Answer geeks (and we use that term with great respect): Where would we be without them? They help guide us through the challenges of online learning, the Internet, courseware development, and those other intersections of learning and technology.

QUESTION

What do the terms digital immigrant and digital native mean, and what is their significance?

ANSWER

Think about visiting a foreign country and how much more immersive the experience feels when you speak the language. Then, imagine the difference between being a competent speaker of that language and a native speaker. As a native, you’re much more comfortable in the environment and able to engage more fully. It’s the same in virtual worlds, except the language you’re familiar and comfortable with is technology. Author Mark Prensky refers to this as the digital native/digital immigrant phenomenon.

According to Prensky, the digital natives are members of the younger generations who have grown up with computers and have spent a large portion of their lives online. Instant messaging their friends while simultaneously doing their homework, downloading MP3s, and researching their latest hobby is as natural to them as breathing. They immerse themselves in video games where their characters often reflect some aspect of themselves. Sometimes they find themselves sharing personal details in the virtual worlds that they never would in the physical world.

We have learned from online learning communities that social interactions in a virtual world can produce powerful results. Many students report that their collaborations and sense of community are actually stronger online. In the Master's in Education program at California State University, Hayward, for instance, most students never meet face-to-face until graduation. Laughter and hugs abound as everyone greets each other for the first time, having already forged strong bonds.

Digital immigrants is a catch-all term for people who haven’t grown up in a wired world and aren’t as comfortable with technology. Though many are quite proficient, they aren’t “native speakers.” As a result, they sometimes feel intimidated and judge harshly those who feel at home. The digital immigrants tend to be many of today’s pundits and policy-makers, and as generations have before them, they sometimes frown upon new ways of doing things. That will surely change as the digital natives grow up and the virtual worlds that they cheerfully inhabit evolve with them.

Virtual worlds will never completely replace the physical one but they will offer something different and complementary. There are things that can be done in virtual worlds that cannot be done in the real world--for instance, conducting massively multi-player role-playing games, or can simply be done much more efficiently--like congregating a large group of people from around the world. Likewise, a virtual meeting will never have quite the same impact as a face-to-face one. Still, the virtual world can be just as real as the physical one--we may just have to stretch our definition of reality a bit. As today’s kids grow up, this will probably happen quite naturally.

Published: September 2003