Articles
Are Adult Educators and Learners ‘Digital
Immigrants’? Examining the Evidence and
Impacts for Continuing Education
Erika Smith, University of Alberta

Abstract

Résumé

Over the past decade, Prensky’s distinctions
between “digital immigrants” and “digital
natives” have been oft-referenced. Much has
been written about digital native students as
a part of the Net generation or as Millennials.
However, little work fully considers the impact
of digital immigrant discourse within the fields
of adult learning and continuing education. It
is promising that rather than being digitally
challenged immigrants for whom new learning
technologies are completely foreign, adults
of different ages can bring valuable knowledge and skills to e-learning environments
that enable them to achieve academic success.
These are important findings, since e-learning
is increasingly recognized as an important
part of learning across the life-course. With
the growing body of research evidence countering common digital native and immigrant
distinctions and critiquing an underlying
technological determinism informing such
arguments, how might practitioners respond
to these discourses in their own educational
contexts? With a focus on digital immigrants,
the purpose of this article is to provide critical

Au cours de la dernière décennie, on a souvent
fait référence aux distinctions que fait Prensky
entre les « immigrants numériques » et les «
natifs numériques ». Beaucoup de choses ont
été écrites au sujet des étudiants de la génération Y en tant que génération Internet ou du
millénaire. Toutefois, peu de travaux considèrent dans leur ensemble les répercussions
du discours des immigrants numériques dans
les domaines de l’apprentissage des adultes et
de la formation continue. Il est prometteur de
savoir que, plutôt que d’être des immigrants
numériques pour qui les nouvelles technologies
pédagogiques représentent un défi, les adultes
de tous âges peuvent migrer leurs précieuses
connaissances et compétences vers des environnements d’apprentissage en ligne qui leur
permettent d’atteindre la réussite scolaire. Il
s’agit là de découvertes importantes, puisque
l’apprentissage en ligne est de plus en plus
reconnu comme une partie importante de l’apprentissage en cours de vie. Avec la croissance
du nombre de données factuelles issues de la
recherche qui contrecarrent les distinctions
communes entre les natifs et les immigrants

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pp. 1–13

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consideration of current research evidence
on digital native/immigrant distinctions that
impact educators and learners within the field
of continuing education.

numériques et qui critiquent le déterminisme
technologique sous-jacent amenant de tels
arguments, comment les praticiens peuventils répondre à ces discours dans leurs propres
contextes pédagogiques? En mettant l’accent
sur les immigrants numériques, l’objectif de
cet article est de rendre une analyse critique
des preuves scientifiques actuelles quant aux
distinctions entre les natifs et les immigrants
numériques, qui ont des répercussions sur les
pédagogues et les apprenants dans le domaine
de la formation continue.

Introduction
But Digital Immigrants typically have very little appreciation for these new skills that the Natives have
acquired and perfected … Digital Immigrants think that learning can’t (or shouldn’t) be fun.
Marc Prensky
Distinctions between “digital immigrants” and “digital natives” (Prensky, 2001a; Prensky, 2001b)
have been frequently referenced over the past decade. Much has been written about digital
native students as a part of the Net generation (Tapscott, 1998; Tapscott, 2008) or as Millennials
(Howe & Strauss, 2000), which generally includes learners “born in the 1980s and later”
(Oblinger & Oblinger, 2005, p. 1.2). However, little work fully considers the impact of digital
immigrant discourse as it appears within the field of adult learning and continuing education.
Indeed, such discussion seems increasingly necessary given the growing body of recent evidence
calling into question such popular, binary notions characterizing youth as ubiquitously techsavvy digital natives and older generations as techno-challenged digital immigrants. Researchers
who are critical of these characterizations demonstrate that there is just as much variation within
these generations as between them (Bennett, Maton, & Kervin, 2008; Bullen, Morgan, & Qayyum,
2011; Jones, Ramanau, Cross, & Healing, 2010). Since e-learning is increasingly recognized as an
important part of learning across the life-course (Canadian Council on Learning, 2009), understanding current research evidence on educational technologies across and beyond generational
boundaries is an important issue. With a lens on digital immigrants, the purpose of this article
is to foster further dialogue and reflection on immigrant/native distinctions as they impact adult
educators and learners within the field of continuing education by providing a discussion of
these critical contemporary issues.

