Digital Natives: Everything You Need To Know About Them

It is indisputable that technology is now a part of our everyday lives and it enables us to handle quite a few tasks. A few years ago, that was not the case. We were not so dependent on the technology to do anything and that is why there are many people who had to adapt to this. Others, however, were born into the technological world and are known as “digital natives”.

When we talk about digital natives, we mean  the generation that grew up in the technological age. It has made them very talented and comfortable in the digital environment. Want to know more about them? Here we will tell about it.

What are digital natives?

Mark Prensky, author and speaker on education, introduced the term “digital natives”. He did this to refer to people who were born in and after the 90s when they were growing up in a world where technology had a great relevance in society. It has given them better skills and abilities to use digital tools and appliances.

Digital natives have an excessive reliance on technology  as they use it for everything. It includes studies, communication, shopping, entertainment, information, etc.

The cognitive structure of digital natives is different. When they start working in a company, these people bring different values. For that reason, there are many companies that take into account the characteristics of this generation and hire them to improve their productivity. In other words, they are exploiting the potential of these digital experts.

6 Things You Should Know About Digital Natives

Nowadays, we are surrounded by technology in every area of ​​our lives. We are nobody without our phones, tablets, computers and without the internet… Technology has become something essential in our lives, something that was unthinkable just a few years back. Let’s look at some of the features and peculiarities that digital natives have.

They usually have a very high capacity when it comes to intuition and logical reasoning

These children are used to relating concepts to actions, so they are always looking for a reason behind what they are doing. All of this also promotes learning in certain areas that have to do with science and technology, programming, robotics, artificial intelligence, etc. It is because, they need this logical thinking, they possess, to find the solution to all the challenges that they meet, to carry out these kinds of activities.

They have to interact to learn – it’s not enough for them to remember

When they study, they need feedback to know if they have done well. For that reason  , the best method for digital natives is to learn that they feel involved in the subject. They need to participate through activities and challenges  that make them think that what they are studying is useful and fun.

They are self-taught and like to create content

These children usually do not ask adults when they have a question. Instead, they go online and look for answers to their questions. They are children who are very informed. In seconds, they can meet their need for knowledge through this medium. They are also very good at creating interesting content, tutorials, game guides, YouTube channels, among many other things. This is especially the case when they are older.

They have a much more open mind

As they have grown up with technology all around them, they understand that there are no boundaries and they communicate with people from many different places. This generation explores a myriad of cultures, customs and ideas while interacting in various forums, websites, online games, etc.

They usually have friends from different parts of the world and that gives them a much more open minded and less traditional way of thinking. 

They are very active on social networks

These digital natives are not only involved in one social network – they are involved in all of them. Furthermore, they do it with ease. These are children who are connected to the world through the internet all the time. Furthermore, they feel a need to share everything they go through on these social networks.

This is one of the things that worries parents the most. This means  their use must be controlled very well because the misuse of social networks can cause problems. 

Digital natives are often more impatient

Since the results on the internet and social media are virtually instantaneous, these kids are used to getting things done right away. They think they can get everything they want right away, just like they do in the digital environment. They can download movies, songs and books at the click of a button, play games and find any information they are looking for.

It is important that we set the importance of effort and patience in their lives. These are two fundamental values ​​for success. 

In short, digital natives are children of the technological generation. Therefore, they have some special characteristics when compared to those who grew up without these technologies and have had to adapt.

They were born when technology was already an important part of our daily lives. Therefore, their way of thinking and behaving has a lot to do with this.