Getting to Know Them

As a teacher, we have the unique opportunity to meet 20 or more new people every year (and sometimes in a semester!). Your students are a gift, and good teachers seek to know and under their students. One way to begin to understand your students is to learn about their generation.


Digital Learners on Prezi

Students you will teach (and many of you) are sometimes called “digital natives” a phrase coined by Marc Prensky. Most of the teachers you’ve had are considered “digital immigrants.” Growing up Online chronicles "digital natives" and how it has shaped their lives.



If you'd like a little bit of extra reading on the topic, take a look at Digital Maturity. You might also be interested in reading about Things Babies Born in 2011 Will Never Know.

For Thursday

  1. Create a new Document in Google Docs, answer the following questions, and share that doc with me:
    1. Do you see yourself as a digital native or a digital immigrant? Why? How does that impact your potential to meet the needs of your future students?
    2. What are some key points about the digital generation with which you agree? With which you disagree?
    3. Read “Digital Nativism” by Jamie McKenzie. Revisit what we talked about in class. Who is right? Who is wrong? What does this mean for teaching and learning in your classroom?
    4. Write a summary for the Class of 2025 (children entering 1st grade this fall) like the Beloit College Mindset List. What would their Mindset list look like? What historical events happened before 2004 (the year they were born) that will have a different meaning for you than it will for them? Just include 5 or 6 items.