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Digital Native and Immigrant
Distinctions Demystified
In what is often dubbed the twenty-first century learning environment, age-based claims made
regarding digital natives and digital immigrants have become an important issue for educators,
administrators, and students alike. In seminal yet controversial writings published around the
turn of the twenty-first century, thinkers such as Tapscott (1998) describe the Net generation,
and Howe and Strauss (2000) describe Millennial students as digital natives possessing technological knowledge and skills that older digital immigrants lack. In particular, Prensky’s influential two-part article “Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants” (2001a, 2001b) fuelled a number of
subsequent publications in which a variety of researchers and practitioners take up this message
of an urgent need to recognize and adapt to the characteristics of a new digital generation of
students. The discourse reflected in publications purporting digital native enthusiasm has been
influential within the context of educational-technology research, policy, and practice (for practice-based examples, see Brown, 2002; Frand, 2000; Oblinger, 2003; Oblinger & Oblinger, 2005;
for research-based examples, see James, 2011; Kruger, 2010; Kumar, 2009; Patterson, 2009). As I
outline in an analysis of recent literature on the digital native debate in higher education (Smith,
2012), authors such as Howe and Strauss (2000), Prenksy (2001a), and Tapscott (1998) largely
began the digital native discussion by arguing that this unique generation of young learners who
were born after 1980 has new educational and technological needs and abilities because they
have always known a world with digital technologies and the Internet. Such characterizations
strongly differentiate between digital natives and digital immigrants, and these characterizations
continue to be engaged and debated in contemporary educational research and practice, particularly as they concern emerging learning technologies.

Defining Digital Natives and Digital Immigrants
Digital natives are portrayed as unique because they have grown up immersed in and
surrounded by digital technologies as a part of their everyday lives, and are said
1. to constitute a largely homogenous generation and to speak a different language vis-à-vis
digital technologies, as opposed to their parents, the digital immigrants;
2. to learn differently from preceding generations of students;
3. to demand a new way of teaching and learning involving technology. (Thomas, 2011, p. 4)
These popular claims within the seminal literature on digital natives (for example, that digital
natives possess a sophisticated set of ICT [Information and Communication Technologies]
knowledge and skills or that they have different learning styles or preferences) are largely
unsupported by research evidence (Bennett, Maton, & Kirvan, 2008, p. 777). However, using
these claims, enthusiasts present digital natives as a part of a utopian vision of technology tied to
an exoticized picture of liberated young people (Buckingham, 2011). Despite slight distinctions,
the terms digital native, the Net generation, and Millennials are used interchangeably (Jones et
al., 2010, p. 723).
Digital immigrants are characterized as individuals born before 1980 who knew an analogueonly world and still rely on analogue forms of interaction. For digital immigrants, the communication
changes happening via the introduction of digital technologies are supposedly learned and relearned,
instead of easily becoming second nature (Palfrey and Gasser, 2008, p. 4). Problems are often identified
not with the digital natives but rather with older generations of non-natives who display their “digital
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immigrant accent” (Prensky, 2001a, p. 3) when using new technologies. In this way, digital immigrants are portrayed as being tied to older media, unable to catch up (Buckingham, 2011), therefore
embodying the antithesis of digital natives.
Given the binary nature of these definitions (one is either considered a digital native, or
not, on the basis of age), digital native and immigrant discussions frequently centre on dichotomies distinguishing between those who possess certain qualities versus those who do not.
Indeed, the nature of digital native discourse itself further reflects polarities between digital
native proponents who are “techno-evangelists” and digital native skeptics who are technophobic dissenters (Thomas, 2011). As such, the digital native and immigrant debate to date often
reflects polarities and binary positions, via both the nature of the arguments being presented
and in the metaphors and analogies employed to illustrate these points. Furthermore, in interrogating the nature and form of the claims comprising key arguments within digital native
debates, it becomes clear that “technological determinism” is a foundational undercurrent of
digital native discourse (Bennett & Maton, 2010; Jones, 2011; Oliver, 2011; Selwyn, 2012). To
move beyond such polarized positions, several thinkers propose finding the nuances within a
more balanced discussion that avoids the tropes underlying earlier digital native discussions
(Bennett & Maton, 2010; Buckingham, 2011; Bullen et al., 2011; Kennedy, Judd, Dalgarno, &
Waycott, 2010; Thomas, 2011). Still, as we will see in the following discussion, debates about
digital natives and digital immigrants persist in many educational settings today, often reinforcing and reflecting common claims and the associated underlying technological determinism.

