EduTech: Teaching Digital Natives

Hi visitors, today I am going to talk about the digital natives (the ones who were born within the technological revolution) and the way they expect us to teach them. I have to say that most of the teachers in our days are digital immigrants (people who were born with few technological devices, but they are able to use the current ones).

Since they are merged in educational systems that are outdated and dishearten their creativity, they feel that what the teachers show to them is not important and boring. This situation is illustrated when they prefer to play with their cell phones or talk with their peers. They are not interested at all in your class, so how can we teach these digital natives?

First of all, we need to know their characteristics. They are multi-tasking, this means, they can do many things at the same time. Also, process the information faster than us because they are ‘wired’ differently. Moreover, they like to use graphic information (charts, pictures, videos, etc.). Likewise, they can find the answers for their doubts immediately thanks to the internet. Finally, a very particular aspect of digital natives is that they like to be evaluated in a private way. This is to say, the feedback can be given by email or messages to their accounts.

By having that said I want to share with you the do’s while teaching digital natives.

1) Adapt your teaching style

Yes, it may sound weird and complicated but you have to do it. Otherwise, your students will not feel they are learning in their style but in yours, which may discourage them. You do not have to change completely your style, just a few arrangements so you can include their technological skills.

2) Let them invent

Be a teacher who promotes creativity and imagination. They will feel more engaged in your lessons because you will allow the use of their creative process. The results will be successful due to the fact that they are going to personalize the learning activity.

3) RAR

This acronym stands for ‘Relevant Appropriate and Related’. These three should be the features of your lesson. Relevant because you want the students to pay attention to it. Appropriate because you should stick to the level of your class as well as the cultural background and upbringing. Finally, related because if your topic is not related to your lesson, it will be pointless using it in your class.

4) Do not over think your lessons

We as teachers spend a lot of time planning our lessons because we want it to be almost perfect. However, we realized that our students are not as enthusiastic as we are. This is why we should keep our lessons simple. Do not try to fill your lesson plan with activities you know they will not like. Instead, you can ask them once in a while what they want to do about the topic you are teaching. Listen to all of them, and as always, you have the final choice.

5) Provide opportunities to learn

In my previous post I wrote about this. In a nutshell, your school and you should meet certain requirements in order to ‘produce’ competent learners. Your organization, planning, final objectives, and even your feedback play an essential role in their language development.

This is my point of view when it comes to teaching digital natives, I hope you find it useful and if you have something to say, feel free to express yourself.