous…),  she googled everything. When I was unsure of something Mandy found an answer with a few taps of her keyboard, even if I had asked my mom the question. Leeza is significantly younger than myself and does not own a phone or a laptop, which makes her more inclined to go outside to play. The general consensus around digital natives is positive in terms of technological progress yet somewhat negative in terms of laziness. However, witnessing these two young girls grow up in different environments from one another, they are so active that I can hardly keep up with them. Between taekwondo, soccer and dance, these girls are far from lazy and they have a thirst for knowledge. They are merely lucky enough to live in an age where if they want to learn something new, they can search it online and be reading it in seconds.

What are your thoughts on digital natives?