Digital post-colonialism
14th December, 2006When it first appeared, the phrase “Digital Natives/Digital Immigrants” seemed like a useful shorthand, a way of legitimising some people’s fears that they ought to know much more about some areas of technology than they did, an excuse provided by an authority on technology that would let technophobes of a certain age off the hook – “see?”, they could say, “it’s not my fault! I’m a Digital Immigrant! It would be incredible if I did know anything about blogcasting or weblinking or internet LAN textspeak”. It’s a phrase that links so closely to some people’s folk conceptions of society that the fact it goes unchallenged goes unnoticed1, another layer on the them-and-us attitude many adults hold towards young people. And if I hear it once more I think I’m going to be sick. It’s lazy and dangerous and wrong.
Partly, it’s the way it’s invoked in lieu of any solid rationale for engaging with technology. “Why are you trying to teach with a game/stay in touch with pupils by SMS/bluetooth revision guides onto mobile phones?”, we might ask someone doing these things, and it wouldn’t be unreasonable of us to expect more of an answer than just, “because they’re Digital Natives and we have to”. Of course, there are many people working with technology in education who have a clear and articulate set of reasons for employing a certain technology in a particular way. But too often the only justification you’ll hear for using technology in a learning context is along the lines of, “well, with kids these days, you have to, don’t you? It’s all text this and Warcraft that, Digital Natives, aren’t they? No other way to get through to them”. It’s a tragic picture: Adults trapped by age and fate on one side of an unbridgeable chasm, doomed to extinction and irrelevance but still trying to shout improving maxims to the young people on the other side; alas, the constant beeping and flashing of the iPods and PlayStations and mobile telephones drowns their words, and the youth continue on their journey towards a land their parents cannot understand. Or maybe what’s so offensive is the jobsworth attitude it implies for those adults espousing it – “I’d love to help, really I would, but my hands are tied, Digital Immigrant, aren’t I? Can’t do a thing if it’s got an on-switch, can I, biological imperative, innit? Maybe if you wanted me to talk about making ginger beer or whittling something from a stick, different proposition altogether”.
So it’s a lazy invocation for people who haven’t got a more cogent rationale for engaging with technology in education. I’m certainly not saying that those projects that are motivated by a desire to bridge the gap between “natives” and “immigrants” are worthless – far from it – but it seems to me that anything that makes it easier for people to avoid articulating a solid rationale for exploring the relationship between technology and learning ought to be avoided.
But it’s not just lazy. It’s dangerous as well. Dividing the world across generational lines in this way perpetuates myths about young people’s access to (and use of) technology that risk marginalising those who don’t fit the stereotype. The notion of a digital divide in society is already well-documented: the cultural, social and economic factors that determine the kind and level of access young people have to technology are complex and not well-described by a simplistic binary distinction along generational lines. And on a purely practical level, efforts to use technology in education solely for its perceived ability to engage young people will meet with little success if they’re based on an assumption that the whole class enjoys games, uses e-mail, or understands textspeak: it’s in the interests of anyone concerned with more meaningful use of technology in learning to avoid undermining research through lazy assumptions about learners.
The worst thing about this idea of “Digital Natives/Digital Immigrants” is that it’s just not true. It relies on an idea of “digital” as analogous to some kind of nation or country, a bold new world that somehow sprang into being from nothing, a place into which young people were somehow magically born, separated from their parents who have to travel there. But of course this digital world didn’t spring into being magically; it was created by people, the first of whom now belong to the generation Prensky calls “immigrants”. Indeed, many of this generation would have a better idea of how technology works and how particular tools are located in social history than the supposed natives. To describe a fifty year-old who knows that the command “tty” stands for teletype, who has actually used a teletype, who remembers when there were other ways of sending data than via HTTP, who has actually seen the floppy disks their grandchildren only know through “save” icons; to describe this person as an “immigrant” in a digital world, when their grandchildren might only know that IM works, not how it works or what came before it, seems ridiculous.
If it’s necessary at all to think of technology as a place to be inhabited, surely a more consistent metaphor would be “Digital Colonists”: an early generation who faced hardship and inconvenience, slowly building a better world that the next generation inhabit, unaware of the sacrifices and efforts made by their elders? But even more preferable would be to drop this distasteful language of “natives” and “colonists”2 and acknowledge that there is no brave new world, no new land to conquer: whatever we have, we built ourselves and we can continue to shape ourselves.
- I’m not the first of us to think it’s not a useful phrase – see Martin Owen’s article on the same subject from 2004.
- While I’m thinking about language, the language used around both technology and young people frequently reinforces their place as the Other, although I guess this isn’t really the time for a Lacanian tangent. Means Foucault to me, anyway.
