DML2014: Ignite Talk - Matt Rafalow
0"Code-Switching": 'Digital Natives' and 'Digital Immigrants' at School
The use of the terms "digital native" and "digital immigrant" have spread rapidly in society. Typically these categories refer to youths' seemingly natural gifts with technology, while older generations have difficulty keeping up. Educators, technologists, and social scientists know these categories are complicated for a number of reasons. However, I find that teachers regularly use these terms to make meaning out of the relationships with their students. Through comparative research in middle schools that vary by race and class, I find that many teachers see students' peer-centered tech skills as frivolous and even threatening to classroom lessons. One school, however, frames students' skills and teachers' roles differently: they teach students how to "code-switch," or translate their peer-oriented skills with technology in ways that are valuable to school. In this way, teachers are positioned as mentors that can link young people's skills from hanging out with peers online to educational institutions.