Week 9: Education 'stretching' a person

I consider ‘stretch’ to be challenging or to push someone. To ‘stretch’ someone’s mental abilities allows for new skills to be made and strengths to be heightened. Education needs to be challenging in order for the student to learn. It will never work unless the student has to work towards a goal that cannot be reached before they enter into the education. It broadens the mind and in turn creates new opportunities.

Week 9: A- The oldest digital native I know

I find this extremely hard to answer as the more I consider the ‘Digital Divide’, the more the edges are blurred between natives and immigrants. However, the oldest native I know is a woman who is 25 years old. Every day she works with a range of technology and never seems to have trouble using it. When she returns home at night she will check her Facebook and IM friends (if she has time). She will use a range of other technologies with ease such as the microwave and oven for dinner and the television to watch her favourite drama series. Constantly the phone or her mobile will be to hand. Using these is just second nature to her, and never has to think of how to use them- she instinctively knows! The only problem occurs is when a piece of technology breaks. It is only at this time she realises how simple technology can make tasks, and how much we consume in our everyday lives for both entertainment and general living.

Week 9: B- The youngest digital immigrant I know

The youngest immigrant I know is a man who is in his early 30’s. This does make me think about where the cut-off point between natives and immigrants. Between the oldest native and the youngest immigrants I know, there are approximately six years or so difference- a long time in terms of how much technology may have developed. For the purposes of this question though, I find it strange that actually there is little difference between what the eldest native and the youngest immigrant does with technology. The one main difference is the extra time it takes for the immigrant to use certain applications. For example the immigrant finds it hard to navigate round web 2.0 sites because they use more complex software. What would seem simple to a native can bamboozle an immigrant! He very rarely engages in technology he does not know or has had had to become accustomed to, as he feels its far too demanding and complex for him to understand.

Week 9: C- A person that threatens the digital native/immigrant notion

I can think of one immigrant straight away who defies the native/immigrant discourses. He is 45 years old and knows a great deal more about digital culture than the immigrant in his early 30’s, and about the same amount as myself. One main reason is that I do not think he realises himself just how habituated to the digital world he really is. When looking at common characteristics of the two groups, this would seem a trait of a native. Another point is that he is always eager to learn new things and will happily ask those who are obviously natives (from seeing them use technology) how to do things, for example how to use Skype. In this sense, is he a native or an immigrant? Do immigrants want to learn or is it a case of having to learn for the likes of the modern workplace? The notion that natives want ‘instant gratification’ can also be applied to immigrants; as in this man’s case, he learns skills so he can do tasks easier and quicker in the long run.

Week 9: D- A Fictional Neo-luddite

More and more universities are using technology to help aid the learning and development of their students. For my neo-luddite student (Jo) it must be frustrating how much technology is relied upon for the completion of university work. A vast majority of referencing and research for most is done primarily on the Internet. Although there are the library resources for Jo to use and facilities to set up individual tutor sessions/ discussions with her lectures, there is still a heavy dominance of technology on the way syllabuses are taught. To hand in assignments, everything must be typed up rather than handwritten which she prefers.
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It is not just in the classroom that is influenced by the technology of today. Jo goes back to her flat and finds that all her mates are sitting in the kitchen and in their rooms glued to their laptop screens. They all use the likes of social networking sites, produser sites etc like many students. This could make the neo-luddite Jo feel a little bit of an outcast. She would begin to wonder whether it is worth leaving her beliefs and try to integrate into this new and intimidating world of ‘the online’.

Week 9: E- A Fictional Technophile

The year is 2020 and a society that was deliberating whether or not it was techno-determinist just 10 years ago- now definitely is! By no means is all the world made of chrome (like some theories of yester year). For the generation that were once digital natives, they are now immigrants, as more technology has emerged and a whole new generation has grown up with it, and this includes Ben.
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University life is not a breeze, but is much simpler than it once was. No more does the student (Ben) need to go to f2f/ meatspace lectures, and really does not need to leave his room to be a part of the university, as all lectures are conducted online and interaction with fellow students is done through web cam. The students of today (2020) have many more resources than those who studied in 2009. There is the library for Ben to use, but to be honest, he does not really know how to find the articles he wants in there- it’s far too big!