What is Digital Citizenship? How is it different from Citizenship?
As an American citizen, I enjoy certain rights and freedoms. I have the right to vote, the right to work, the right to an education, and I even have the right to criticize the government. I expect certain things from my government and my community, and I also am expected to do things as well. I am expected to keep my yard mowed, to have no more than 5 pets, to pay my taxes, and to behave appropriately in public. Digital Citizenship is what we refer to when we discuss how we interact with other users of technology, and how our interactions affect ourselves and others. It can be argued that “digital citizenship” is a redundant phrase, because it is just part of “citizenship”. In class my students earn high citizenship grades by behaving in a certain manner; they do not receive a separate rating for their digital citizenship. If students use technology inappropriately, it affects their citizenship grade.
As an American citizen, I enjoy certain rights and freedoms. I have the right to vote, the right to work, the right to an education, and I even have the right to criticize the government. I expect certain things from my government and my community, and I also am expected to do things as well. I am expected to keep my yard mowed, to have no more than 5 pets, to pay my taxes, and to behave appropriately in public. Digital Citizenship is what we refer to when we discuss how we interact with other users of technology, and how our interactions affect ourselves and others. It can be argued that “digital citizenship” is a redundant phrase, because it is just part of “citizenship”. In class my students earn high citizenship grades by behaving in a certain manner; they do not receive a separate rating for their digital citizenship. If students use technology inappropriately, it affects their citizenship grade.
How do the elements of Digital Citizenship compare to the elements of Citizenship?
Mike Ribble (2015) says that there are nine basic characteristics of digital citizenship, and that these nine characteristics can be classified into three main principles: Respect, Educate, and Protect. I think most of us will agree that no matter what community we are a part of, we deserve to be respected, educated, and protected. The nine characteristics grouped by principle are:
What does this mean to me as a teacher?
As a teacher, I think that the most important category for me to be familiar with is that of protection. Every year I have to attend a special training on how to protect my students from an active shooter. Throughout the year, we practice keeping our students safe from fires and other hazards. When you consider how much more likely it is for our students' welfare to be threatened digitally versus physically, it stands to reason that we should spend at least as much time being trained on how to protect our students as digital citizens. We need to know how participating online can affect our students' health and safety, and how to teach them to protect themselves while online. These topics should be taught as soon as students become digital citizens, meaning that when they are old enough to regularly participate in on-line activities, they are also old enough to be taught about how to be safe and healthy while they are online. We can teach kids from a young age when not to use capital letters, just like we can teach them to use inside voices.
Mike Ribble (2015) says that there are nine basic characteristics of digital citizenship, and that these nine characteristics can be classified into three main principles: Respect, Educate, and Protect. I think most of us will agree that no matter what community we are a part of, we deserve to be respected, educated, and protected. The nine characteristics grouped by principle are:
- Respect:
- Etiquette
- Access
- Law
- Educate:
- Communication
- Literacy
- Commerce
- Protect:
- Rights and responsibilities
- Health and wellness
- Security
- Citizenship requires individual “virtuous” behavior.
- Citizenship is tied to community.
- Citizenship is a result of media evolution.
- Citizenship must be inclusive.
- Citizenship is constantly evolving, and thus requires our ongoing debate.
- Citizenship requires our participation.
- Citizenship requires education.
- Citizenship requires balancing personal empowerment and community well being.
What does this mean to me as a teacher?
As a teacher, I think that the most important category for me to be familiar with is that of protection. Every year I have to attend a special training on how to protect my students from an active shooter. Throughout the year, we practice keeping our students safe from fires and other hazards. When you consider how much more likely it is for our students' welfare to be threatened digitally versus physically, it stands to reason that we should spend at least as much time being trained on how to protect our students as digital citizens. We need to know how participating online can affect our students' health and safety, and how to teach them to protect themselves while online. These topics should be taught as soon as students become digital citizens, meaning that when they are old enough to regularly participate in on-line activities, they are also old enough to be taught about how to be safe and healthy while they are online. We can teach kids from a young age when not to use capital letters, just like we can teach them to use inside voices.
References
Ohler, J. (2010). Digital community: Digital Citizen. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.
Ribble, M. (2015). Digital citizenship in schools: Nine elements all students should know (3rd ed.). Eugene, OR: International Society for Technology in Education
Ohler, J. (2010). Digital community: Digital Citizen. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.
Ribble, M. (2015). Digital citizenship in schools: Nine elements all students should know (3rd ed.). Eugene, OR: International Society for Technology in Education