Common Digital Natives Claims
Digital native proponents argue that young students both act and think differently than older
generations, who are so-called digital immigrants. According to Prensky (2001a), there is a clear
distinction between these viewpoints that must be recognized: “Do we see the future through the
eyes of a cyber immigrant or a cyber native?” (p. 3). A comparative analysis of recent literature
shows that the following eight recurring and controversial assertions concerning digital natives
continue to characterize Net generation students as (1) possessing new ways of knowing and
being, (2) driving a digital revolution transforming society, (3) being innately or inherently techsavvy, (4) multi-tasking, team-oriented, and collaborative, (5) being native speakers of the language
of technologies, (6) embracing gaming, interaction, and simulation, (7) demanding immediate
gratification, and (8) reflecting and responding to the knowledge economy (Smith, 2012). Though
these characteristics are still embedded in some contemporary e-learning research and practice,
recent analyses challenge such broad characterizations (Bennett et al., 2008; Bullen et al., 2011; Guo,
Dobson, & Petrina, 2008; Hargittai, 2010; Jones & Healing, 2010; Kennedy et al., 2010; Margaryan,
Littlejohn, & Vojt, 2011). Yet, while much has been written about the impact of the digital native
discourse, few have further considered the impact of digital native and immigrant distinctions
within adult learning and continuing education. With this understanding of digital native claims in
mind, it is valuable to turn to an examination of common digital immigrant claims.

Common Digital Immigrant Claims
The term digital immigrant has been used to generally describe older educators and parents
born prior to 1980. Prensky describes the importance of this distinction between natives and
immigrants as speakers of the “language” of technology in the following way:
The “digital immigrant accent” can be seen in such things as turning to the Internet for
information second rather than first, or in reading the manual for a program rather than
assuming that the program itself will teach us to use it. Today’s older folk were “socialized”
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differently from their kids … [T]he single biggest problem facing education today is that
our Digital Immigrant instructors, who speak an outdated language (that of the pre-digital
age), are struggling to teach a population that speaks an entirely new language. (2001a, p. 3)
In relation to technology, aspects of language, literacy, and communication are often used
as important distinguishers between natives who purportedly possess fluency and immigrants
who are learning something foreign. Tapscott states that many digital immigrants still “don’t
get” the urgent need to recognize how “in reality, today’s digital natives have made technology
a natural and necessary part of their daily communication efforts” (Devaney, 2010, p. 1). Brown
also makes a distinction between educators and students by citing differences in language:
“Today’s generation of students communicates in a language that many academics don’t
yet understand” (2002, pp. 80–81). In a related way, several influential Net-gen sources (e.g.,
Oblinger & Oblinger, 2005) link age and generational categories to digital literacy, and information and communication technology (ICT) competency. However, recent research studies present
a varied picture of young people’s digital literacy knowledge and skills that challenges such
descriptions, showing that not all young people uniformly possess these competencies (Bullen et
al., 2011; Erstad, 2011; Kennedy & Judd, 2011). Furthermore, contrary to common digital immigrant assertions, Helsper and Eynon (2010) argue that “adults, specifically teachers, can ‘speak
the same language’ as their students if they want to” (p. 15). These examples illustrate how
distinctions contrasting digital immigrants and natives remain to be a contested but important
contemporary issue for those encountering generational issues of technology in the classroom.
Some so-called digital immigrant educators, themselves, employing native/immigrant
distinctions in order to underscore an urgent need for educators across disciplines and domains
to recognize their digital immigrant status and rapidly adapt to technological changes. For
example, Copeland (2011) urges immigrant educators in the field of choral direction to quickly
adapt to change, arguing that technological ignorance “usually results in irrelevancy, a condition that renders teachers ineffective in their communication with others and impairs the ability
to effect positive change in the lives of students” (p. 28). In the context of medical education,
Sandars (2006) paints himself and his counterparts as older “digital immigrants who, like all
newcomers, tend to feel clumsy in a new environment” (p. 516), in contrast to young native
students who have an intuitive sense of technology. Similarly, Norton-Meiers (2011) presents
an urgent call for fellow educators working within the realm of adult and adolescent literacy to
“face the digital divide and the uncomfortable place we find ourselves in as digital immigrants”
(p. 431). The examples demonstrate how those outside the Net generation may paint themselves
as digital immigrants, thereby reinforcing problematic digital native and immigrant distinctions
presented by Tapscott (1998) and Prensky (2001a).

