Prensky's premise, that learners born after the advent of the internet think and learn differently than all learners before them, seems a bit of a stretch to me. Large bursts of change in the method by which we learn have been occurring since the dawn of time. Centuries ago, history was passed down orally. That changed with the advent of written language. The implementation of public education gave all children the chance to access books and materials that impoverished families could never have provided centuries before. Television was one huge change which came about in the 20th century--suddenly students could see and hear in real time events happening across the globe, and study other civilizations and subject matter by not only reading, but also by observing.
Computers and the internet have, indubitably, changed the way children learn. From birth, almost, children are face-to-face with screens. The assimilation of knowledge unhampered by the lack of ability to read and write has made the acquisition of knowledge far simpler for the masses.
Image-based learning works well for digital natives. They've learned to assimilate knowledge without the necessity of reading. They grow up watching things happen rather reading about them happening. That changes the way they best assimilate knowledge.
In order to teach digital natives effectively, it's our job to use technology as often as possible to reach them where they are.
Remember the standard alphabet posters everyone had in their classrooms growing up? They've been updated with words which are native to today's learners.
Using images the children already know makes learning the sounds the letters make far simpler.
Images can convey most subject matter just as effectively (or moreso) than the written word. Areas they don't help with include spelling, sentence structure, and other language arts areas which require the output of written text. Of course, spell check and grammar check programs can edit for those, but do they really teach the students how to spell or write effectively? Or have the needs for those abilities been lessened if not eliminated by the advent of the internet and the easy availability of devices which allow the transfer of images and videos?
