Listen to the Natives Assessment

I.
Brian Pautzke bpautzke@yahoo.com 9/18/07
Listen to the Natives by Marc Prensky

II.
Marc Prensky’s argument is that teachers are not using technology to its fullest potential and in so doing are creating a boring if not false half-world for the students. The argument is that for the majority of student’s lives they are surrounded by technology from cell phones to video games but when they enter the classroom they step back in time into a world where technology is looked down on as distracting or worse as enabling cheating. Prensky encourages collaboration with high achieving students in curriculum development arguing that teachers must now decide with instead of for our students. He goes on to say we must avoid “teachherding”, students’ involuntary assignment to specific classes or groups. Instead he would like to see adaptive teaching and self-selected groups. He finishes with the bifurcation of student’s education between during and after-school education. Prensky claims that if schools do not start incorporating technology the real learning will take place after school and schools will become no more than a day-care.

III.
1) Digital Native-someone born in the digital age, fluent in technology VS digital immigrants-someone born before the digital revolution.
2) Engagement before content; incorporate how students would want to learn.
3) Incorporate “gameplay” education, that is to use desirable goals, opportunities to “level up” and immediate and useful feedback.
4) Use alternatives to “teachherding”- either one-to-one personalized instruction or having self-selected learning groups.
5) Allow the use of students digi-tools e.g. cell phones, calculators, MP3 players. Teachers are worried when students use cell phones in class they are voting with their attention.
6) During VS after school education- if teachers fail to incorporate technology they will make themselves antiquated and while students may still have to be there they will check out mentally.

IV.
This article, while at times frustrating and seemingly ridiculous, made valid points about the need for teachers to rise to the new challenge of keeping students engaged in a digital world. As a teacher the article becomes useful by exposing me to the idea that education in the 21st century will need to evolve to be effective. Teachers need to include high achieving students in curriculum development and allow more in-class decision making. I really took to the idea of encouraging programming and not calling it cheating when a student programs a calculator or cell phone. To program a digi-tool takes a creativity and intelligence that will serve students well in their future. His suggestion of one-on-one instruction is not useful however the concept of online student groups is interesting and would be a good teaching tool. Problems will arise when it comes to student access to technology and synchronizing the school work.