DIGITAL cITIZENSHIP :)
WHAT IS DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP?
This is known as appropriate and responsible behavior while handling, using, or participating in online activities on any device. It is also known as the full electronic participation in society. This includes following the social norms, rules, and policies that make up the online society. And by following these you are doing so respectfully and with care for others and their feelings. HOW CAN I TEACH MY STUDENTS ABOUT BEING A DIGITAL CITIZEN?
You can start by having them do exercises with different sites online. One example of this would be to practice with various online tools that incorporate social features. - For 1st-3rd grade you can use Storybird. This site is great for practicing proper commenting techniques by leaving comments on each other's stories. - For 4th- 7th grade you can start to teach digital citizenship by using a more advanced website such as Schoology. This site is like a walled garden, where students can learn to blog, comment and use discussion forums. Remember, there may be a few hairy moments when there is cyberbullying but these are great teachable moments in digital footprint, where we can learn to handle negativity and remove our comments and make virtual amends all within the closed environment of the Schoology or Storybird websites. |
HOW DO I INVOLVE PARENTS INTO LEARNING AND ENCOURAGING BEING A DIGITAL CITIZEN?
To get parents involved in this great lesson, they first have to be informed. To do this, maybe send out a news letter on digital citizenship and then have the students bring to their parents to read and sign. With this signature, the teacher can create a sort of contract that says that the student agrees to be a respectful digital citizen and then the student also signs. |
Here is what Story Bird looks like ----->
Sign up for free to create a closed program, to use with your students! |
Another site you can use to build a private classroom on is Schoology! This is a great site, where you can teach your students about how to properly post discussions and blogs. Ideal for creating a private environment in which each student is free to say what they want, and be able to make mistakes.
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Another great resource you can use to teach about Digital Citizenship is this picture!
To use this picture in the classroom, you could:
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To teach this unit, here are the ISTE standards for teachers on Digital Citizenship and responsibility:
- Understand human, cultural, & societal issues related to technology; & practice legal & ethical behavior (ISTE-S#5).
- Exhibit knowledge, skills & work processes representative of an innovative professional in a global & digital society (ISTE-T#3).
- Promote & model digital citizenship through: demonstrating an understanding of local & global societal issues & responsibilities in an evolving digital culture; exhibiting legal & ethical behavior in their professional practices (ISTE-T#4).