Thanks to Andy Paul of e-foundations for pointing me towards Dave White’s piece on online user types, Not ‘natives’ and ‘immigrants’ but ‘vistors’ and residents’ , which posits an alternative distinction to that of digital native/ digital immigrant when classifying how people use the internet. He describes a ‘resident’ as ‘an individual who lives a percentage of their life online. The web supports the projection of their identity and facilitates relationships’, while a ‘visitor’ is ‘an individual who uses the web as a tool in an organised manner whenever the need arises.’ It’s a useful distinction and easier to understand than the ‘native/immigrant’ divide. I think I fall somewhere between the two, something which applies to White’s suggestion that educational institutions should use approaches that suit both ‘residents’ and ‘vistors’ when providing online services.
Digital natives and immigrants vs residents and visitors
18 09 2008Comments : 1 Comment »
Tags: digital native, resident, users, visitor
Categories : Uncategorized
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