Evidence on Educators as Digital Immigrants
Recent research has begun to delve further into the evidence regarding such distinctions, particularly as it relates to the ICT uses and perceptions of older adults who are educators. Noting that
few studies examine how adults might develop ICT literacy differently from younger people, Guo
et al., (2008) examined how age demographics affect student–teacher perceptions of ICT skills and
literacy, as well as how age effects ICT literacy competency. Their analysis showed no statistically significant difference in ICT scores between immigrants and natives, suggesting that differences between these groups have been exaggerated and do not hold up in practice (Guo et al.,
2008, pp. 251–252). Likewise, Waycott, Bennett, Kennedy, Dalgarno, and Gray’s (2010) findings
question prevalent descriptions of native students and immigrant teachers in higher education,
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and emphasize a “need to develop a more sophisticated understanding about the role technologies play in the lives of both students and staff” (p. 1202). Similar findings presented by Salajan,
Schönwetter, and Cleghorn (2010) show only slight inter-generational differences between
students and faculty members when looking at perceptions of the importance and usefulness of
digital technologies for teaching and learning, and the authors conclude that these differences
are “minimal, with no universal applicability” (p. 1393). The evidence presented in these studies
problematizes simplistic divisions between digital natives and immigrants, instead suggesting
that older adult educators may not in fact display digital immigrant characteristics in practice.
Other recent studies present similar findings challenging common notions about digital
natives and immigrants because these ideas reflect and inform the practice of teachers and
faculty members outside of the Net generation. For instance, in light of the impact of this discussion on teachers in particular, Toledo (2007) compares digital tourists, immigrants, and natives
and concludes that these issues often highlight the importance of technology access and preferences: “[t]he propensity to immerse oneself in technology, to create a technology-rich educational environment, and to take advantage of the strengths of technology in the classroom are all
functions of exposure and interest, not age” (p. 91). White and Le Cornu (2011) also discuss new
directions for a typology of online learners that take into account such issues via a continuum
of visitors and residents. Related to users’ access to technologies as an important issue, Lorimer
and Hilliard’s (2007) study of student and staff evaluations of podcasting and e-voting in
blended learning demonstrated “no discernable differences in the behavior” of students because
both direct entry and mature learners were able to access these technologies easily (p. 407). In
addition, they found that teaching teams also believed that blended learning increased student
engagement. While there is increasing evidence that questions assumptions of educators outside
the Net generation as digital immigrants, further research and discussion is needed on adult
learners who may erroneously be assumed to fit within digital native and immigrant categories
because of their age.

Adult Learners and Online Learning
As noted earlier, e-learning is increasingly viewed as an important part of learning across the
life-course (Canadian Council on Learning, 2009). Given the perceived importance of e-learning
for adult and continuing education, it is valuable to examine recent evidence questioning
whether adult learners exhibit digital immigrant qualities in online settings.

Adults in Online Learning Environments:
Are They Digital Immigrants?
While little research appears to have investigated adult learners as digital immigrants in
continuing education settings, emerging evidence concerning adults in online learning environments is beginning to shed some light on these issues. Berenson, Boyles, and Weaver (2008)
found that emotional intelligence (EI) and personality are important factors in predicting
learners’ academic success in online courses; interestingly, they also point to a positive correlation between age and EI—that is, “the older the participants, the greater their emotional intelligence” (pp. 11–12). In contrast to the dominant digital immigrant discourse, older learners
may bring EI traits that can contribute to academic success in online courses. These findings are
supported by Ransdell’s (2010) subsequent small-scale study of students in the health sciences,
which found that as a “surprisingly strong variable, chronological age was as predictive as was

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critical thinking disposition” for learning outcomes in an online course (p. 72). Positing that
motivation to think critically can improve online learning, her study concluded that Millennialaged students “were those with the lowest critical-thinking skill and dispositions, and the lowest
grades in the class … contrary to popular wisdom, older students may make better online
learners than younger” (p. 70). For those working in the field of adult and continuing education
where online learning is increasingly viewed as an important asset, these findings are useful in
countering simplistic digital native and immigrant assumptions by emphasizing the importance
of teaching students about EI, critical thinking, and other skills that contribute to online learning
success. These results also illustrate how mature learners may in fact be able to achieve academic
success and learning outcomes in various online contexts.
It is important to consider in this discussion of online learning that many formal online
courses use a learning management system (LMS) that may not incorporate other emerging
web technologies that so-called digital natives are purported to be familiar with (such as social
networking applications). What remains unclear from the above-mentioned studies is how
natives or immigrant learners would fare comparatively in their online learning when using
emerging web technologies beyond those within a standard LMS set up. Kennedy et al.’s (2007)
preliminary study of digital native students’ use of emerging web technologies does discuss
use of social media, finding that “use of collaborative and self-publishing ‘Web 2.0’ technologies that have often been associated with this generation is quite low” (p. 17). In a subsequent
study, when investigating differences between student and staff use of emerging technologies,
Kennedy et al. (2008) found few differences between groups and that overall use of these technologies was low, although they note that the frequency of technology usage may reasonably be
expected to have increased since their survey was carried out in 2006 (pp. 489–490). They found
that “there were no role, gender or age effects for technology-based activities associated with
Web 2.0 technologies” (p. 484). Bullen et al.’s (2011) study shows similar results. Again, while
these studies provide valuable insights, it is still unclear how natives and immigrant learners
would fare comparatively when using these emerging web technologies for their online learning.
Subsequent studies could investigate whether similar findings would emerge when examining
online learning using emerging web technologies across age boundaries.