Futurelab is always looking for ideas. Find out how you can 
Bob Harrison
Ben Williamson
Dan Sutch
Richard Sandford
Leon Cych
Martin Owen
Sarah Grier
Tim Reader
December 15th, 2006 at 5:37 pm
As a digital aboriginal I agree. Alan Kay once said “technology is what was invented after you were born”, and I suppose in a way the cultural mediation we are used to does shape our lives. I have also written on this (but then so has Vygotsky). However this is not fixed it is dynamic. What makes things better is that neuroscience is indicating that the brain seems to remain fairly plastic. Perhaps old dogs are just being selective in thier new tricks.
January 3rd, 2007 at 10:11 pm
[...] Richard’s insightful piece on digital post-colonialism highlights the way that we can shoot ourselves in the foot with inappropriate terminology Digital Post-Colonialism . When Bob draws our attention to the lack of E in Leitch we know that we have failed to get the point home that technology really can enhance the learning experience Where is the E in Leitch . So let’s watch our language and start the year with a lament about the inadequacy of the current ‘E’ that is E-learning and offer some suggestions about a possible make-over that starts at the very beginning with the meaning of E. We know that the E means that the nature of the learning we have in mind is one that involves the use of technology, be it online, mobile or augmented. But what does that technology bring to the learner? What else does the E mean? I have already suggested that we might invest some more time exploring the richness of the Experience that learners can be offered because we can now use technology to support their learning. As well as the richness of Experience for the learner here are a couple of other E’s worth a thought: [...]
January 4th, 2007 at 9:29 pm
[...] Welcome! If you’re new here, you may want to sign up for email updates (look to your right) or subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting! I’ve just come across Futurelab’s new blog: Flux (via Christian Long). I like what I’ve read so far: there’s some stuff on the digital natives/immigrants divide, analysis of recent reports, and also features the Teachers as Innovators project that I’ll be providing some input for when I go down to a meeting for it in London at the end of this month. Bookmark:These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages. [...]
January 4th, 2007 at 9:31 pm
I’ve talked about just this recently on my blog in a post entitled Digital Natives, Mountain Men and Pioneers. I too am sick to death of people needlessly putting people in boxes, but if we are going to use metaphors and similies, perhaps the ones I’ve suggested may be more relevant.
January 4th, 2007 at 10:09 pm
Finally, someone who is willing to point out the obvious. I, too, am so sick of that statement by Prensky. I agree with your assessment of the whole digital phrase he has coined. I’ve listened to too many educators use it while teaching grade 3 & 4’s, saying they know so much. Come on, they know very little but they can turn the machine on and are willing to try things. As for understanding what they are getting and being able to distinguish fact from garbage, no. The teens can play games, IM and do other things but for a vast majority, it’s still about “I” and not about enriching the learning environment. Take a look at the blogosphere of educators right now – there is an identity crisis taking place with many of them as they try to find out what to do next, where to go, are we doing enough, can’t we go faster, look at the kids, they’re way ahead, OH my gosh, my blog count has dropped! Who cares! I thought this was about using tools to help kids understand. And, from my perspective, they need quite a bit of work in this area – I don’t care how well they game as a group. And always remember Prensky makes a living selling games! The more he can convince adults that they know nothing and won’t, the more money he makes.
Kelly
January 9th, 2007 at 3:46 pm
[...] This is an antidote to immigrant/native issues allude to in Richard’s Digital post-colonialism. Over the past year Futurelab has been part of a group, La Piazza, exploring issues of intergenerational learning in technology enhanced public spaces. You can find out more about Piazza here and here. There are a number of interesting dimensions – the generations, informal learning, spaces as well as technology. In a recent day of field work with a group ranging from 9 to 80 years of age, the most significant factors were all of the above – but technology less so. [...]
January 13th, 2007 at 4:02 pm
I also get infuriated with the use of the digital natives/digital immigrants terms. Sufficiently so, that I’ve dedicated a large part of my blog to discussing the ideas and nit-picking my way through some of Prensky’s papers and books. (see http://learninggames.wordpress.com/tag/digital-natives/)
What has really amazed me is how casually many of the digital native concepts were introduced with absolutely no foundation or evidence.
January 13th, 2007 at 6:28 pm
“It’s a tragic picture: Adults trapped by age and fate on one side of an unbridgeable chasm, doomed to extinction and irrelevance but still trying to shout improving maxims to the young people on the other side; alas, the constant beeping and flashing of the iPods and PlayStations and mobile telephones drowns their words, and the youth continue on their journey towards a land their parents cannot understand”
This is poetry Richard!
btw I’ve collected a variety of critiques of Prensky’s saying here
January 31st, 2007 at 12:23 pm
Hi, a great source of some really useful information. Thanks I’ve added you to my favourites.
February 20th, 2007 at 1:39 am
The DN concept is an interesting one that has increasingly bothered me. Explanation: I live on an island of 130 permanent residents in the Outer Hebrides. On it there are 19 children; most of the other residents are people aged 45+ and upwards. I’m one of only 5 permanent residents in their 30’s (good job I’m not in the dating game).
On the surface, the Digital Natives concept would appear to be valid. The schoolkids do appear – prominently – to be using a wide variety of digital media, with games prominent (though not as central as convention points out) as is the Internet. I know this from research am doing that will be presented shortly.
