It has been very interesting to reflect upon various digital concepts during Topic 1. As someone born in the late-80’s I feel stuck somewhere between being a digital native (someone who grew up with the internet) and an immigrant (someone who did not) as defined by Prensky (2001) and elaborated upon in the course material by White and Le Cornu (2011).

My early childhood did not include computers, cell phones, or the internet. Of course, that changed as time marched on. I ­remember when we got our first shared family computer – playing minesweeper, creating drawings using MS paint, and the agony of waiting for the dial up internet tone! Then, all of a sudden, everyone had cell phones, computers and laptops – everything became digital.

Even though it does not feel like very long ago, things have changed a lot since then. Phones, computers, and laptops have become smaller, and the space that digitisation takes up has become bigger.

It is quite confronting to think about how much we rely on digital tools in our everyday work and personal lives. Indeed, it is becoming increasingly difficult to draw lines between different areas of our digital lives – there definitely seems to be a new sheriff in town! In reflecting on our engagement with the internet using the idea of a continuum of ‘residents’ and ‘visitors’ it becomes possible to map how (and why) we use such tools. It has certainly given me cause to pause. Do I mainly use the internet to work, or play? Even now, I am not sure!

The discussions within the ONL PBL 10 group have prompted me to think about digital identity, digital safety, digital literacy, and digital addiction. Moving forward I do believe it is important to reflect further upon the roles these aspects play in my everyday life and how to maintain a sense of balance between work and personal identities in the digital wild west.

References

Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants. MCB University Press, 9(5), 1-6.

White, D. & Le Cornu, A. (2011) Visitors and residents: A new typology for online engagement. First Monday, 16(9).