Digital Visitors & Residents

The theory of Digital Visitors and Residents was hypothesized by David S. White and Alison Le Cornu (2011) as an alternative model to Marc Prensky’s (2001) scaffold of Digital Natives and Immigrants. Prensky argued that there was an association between technology, technical skills, and age. Generally, the younger demographics that grew up during the internet age are known as Natives while the older demographics that grew up prior to that age are known as Immigrants. Immigrants have unusual habits in using the internet, much like a non-native speaker of a language will say some words differently.

Prensky’s framework is contentious because not all older demographics have negligible knowledge of technology and not all younger demographics are efficacious users of technology. Hence, White and Le Cornu presented various criticisms on Prensky’s scaffold in their article which led to them proposing an alternative; Digital Visitors and Residents. In their article, visitors are defined as people who only use the internet as a tool when necessary and try not to leave a digital footprint, like when booking a hotel. Residents are people who use the internet to build and develop an identity like through blogging. The video provided below is quite useful in explaining the terminologies:

Credit: White, D. jiscnetskills, Visitors and Residents.

via YouTube

One advantage of White and Le Cornu’s analytic framework is that it does not compartmentalize people. They can be a Visitor, a Resident or even both at any point in their lives. For instance, during the early years of my education, I was an active user of social media sites such as Facebook. However, I did not acquire any experience in an academic or professional context. Therefore, I was a Resident only in a social context. At the same time, when I started using the internet in an academic context, I was an ineffectual Visitor who visited school websites and communities only for obtaining necessary information and not leaving any particulars of myself behind. Ultimately, I aspire to become a Resident in all social, academic, and professional contexts.

Nevertheless, it could be argued that White and Le Cornu theorized an over simplistic approach which does not provide empirical findings of technical skills. For example, gathering, managing, and evaluating information online. In contrast, Prensky’s Digital Natives and Immigrants scaffold looks mainly on technical competencies of individuals. Therefore, I highly recommend that a combination of both approaches is used for studying people who use the internet. 

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References

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

White, D. (2008). Not 'Natives' & 'Immigrants' but 'Visitors' & 'Residents'. Tall Blog, University of Oxford.

Harris, L., Warren, L., Leah, J. and Ashleigh, M. (2010) Small steps across the chasm: ideas for embedding a culture of open education in the university sector. In Education http://ineducation.ca
Technology & Social Media (Special Issue, Part 2), 16 (1).

White, D. (2014). Visitors and Residents. YouTube Video, jiscnetskills [Accessed October 30, 2015]

Digital Literacy

Any idea what is digital literacy? It is the ability to use technology tactfully and responsibly to collect, organise, analyse, and create information. Digital literacy is no longer just a privilege or a convenience, it is a necessity and very often required part of being a productive and responsible citizen.

Self Test

Below is the rating of my current level of digital literacy. It is based on a scale of 1 to 5 (where 1 is no experience, and 5 is very experienced).

- Accessing, managing and evaluating online information ---> Rating: 3

Looking for information online is not an uphill task and I can most definitely

access and manage them. However, I may have problems evaluating the reliability

and credibility of the information obtained.

- Participating in online communities ---> Rating: 1

I do not have any experience with online communities, but I don't mind joining

one in the near future.

- Building online networks around an area of interest ---> Rating 3

I am an artsy person who likes photography. My online networks are mainly from

Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube channels. Those are mainly for casual and

non-work-related platforms. I would definitely create a LinkedIn profile to improve

my career prospects.

- Collaborating with others ---> Rating: 2

Collaboration with peers (other students) in school, I would absolutely say yes, I did.

However, I have done limited collaborations with working adults. When my Industrial

Placement Programme commences, there will be more opportunities to collaborate

and interact with others.

- Creating online materials (test, audio, images, video) ---> Rating: 3

I created videos and animated images when I was pursuing my IT diploma a few years

back. Here are some tools I used for developing animations; Adobe Photoshop and

Flash, Blender, and iMovie.

- Managing your online identity ---> Rating: 2

I pay very close attention to where I expose my online identity; I usually would just use

fictitious information to maintain anonymity on websites.

- Managing your online privacy security ---> Rating: 3

I do change my passwords regularly. In addition, I unsubscribed and deleted accounts

which I no longer use.

At the end of the 12 days module, I hope to enhance the level of digital literacy I currently possess.

Introduction

I was helping a friend with her film production early this year.

I have always been an inquisitive and artsy individual. Thus, I can be pretty spontaneous when something new interests me. I always believe that there is no age limit for learning; knowledge is indispensable, and education is the new millennium. There is no doubt that our education system has made significant progress over the past few decades. Even now, as we pass from the old millennium to the new, learning and teaching methodologies have been constantly reviewed and refined, the most recent being the infusion of digital technology and critical thinking skills into the curriculum. That being said, I have no regret joining this program - BSc degree in Marketing by University of Southampton because it consists of the numerous modules which are critical for modern age students like me.

                                                              © Ryan

Make the most of inexperience. A beginner has a fresh perspective. The amateurish and unprofessional are open to new ideas; I will try anything and everything. I have been experiencing many things in life from photography to programming, from psychology to marketing. I guess there is no distinct boundary for learning. As I advance into the new millennium, I need to bear in mind that inflexibility and complacency are the greatest obstacles to advancement. I should not rest on my laurels but continue to innovate and strive for the best.

Lastly,  just a short reflection on what was being taught by Dr Lisa on digital literacy. We heard many negative stories about the web, with regard to cyber bullying and identity theft. However, we neglected the fact that we can proactively manage our digital experiences. Thus, I look forward to learning more about digital literacy through the upcoming few discussions and by the end of the module, I hope to see a significant difference on my digital profiles.