Digital Citizenship- Blog 2-2

Before people are born today, they begin to compile a digital footprint. This may include medical records, emails, digital photos, text messages, and so forth. Initially this is done by the person’s parents, family, and friends, and medical professionals, but a few years later the person their selves will add to their digital footprint by signing up for different websites, email services, social networking, sharing services,  etc. We have websites that track where we browse, GPS that tracks where we are, and credit records that track what we buy- all without us knowing (unless you read the many, many pages of fine print of the terms of service agreement). This footprint then continues to grow as we get older, and even after we pass on.

So should we therefore just stop using all of the software, devices, web tools, social networking sites, and other modern technologies? That is not a practical decision in this day and age. We should rather be aware of this and choose to use software, websites, and other tools carefully. You may not always want to install free toolbars, free games, and other “adware” or “malware.” It’s like the old saying goes; you don’t get anything for free. Sure you can have a free game, toolbar, or other web tool but be aware that it will usually come with a loss of privacy as well. It is then your responsibility to judge if you accept the trade-off of privacy for use of the tool.

This responsibility is part of digital citizenship. Digital citizenship is defined as “the norms of appropriate, responsible technology use” (Ribble, 2013). There are nine themes of digital citizenship which are encompassed in the categories of include Respect, Educate, and Protect. The themes under the category of respect include netiquette, equal access, and legal ramifications. Under educate we have the themes of communication, literacy, and commerce. Finally, under protect we have rights and responsibility, safety and security, and health and welfare. (Ribble’s website delves with more detailed information about each specific element). These are the elements of teachers and parents must teach to their students and children so that they will be able to use the Internet safely and responsibly.

The question then arises when should children gain their digital citizenship? As stated earlier, our digital footprint begins even before we are born. Therefore, some degree of our digital citizenship occurs before birth. There is no practical way which we cannot control or limit this. The age that children should start using the Internet, devices, games, and other modern technological tools, should be up to their parents. Some parents will allow their children to use the Internet and devices at a very young age with close supervision. Many of my fourth graders have Facebook and/or Twitter accounts, but many do not. Usually parents will give the children permission when they have discussed digital citizenship with their children and feel that they are responsible or mature enough to use these tools. However, teachers cannot automatically assume that all students were taught these skills by their parents and know about, and practice these them. We must be sure that we are also reinforcing these elements at school in order for students to use the Internet and other modern technological devices responsibly. With the heightened expectations brought on by the Common Core State Standards, more and more standardized assessments actually being completed by utilizing technology, and students starting to use technology at a very young age, it is important that we begin teaching digital citizenship, at a developmentally appropriate level,  to our students when they start Kindergarten. This should provide the foundational basis of the concept that will grow as they get older. 

References

Ribble, M. (2013). Digital Citizenship. Retrieved from http://www.digitalcitizenship.net