In the fast paced world of the 21st century, technology has given us the opportunity to be not only consumers of information, but creators of information. When we delve into the vast digital ocean, it is important to remember that what we create should be done in a respectful and responsible manner. Our creations can impact others either positively or negatively. We are all citizens in a global world who buy into the social frameworks and norms that govern society. We must mirror those intentions in the digital world we participate in as well.
How do we practice good digital citizenship? I believe the answer lies in respect, education and protection. This model is highlighted on the digital citizenship web site produced by Mike Ribble. There are various ways in which we all, young and old, come in contact with technology in our daily lives. Whether it is a simple text, an email or a facebook comment, we need to practice proper netiquette. We need to educate the digital immigrants as well as the digital natives about proper digital citizenship. We also need to recognize the permanence of our actions in the digital world and protect our identity as well as protect others from the dangers of cyber bullying.
As a future teacher I need to advocate, model and teach safe and ethical use of technology inside and outside the classroom. Technology is playing an increasing role in how we teach our students. As they come in contact with the digital world, it is necessary for them to understand what it means to be honest and respectful. The responsibility for teaching them appropriate netiquette starts with parents and transfers to the teacher. Parents need to be aware of what their children are doing online. Keeping the lines of communication open between parent and child is paramount to becoming a safe and successful digital citizen. Concerned parents have created a website called Common Sense Media that recognizes the need for digital literacy and citizenship in the 21st century. This is one of many tools parents can turn to in order to help them understand the digital world. Teachers can rely on the standards that have been set in place by the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). These standards help us define what teachers need to do to promote appropriate technology use among students. Teachers who are digital immigrants need to become trained in all aspects of digital citizenship in order to bridge the gap between them and the digital natives they teach. Once teachers are educated in digital citizenship, they need to implement strategies that promote effective and ethical use of technology. Teachers need to give students the opportunities to practice good digital citizenship through the use of projects that engage students with learning through technology. Teachers can do this by connecting their students to the world through the use of online research and discovery. Teachers also need to understand that their students will be using these tools in the future, and that the promotion of good digital citizenship will help them in their careers and in life.
Students experience digital content on a daily basis. They are becoming rich content developers through social networking sites and other Web 2.0 tools. They are interacting in a new and exciting environment inside and outside of the classroom that is teaching them about relationships, the online community, and what it takes to be good digital citizens. Today’s learners will be doing work that will rely on their creative abilities, their skills to analyze information, and their ability to collaborate with each other. The way students behave in the online world and how they find the information they need, must be modeled appropriately by parents and teachers so that today’s learners develop into proper 21st century digital citizens. The ISTE also has a set of standards that students can look into as a guide for proper digital behavior.
We hopefully will never see another teen suicide related to cyber-bullying again. The protection of our students in the digital world is perhaps most important. For all of the positive aspects that technology, especially the Internet, has granted us, there is a dark side that lurks behind closed doors. Bullying has risen to a new frontier. It is one thing to be bullied face to face, but the internet provides a means to bully others with a veil of secrecy. No longer does the bullying stop once the student comes home from school. Today it is often the case where bullying continues through texting and social media. A child sometimes cannot hide from those modes of communication. Children need to be educated on how to spot online bullying and be confident in the fact that they can report it to the proper authority. Students need to understand that there is a zero tolerance policy when it comes to bullying.
Our digital footprint, the path of data we leave behind us in the digital world, should be recognized and protected as well. It is amazing to think about just how much information there is about all of us in the online world and how quickly it is compiled. Our identity not only exists in the real world, it exists in the digital world as well. That identity is also difficult to erase once it is captured digitally. What we do and say online has a sense of permanence. We must be responsible and respectful of the content we create online.
Today’s digital world has offered us a new kind of reality that gives people new ways of communicating with each other. The way we operate in this digital world should reflect the way we want to be treated in the ‘real world’. The responsibility falls on all of us to help one another achieve that same level of respect and consideration. Education is key to helping newcomers and old timers become good digital citizens who share in the values that we adhere to in everyday life. Let us all help each other to experience a digital world that is safe, effective and one that fosters positive impacts on all who come in contact with it.
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ReplyDeleteI have to agree with you on your comments of digital citizenship. What it basically comes down to is responsibility and adhering to norms and acceptable behaviour in society, a global society. Since the web is so far reaching, I think students should expand their thoughts beyond what our own norms are, but generally acceptable ways of behaving that would be well received by other cultures as well. The internet flattened the world for us to make it easier to collaborate and learn. It's important for us to think globally versus the old local mentality.
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