Learning with Technology Across the Lifespan
Recent studies on cognition and learning processes are also beginning to shed valuable light on
the digital immigrant discussion by looking at how people learn with technology across their
lifespan. Petrina, Feng, and Kim (2007) emphasize the importance of examining generational
issues within native/immigrant constructs that are not supported by empirical data of learning
across the lifespan: “The digital native–immigrant framework overlooks processes of learning
together (e.g., intergenerational learning) and mistakenly identifies cross-generational differences as a form of ‘digital divide’’’ (pp. 376–377). They provide a comprehensive description
of how adults and older adults learn, though this discussion is somewhat complicated by the
broadness of these categories (they use the word “adults” to refer to post-secondary students
and other mature learners in the workplace and the term “older adults” to refer to seniors
over the age of 65). The authors bring to the fore several important points about cognition and
learning processes as they relate to adult learning with technology. One point the authors highlight is that seniors may be at a disadvantage when learning new technologies, and these older
adults, in particular, can “feel anxious and threatened by technological changes,” but they can
also “learn to moderate their skills and make changes to their everyday routines and tasks” (pp.
383–384). Further inquiry into learning technologies across the lifespan, especially the differences and interconnections that may exist between young adult, mature adult, and senior adult
learning processes, would help to further probe whether perceptions of older generations as
anxious about learning technologies may be accurate in some circumstances.
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In furthering our understanding of not only the intersections between learners but
also changes in learners at different ages, it is useful to articulate a more detailed definition of
age and generational categories. With a focus on digital immigrants, Ransdell, Kent, GaillardKenney, and Long (2010) studied digital native/immigrant qualities of four birth-year cohorts in
the context of specific generational categories: Millennials (born after 1982), Generation X (born
1971–82), younger Boomers (born 1961–72), and older Boomers (born 1951–62). They concluded
that digital non-native status as well as active participation and social reliance in the classroom
result in better knowledge application:
Millennial students were more likely to be digital natives, showed poorer knowledge
application skill and were more self-reliant than older students. Older boomers represented the most socially-reliant learners, and were better at knowledge application…[they]
were also more active in the websites associated with the online courses and were more
likely to be digital immigrants rather than natives. (p. 931)
The authors show not only the value of investigating the differences between age groups of
learners but also the importance of considering factors such as social reliance and locus of control
when exploring digital native/immigrant issues. Recent studies such as these confirm the need
for future research investigating these complex factors of educational psychology and sociology,
especially as we grapple with such issues in different adult and continuing education contexts.

