With the exponential growth of technology, Digital
Citizenship is a top priority. The
visual whitepaper Fostering Digital
Citizenship discusses why it is so important to foster Digital citizenship
in children and what they need to know to guide their path as they grow-up
online. “93% of US teens are regularly online and creating their own digital
culture; 86% of US parents feel digital media is crucial to preparing their
children for the 21st century” (Microsoft, 2014). My five year old granddaughter started using
an iPAD at the age of two. I was amazed
by how fast she learned to maneuver the digital landscape. Today, she can pick up an iPAD, turn it on,
surf for and explore various educational websites, download age-appropriate
apps for gaming, and she even knows how to Facetime. Her parents continue to encourage her
exploration of technology, but with strict monitoring and set guidelines, which
she can understand, and I believe is a good thing.
When it comes to Digital Citizenship, I worry most
about children because they are so unknowing and completely vulnerable. So many children today are left to surf the
Internet with absolutely no guideline to follow or adult supervision. Because some parents and adults (some, not
all), are so lax about providing the proper guidance to the children they are
responsible for, those left unsupervised to surf the Web are being preyed upon,
bullied, or taken advantage of in other ways.
If we are going to put technology into the hands of our children, then
we need to take responsibility for teaching them how to utilize technology
tools in a positive way, and help develop them into digitally responsible
people. Here are some suggestions as to
what parents can do to support good Digital Citizenship in their children: 1) Talk to your children about appropriate
and responsible online behavior 2) Install parental controls 3) Establish
guidelines to be followed a consequences for misbehavior online (Microsoft,
2014). Educators like parents have a
social responsibility to our children, so here some suggestions: 1) Teach
digital citizenship to primary and secondary schools so all young people can
learn how to be responsible, respectful, and informed digital citizens and 2)
Provide professional development to help teachers and staff with course in
digital citizenship (Microsoft, 2014).
One way I have incorporated Digital Citizenship into
my own practice as an educator is to create a web-based training on how to
communicate electronically. We also
incorporate Best Practices for communicating electronically into our workshop
curriculum.
References
Microsoft (2014).
What does digital citizenship mean to you? Retrieved from:
Microsoft (2014).
Fostering Digital Citizenship.
Retrieved from:
Hi GoldenGirl,
ReplyDeleteWhat struck me about your thoughts on supporting digital citizenship was number one on the list you mentioned: communication. It is so important to talk to one another about what it means to each of us to be a good digital citizen. Two-way communication helps set the tone for mutual respect in general, including being respectful to each other in an increasingly digital world.
simpleflowersfortechnologyineducation.wordpress.com
Hello Simpleflowers: There are so many people who never bother to even ask that question. I am embarrassed to say that through trial and error I have learned to be a good digital citizen. I wish I could say the same for those who communicate with me. I am especially sensitive to what comes into and goes out of my mailbox at work. I really dislike when I receive an email into my work inbox that is off color or a text on my work cell phone. Plain and simple, tt's really bad etiquette and people need to realize the harm they could potentially be causing when they send those types of emails and texts.
DeleteHello GoldenGirl, I really support your acknowledgements about parental responsibility to monitor our children's online behavior for web safety, netiquette, and respect.
ReplyDeletehttp://trevaeoloye.blogspot.com/