Bridging the Gap between Digital Native Students and Digital Immigrant Professors: Reciprocal Learning and Current Challenges

The difference between individuals who have grown up using technology (digital natives) and those who have not (digital immigrants) continues to expand as technology develops. This gap is noticeable at universities where digital immigrant professors and native students interact. Since digital native students and digital immigrant professors have different learning and teaching preferences and needs, both sides must take these differences into account to create an effective learning environment. Thus, the current study was carried out to ascertain professors’ perceptions regarding technology integration, their challenges, and what students (digital natives) and professors (digital immigrants) might learn from one another. The study included 206 EFL students and 19 EFL professors at Moulay Ismail University, Morocco, who successfully completed an online questionnaire. Based on the quantitative and qualitative findings obtained, it was found that despite the difficulties encountered, such as content overload, fake news, distraction, and technical concerns, both students and professors responded favorably to the topic of integrating technology in the educational sector. The findings also demonstrated that students who are digital natives could teach their professors a lot about how to use, navigate, and harness technology. Conversely, professors who are digital immigrants can teach students who are digital natives a lot about how to gather information from traditional sources, what to do when technology fails, and the value of interpersonal communication in the classroom.