Relationship to Practice
As an instructional designer and educational-technology practitioner, I first became interested
in the complex array of student and educator perspectives of emerging learning technologies
when I began working in the field of educational technology over seven years ago. During my
time working with e-learning in continuing education, I have witnessed the benefits of emerging
learning technologies for advancing access to education, bridging barriers between traditionally
separate informal, non-formal, and formal contexts in ways that are unprecedented. Indeed, it is
an exciting time to be an instructional designer and e-learning practitioner.
I have seen learners and educators who are excited and engaged by technologies—when
used thoughtfully and intentionally, such emerging learning technologies can be employed
to extend and enhance teaching and learning in a variety of face-to-face, blended, and online
educational settings. I have also seen learners and educators who have different learning characteristics and viewpoints engage with learning technologies in new and interesting ways. These
experiences lead me to believe that the simply binary divisions between digital immigrant and
natives are more complex when they unfold in practice. As the evidence outlined above illustrates, what is important to recognize is that popular, yet over-simplified, distinctions between
digital natives and immigrants do not appear to hold up when investigated in practice.
As an instructional designer who, like many of my colleagues, uses research-informed
approaches to improve practice when examining problematic digital native and digital immigrant
distinctions present within contemporary research and practice discourses, I am reminded of the
ever-pressing importance of recognizing and responding to claims that reinforce technological
determinism in our own educational settings. In recognizing the role that we play in (re)focusing
educational discussions on the pedagogical considerations and human agency that can inform
technological affordances, I am also reminded of Campbell, Schwier, and Kenny’s (2009) emerging
model of change agency as a part of the critical, relational practice of instructional design. Of
course, generations do not all use technologies in the same way or for the same reasons, but, as
Bullen et al.’s (2011) research illustrates, there are important contextual differences in why and
how we use technologies for learning that transcend age. The crux of these issues highlights a need
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for investigating anew such complex relationships among and between age groups, and within
various educational contexts. Investigating these issues anew within adult and continuing education situations appears to be an area that needs particular attention.
While I have seen many benefits of educational technologies, I am also cognizant of the
potential danger of focusing on technological drivers rather than human capacities within our
educational settings, which may merely propel prevalent trends. As Kanuka (2008) states,
Often swept up by unbridled—but uninformed—enthusiasm by technological advocates,
many decisions by educators are based on following the latest trend. Unfortunately, these
strategies often lead to incongruence and inconsistency in action between and among
instructors, administrators, and students, and the ensuing disagreements that revolve
around the means rather than the ends of education. (p. 111)
When we fail to examine technologies with a critical eye, we risk losing sight of the pedagogical
goals and underpinnings upon which such technical initiatives should be founded. It is my hope
that the discussion of digital immigrant issues provided underscores this point: if educators
and learners are to fully realize the transformational potential of learning technologies, we must
identify and break down the stated and unstated assumptions embedded within prominent
educational and technological theories and practice. To this end, rather than simply embrace
digital native and digital immigrant distinctions, we must continue to critically investigate and
discuss the assumptions within the dominant discourse of immigrants and natives occurring in
our educational settings.

Conclusion
As evidence challenging simplistic distinctions between digital natives and immigrants begins to
take shape, there must also be renewed recognition that our understanding of learners cannot be
so absolute. Instead, we must continue to deconstruct the assumptions at the heart of this digital
native and immigrant discourse, to move towards and make room for alternative viewpoints. As
adult audiences increasingly look to e-learning strategies for their educational programs, understanding and interrogating such assumptions remains an important contemporary issue for the
field of continuing education. The analysis provided above highlights several key themes that
may inform this continued discussion and prompts us to consider the following questions:
• Upon further study, particularly of emerging technologies (e.g., social media, mobile
learning, etc.), will there continue to be few (if any) notable differences between learners
within different age groups and generations?
• Will future research investigate whether “older students may make better online learners
than younger” (Ransdell, 2010, p. 70), and do such inquiries need to take into greater
account the importance of context?
• Is there any value at all in considering similarities and differences between types of adult
learners across the lifespan (young adults, mature adults, seniors) in their use and understanding of learning technologies, or should we simply move beyond the focus on generational categories?
• In terms of cognition and learning technology over the lifespan, will further study increase
our understanding of the intersections between and changes of learners at different ages?
Such questions could help initiate an involved and critical dialogue between researchers, policy
makers, administrators, e-learning practitioners, and learners within the realm of adult and
continuing education about authentic e-learning theories and approaches for their learning
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audiences. Contrary to Prensky’s (2001a, 2001b) assertion that digital immigrants do not appreciate the new skills required for educational and technological success, it is promising that the
evidence outlined above paints a picture of adult learners who can bring an array of valuable
knowledge and skills to their learning environments. It is now our task to bring to light both
why and how learners and educators of all ages may leverage learning technologies in authentic
and potentially transformative ways.

References
Berenson, R., Boyles, G., & Weaver, A. (2008). Emotional intelligence as a predictor for success in
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index.php/fm/index

Biography
Erika Smith is an Instructional Designer in the University of Alberta’s Faculty of Extension,
specializing in designing engaging online learning experiences. She is currently completing her
PhD in Educational Policy Studies at the University of Alberta, where she studies digital native/
digital immigrant discourse within higher education practice.
Erika Smith est conceptrice pédagogique au département d’éducation permanente (Faculty of
Extension) de l’Université de l’Alberta et se spécialise dans la conception d’expériences d’apprentissage électronique stimulantes. Elle termine présentement son doctorat en études de politiques
éducatives à l’Université de l’Alberta, où elle étudie le discours des natifs/immigrants numériques dans la pratique de l’enseignement supérieur.

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