Prensky's closing thought in his article "Listen to the Natives" is that if we don't stop and listen to the kids we serve, value their opinions, and make major changes on the basis of the valid suggestions they offer, we will be left in the 21st century with school buildings to administer—but with students who are physically or mentally somewhere else. I need to take this to heart because as a digital immigrant, it's much more work to figure out how to function in my new language, the digital language. I don't want to be managing a building; I want to be teaching children.
When I lived in Eastern Europe, I worked very hard to learn the Russian language. For a native English speaker, this is not a simple task. It would have been much easier (not better, and very limiting) to function in a small English speaking subculture. Learning Russian was serious work! Sometimes I had encounters with strangers and a native speaker would ask me if I was from one of the Baltic republics. Inwardly gloating, I would respond, "No, I'm an American." I wasn't gloating because I was proud to be an American; I was thrilled that my accent was perhaps more subtle than an American accent. I was flattered to be perceived as a close neighbor.
Prensky advises, "How can we make our instruction more adaptable and, as a result, far more effective? Just ask the students; they'll know. Adaptability, along with connectivity, is where digital technology will have its greatest impact on education." These are words of wisdom I plan to keep with me.
The tools of the digital natives can be useful in the classroom as well. Prensky writes about cell phones being used for many functions in classrooms in Europe, Asia and Africa. This surprised me. There are many cell phone functions I have yet to learn, but I was surprised how the phones are useful in classrooms. Cell phones are banned in classrooms at the school where I work which has always seemed wise to me. I have only seen them as a rude distraction in the context of students texting under the table when they think they can't be seen. Tools such as calculators and MP3 players are like an extension of the student's brain and Prensky feels that leaving these tools out of education is senseless.
Prensky's article is challenging and eye opening. I am a language student yet again and I am very thankful to have three native speakers (my children) in my home; they are my tutors. It's time to do serious work to challenge myself in order to function in this digital age with hopefully, just a slight accent. If I want to be an effective and engaging educator, becoming fluent in the digital language is critical.