However, it’s the other 111 who are becoming more interesting. For after a while, it becomes apparent that they use various online resources and services, often to a quite serious depth. It’s just that they aren’t so open (brash) about it, and just quietly get on with using such technologies in a more functional way. For example, there’s a knot of people in their 50’s and 60’s who are avid buyers of spare parts for their cars on Ebay. Not casually, but frequently. One retired person has used video conferencing for years (on dial-up!) to keep in touch with her family in New Caledonia (a pacific island).
Online shopping is something a lot of the older folk have down to a fine art, which is why the four delivery companies are always on the island. The resident who is most skilled and experienced in Internet use is a somewhat angry middle-aged man who has run a campaign against tourists in campervans through setting up false websites and re-routing IP stuff for many years. Some of the locals who claim never to have played a video game are suspiciously good at them, even taking into account the ease of using the Wii. Several adults have got together to experiment with many cat food and cat litter online shops to work out the best. Many adults online banking, which is very much a necessity if you are self-employed, as the mobile bank van zooms through once a week and is difficult to stop. Most book airline tickets online as it’s quickest to find out the cheapest option.
I run a local e-news mailing list (no kids, only adults on it), and whenever I say that the minutes of the Community Council are available on the island website – http://www.isleofberneray.com – the hits on said website rocket *within the hour*. From the stats, there is evidence that many local adults go online frequently. There’s other stuff that happens online here you wouldn’t believe, so there’s little point in describing it – suffice to say, it’s usually older people who are the catalyst for it. Some specific people involved in local groups are frighteningly skilled in monitoring and finding funding online (there is a local phrase “to catch a passing grant”).
And probably the website that gets the most hits from residents collectively is … not MySpace, Bebo or similar, but … http://www.findafishingboat.co.uk/ as used by most of the fishermen; they buy and sell their boats (for scary amounts of money) on there. When I tried to explain Web 2.0 concepts to some, they looked puzzled and replied but that’s what they’d been doing for years with this website and others. When broadband arrived a year ago, there was a domino effect – as soon as one place got and people saw how quick it was, others have followed. Now we’re up to 18 buildings with it installed, and as soon as they’ve sorted out the relay masts most of the others will go for it as well.
There are aspects of contributing – openly – to various “social” websites that probably give the impression that it’s just younger people using them, especially various forum such as http://www.stornowaychat.co.uk/ However, the only councillor in the Outer Hebrides who is openly blogging is approaching retirement age – http://angusnicolson.blogspot.com/ – while many if not most of the bloggers and commenters on the BBC Island Blogging service – http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/islandblogging/blogs.shtml (very local humour that possibly doesn’t transmit) are people aged 30 to 50.
I’ve come round to the idea that the kids tend to cluster around a fragmented culture of digital “stuff”, using a lot of software and hardware but nothing to great depth. However, most of the adults use digital/net stuff, usually a narrower range of “stuff” but in much greater depth and experience. And they do it with quiet confidence.
So my local idea of a “Digital Native” (if we have to pigeonhole a “typical” person) now is a crofters wife, in her 60’s, first language Gaelic, who goes to church then goes online (but NOT on the Sabbath) and does her emails, online shopping, ebay, and checks the weather forecast and the latest price that sheep have fetched in Lochmaddy market for her husband. Even that is way too simplistic; it’s too “messy” a concept to be pinned down here, and therefore perhaps has limited use. I’m glad I’ve read Richards piece, as it’s focused and inspired me to go find a bit of funding to interview all 130 residents and get some solid data on local adults and their digital use.
February 20th, 2007 at 3:04 pm
“…my local idea of a “Digital Native” (if we have to pigeonhole a “typical” person) now is a crofters wife, in her 60’s, first language Gaelic, who goes to church then goes online (but NOT on the Sabbath) and does her emails, online shopping, ebay, and checks the weather forecast and the latest price that sheep have fetched in Lochmaddy market for her husband”
Fantastic, John – good to hear from you. These thoughts need to be a proper post, not relegated to a comment! Your blog’s still going, right? =]
Hope you find a way to share your neighbours’ experiences with those of us who don’t get to live in such a wonderful place, as well – looking forward to seeing it!
February 27th, 2007 at 4:54 pm
Richard,
See you (or anyone else) for a BBQ on the beach if you are passing Berneray this summer. We’re usually on de west beach round sunset:
http://www.silversprite.com/?p=241
April 24th, 2007 at 7:10 pm
#10 John is right, I have retired (taken a sabbatical) from the Council due to my wife and I having another baby and due to work pressures, not age or infirmity. Aged 44, I remain (until 3/5/07) the second youngest Councillor in the Western Isles; the youngest Chairman ever; and the only one with any general IT skills.
It’s depressing that the likely average age of Councillors will increase for the second successive election, but that is a function of the electoral system, which favours the retired and unemployed (unemployable) as candidates.