Digital Natives or Just Digital Consumers?
- timpm23
- May 1
- 3 min read
Why the UK Is Getting It Wrong on Tech Education
By Tim Morris, Technology Educator | Advocate for Future-Ready Learning
We’ve all heard it said:
“Today’s young people are digital natives.”
They were born into a world of smartphones, social media, and always-on WiFi. Surely they’re tech-savvy, right?
Not quite.
In reality, we’ve developed a generation of functional digital consumers: young people who are comfortable using technology but are often unprepared to work within it, build with it, or innovate through it.
Saying the upcoming generations are tech experts because they grew up with devices is like saying you’re a boiler engineer because your house has central heating.
Familiarity is not fluency. Usage is not understanding.
The High Cost of Low Expectations
The UK is already feeling the consequences of this myth.
According to government figures, nearly half of UK employers report fundamental digital skill gaps in their workforce. As automation, cybersecurity, AI, and data science become critical across industries, this isn’t just an education issue — it’s an economic one.
Yet digital literacy is still treated in many schools as a side dish, not a main course. Most young people are taught to use Word and Google, but not how networks run, how code works, or how data flows. Worse, many educators have neither the training nor the time to deliver digital education meaningfully.
Why get teacher money when you could be swotting cyber flies for a realistic living wage? The very people we want passing on this vital knowledge are disincentivised from ever doing it due to market forces.
How Real Digital Education Looks
This is where Simply Great Education (SGE) is doing things differently. This is a shameless plug, but — hey, I’m proud of what we do!
SGE is a Post-16 digital-first provider creating pathways into tech careers for young people aged 14–25, especially those who haven’t thrived in mainstream education. Best of all, it has been set up and run by people who have been there, are still doing it and wear a lot of nerdy t-shirts.
At SGE, students don’t just use tech — they learn to build, secure, analyse, and lead with it. Whether it’s ethical hacking, software development, or creative digital media, the curriculum is rooted in industry needs and delivered through accessible, hands-on, human-centred teaching.
We are academic partners with organisations like CompTIA and serve as a Pearson VUE exam centre, giving students access to globally recognised certs, qualifications and the confidence to pursue real-world roles in the digital sector. Win/win: massive accomplishment, personal growth, and a pathway to a high-paying career in a sought-after skill.
BOOOM… drops mic.
Picks up the mic again, because I haven’t finished…
Let’s Change the Conversation
It’s time we stop assuming that because young people are comfortable online, they’re automatically prepared for the digital workforce. They’re not.
But they can be.
To get there, we need to:
Rethink how we teach digital skills — not as one-off units, but as a core competency.
Encourage creativity and technical problem-solving, not just consumption.
Support schools and alternative providers in delivering future-facing tech education.
Recognise that different students need different routes to reach the same digital opportunities.
Because the future isn’t waiting…
…And if we get this right, it will change the lives of young people AND provide an economic uplift to the UK.
Saying the upcoming generations are tech experts because they grew up with devices is like saying you’re a boiler engineer because your house has central heating.
Want to learn more about how SGE approaches tech education for the next generation? Get in touch or follow our journey on all the platforms @simplygreated
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