The Myth of the Digital Native

An interesting piece from Josh Sternberg, at The Atlantic, "Social Media's Slow Slog Into the Ivory Towers of Academia." The "myth" of the digital native holds that students don't actually know as much about digital technology as some professors claim, and the myth holds because professors are afraid of being shown up by savvy students. At community college there's something of a digital divide ---- so there really is a myth of the digital native --- but there's still a core of students on the cutting edge of technology. So, we can learn from our students, but it takes professors to give up some control over learning so that it's a conversation in the classroom rather than a disquisition. That doesn't work all the time, since I believe students need frequent chalk and talk lectures to impart the important stuff that they simply don't know. But soliciting feedback on an area of learning where students have a homefield advantage creates win-win situations. Besides, it's a lot more fun to talk about the cool stuff.