Latour meets the digital natives

What do we really know?

Abstract

The concept of Digital Natives was first introduced in 2001 and since then has taken a firm hold in both the educational literature and the public consciousness. However the evidence supporting this concept has never been particularly strong. This paper will use the tools of sociology of knowledge particularly those promoted by French sociologist Bruno Latour to attempt to explain how a construct like Digital Natives can become treated as a fact in both disciplinary and public discourse despite the lack of compelling evidence.