Module 4 - From Digital Citizen to Digital Leader

A New Kind of Citizenship

1. Digital Native - a person born and brought up in the age of technology, who is more familiar with the Internet and the digital age.
2. While most students educators are serving today are these Natives, it is becoming apparent that our students do not have the skills they need to function in this digital world.
3. Many schools create programs to help their students learn digital etiquette, and also limit some students to certain websites and programs. Acceptable Use Policies (AUP) also help limit students and guide their conduct on the web.
4. Digital Citizenship - having acceptable and useful online behavior, void of plagiarism and inappropriate behavior. "Just as we teach our students expectations for behavior and safety in the classroom, the playground, the cafeteria and the school halls, we need to do the same for our digital activities."
5. Anything you do online leaves a Digital Footprint, a trail of personal information and search history that the internet stores. Keeping students informed on what the internet keeps helps them be better Digital Citizens.
6. Students also need to be aware of copyrights and creative credits, to make sure they know not all information is readily available to them, and so they don't violate them in the process.
7. Cyberbullying is also something that students should be informed of - how cyberbullying works, why it can be even more detrimental than regular in-person bullying, and how to combat it.
8. Something that teachers and online educators have to be mindful of, as well as their students, is making sure that we all have a professional online presence, including social media. This is part of our digital footprint, and we have to make sure that what we post or do online doesn't jeopardize future opportunities.
9. Digital Citizenship should be part of a students curriculum from kindergarten on, to make sure that students can go into the new technological world with the skills they need to be successful.