ASD English Department

Growing up with unprecedented access to technology has changed the way young people, "digital natives," communicate, interact, process information, and learn (Oblinger & Oblinger, 2005; Prensky, 2001a, 2001b). Thus, many new teachers entering 21st century classrooms are digital natives teaching digital natives (Prensky, 2001a). Lei's (2009) study of a group of digital native preservice teachers suggests that, although future teachers may hold strong positive beliefs about technology and may be proficient with a variety of software applications, they may be unable to translate this knowledge to their teaching. "Digital natives," Lei argued, "need to develop a systematic understanding of the technology, subject matter, pedagogy, and how these aspects work together" (p. 93).