Digital Literacy and Citizenship

Last week, I stood in front of a class of 4th grade students and told them, "Today we're going to talk about your very own digital footprint.  Now, what do you think a digital footprint even is?!"  The hypotheses I received we're both comical and enlightening.  "Is it when you scan your footprint into a computer, and a doctor can tell what's wrong with you?" one girl ventured.  "Is it when you put your feet on the computer screen?" another child chimed in.  Eventually, one student raised their hand and guessed, "Does it have to do with information?".  Bingo!  We were getting a little closer.

We spent the rest of the class discussing our digital footprints, and using a Common Sense Media lesson plan to trace the digital trails of Mizzle the Mouse and Electra the Elephant.  I updated the lesson plan slightly to make it a little more difficult for my older students (The lesson is geared towards K-2nd graders).  Students were to review Facebook profiles of the two characters (As opposed to the trail tiles created by Common Sense Media) to discover who had the bigger digital footprint.  By the end of class, we organized our thoughts into information that is appropriate, and inappropriate, to post on the internet.  Next class, I am going to give then a survey and tell them that their answers are going to be turned into a Social Networking profile that will be published on the internet.  None of the fields will be required.  It will be interesting to see just how much, and what kind of, information my students will provide.

I've been cognoscente of my own digital footprint since I made my first social networking profile on MySpace.  Although my parents never lectured me on online safety, I carried common sense real life rules onto the internet.  In real life, I was told never to speak to strangers.  Therefore, I never friended or accepted friend requests from people I did not know.  I didn't wear scandalous outfits in public, and therefore, I would not post one of myself in one on the internet.  I know I may have been the exception to the rule here, but my parents taught me to be a good real life citizen, and luckily, that carried over into the digital world.  Unfortunately, there are many pieces of digital safety now-a-days that may not be translated from common sense lessons (for example, your phone automatically geo-taging photos you take), making the need for digital literacy and citizenship in schools is greater than ever.

In more recent times, I am still pretty careful of what I post online.   I want my digital footprint to represent the best version of me:  Positive, intelligent, caring, etc.  When people Google my name, I want them to see my service learning trip to Nicaragua or these blog posts that promote the positive use of technology.  Like I teach my students, I follow the rule of considering if what I am posting is something that grandma would be proud of.

Digital citizenship needs to be an integrated part of school curriculum in grades K-12.  If students are playing with tablets and smartphones at this young age (and many are!), they need to understand what they are connecting to.  We are at a critical point in time where students are consuming media that their parents have never grown up with, and therefore, may not understand its nuances and possible dangers.  If we are going to use technology effectively in schools, we need to teach our students how to use it, and how to behave when connecting to the wider world on the internet.  As teachers, we are told that we are teaching "digital natives" that understand the world of technology.  This could not be further from the truth.  Our students, now more than ever, need specific instruction in how to both use technology effectively, and more importantly, how to keep safe and be constructive contributors to the digital world.

References

Follow the Digital Trail (K-2). (n.d.). Retrieved February 17, 2015, from 

           https://www.commonsensemedia.org/educators/lesson/follow-digital-trail-2-3