​Do digital native students have strong digital literacy skills?

Our students in today's classroom are surrounded by technology and bombarded with media. Education is shifting towards technology use in every classroom. It is essential that digital literacy skills are taught throughout content area for our students so that students are able to gain these essential 21st century skills. 

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Digital Skills - Necessary or Innate?

dig·it·al na·tive
noun

1. a person born or brought up during the age of digital technology and therefore familiar with computers and the Internet from an early age.

Students in our classrooms are digital natives and have grown up with the internet being easily accessible and are now learning in classrooms that are becoming increasingly digital. Our digital native students are comfortable using various technology but have not yet mastered critical 21st century digital skills. Being familiar with technology is not the same as being digitally literate. 

Educators in all classrooms need to be incorporating digital literacy skills into their content lessons to help our students be successful in the ever changing workplace. As we all know, the careers that some of our students will one day have, do not exist today. The exponential amount of information on the internet is now slowing down and educators need to equip their students with the skills to successfully and safely navigate through this vast sea of information.