Digital Citizenship in Schools

Nine Elements All Students Should Know

Mike Ribble

• Publisher: International Society for Technology in Education
• Year: 2015
• eBook ISBN: 9781564845177
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education Standards

This essential exploration of digital citizenship provides a framework for helping students become productive and responsible users of digital technologies. Students today have always had technology in their lives, so many teachers assume their students are competent tech users — more competent, in fact, than themselves. In reality, not all students are as tech savvy as teachers might assume, and not all teachers are as incompetent as they fear. Even when students are comfortable using technology, they may not be using it appropriately. Likewise, educators of all skill levels may not understand how to use technology effectively. Both students and teachers need to become members of a digital citizenry.Included in this new edition:

• The nine elements of digital citizenship and how to incorporate them in the classroom
• Professional development activities to instill citizenship concepts
• Changes to the technology landscape, new tools and devices
• Lesson plans, correlated to the ISTE Standards, for teaching different aspects of digital citizenship

This book is designed to help a district- or site-based team understand digital citizenship and how it can affect their curriculum and schools. Likewise, this book can help individual educators and technology leaders see the importance of digital citizenship and identify ways it can improve teaching and learning with technology.
Audience: K-12 classroom teachers

SECTION III

Digital Citizenship in the Classroom

Education makes machines which act like men and produces men who act like machines.

—ERICH FROMM

Students need to learn what it means to be a good citizen of their state or region and of their country. Along with this, they need to understand what their rights and responsibilities are as members of that society. The same issues need to be addressed with regard to the emerging digital society, so that students can learn how to be responsible and productive members of that society. By teaching students about the nine elements of digital citizenship, you prepare them to enter that world with confidence and a good ethical direction. Students need to learn these skills whether they are interacting face-to-face or online.

All educators are well aware of the many challenges that teachers currently face: increased high-stakes testing; a bewildering array of national, state, and local standards; new demands for higher qualifications and recertification. Given these challenges, it is difficult to find time to teach even core subjects, much less anything new. This is why a detailed understanding of the nine elements of digital citizenship (and the issues that accompany them) will help educators recognize the “teachable moments” that may occur as they are working with other content, and use those moments to reinforce digital citizenship principles. When discussions about technology use arise, digital citizenship can act as a cornerstone of that discussion.

This section provides teachers with ideas and activities they can use to raise student awareness and to teach the principles of digital citizenship in the classroom. It is also a wonderful opportunity to listen to what students have to say about technology. Some ideas may be misinformation and need to be clarified to the students, but others may provide educators with better insight on how technology is being used everyday. The lesson plans in the following chapters can be modified for students at all grade levels and can form the foundation of a comprehensive digital citizenship program

5

Teaching Digital Citizenship to Students

When helping students with the issues of digital citizenship, teachers should strive to bolster each student’s ability to:

• Live in a world saturated with digital technology

• Understand appropriate technology use

• Gain technology skills for their future

• Balance the use of technology and still being able to interact face-to-face

I’ve created a reflection model as a teacher resource to help students begin thinking about how they are using technology—not just in school, but in their homes and with their friends. This model should be followed each time a student uses technology. As students become more aware of their actions, the principles embedded within this model will become mental habits that will inform the way students use digital technologies now and in the future.

The reflection model has four stages (see Figure 5.1):

1. Awareness

2. Guided practice

3. Modeling and demonstration

4. Feedback and analysis

Teachers can use this reflection model to help focus student understanding of appropriate technology use in a learning environment.

Figure 5.1 Four-stage reflection model for teaching digital citizenship.

Stage 1: Awareness

Awareness focuses on helping students become technologically literate. The awareness stage goes beyond just basic knowledge of hardware and software, however necessary these skills are. Teachers need to engage students in discussions about the appropriate use of these digital technologies. Students should be encouraged to ask themselves:

• Do I have a good understanding of how a particular technology works and how using this technology can affect me as well as others?

• Have I learned about the potential problems or issues related to using this technology?

• What rules (legal and ethical) govern the acceptable use of this technology?

The activities in Chapter 6 can help students understand the differences between using digital technology in acceptable ways and misusing or abusing digital technology.

Stage 2: Guided Practice

Following instruction in awareness, teachers should lead students in guided activities that help them recognize and practice appropriate use. Give students an opportunity to learn these principles in an atmosphere where exploration and risk taking are promoted. During this period, students will need the teacher’s or other adult’s support and understanding when mistakes are made.

As much as possible during this guided practice phase, allow students to use the same technologies in the classroom as they do outside of school. While this may seem to be an invitation to chaos, it really isn’t. Students need guided practice for learning digital citizenship skills, and where better than the classroom? Without guided practice, inappropriate use of technology can occur without students being aware of it. Students need to have an opportunity to learn the skills in a safe environment.

Quick Lesson: Role-Playing with Cell Phones

Have students role-play situations using cell/smartphones in a public location (e.g., in a movie theater or restaurant). The cell phone usage here should be conducted in a loud and obtrusive fashion. Pose the following question after the role-playing activity: What would be the appropriate way to respond to this situation? Ask what have been their experiences with similar situations? What could they have done?

Teachers can use the following questions to help students reflect on how they use technology:

• When I use technologies, do I recognize when there is an issue of inappropriateness? Why or why not?

• Have I considered the appropriateness of my actions? Why or why not?

• Can I differentiate examples of technology misuse and abuse? Why or why not?

• What do I need to do to become aware of my actions when using technology?

Stage 3: Modeling and Demonstration

Teachers should next offer students explicit “modeling lessons” that focus on appropriate technology use in the classroom. It goes without saying, of course, that teachers and other adults should practice the same good digital citizenship habits as they advocate. For example, teachers who use cell/smartphones should turn them off or put them on vibrate during class. If students are not allowed to answer or make cell phone calls during the day, then teachers should follow those same rules.

Quick Lesson: Reviewing the School’s AUP

Have students discuss what is considered technology misuse and abuse in your school or district, as defined by your acceptable use policy (AUP). Ask them to provide examples of appropriate and inappropriate use, and articulate the differences between them. Ask what changes they would suggest to these policies. How could they teach others to be more respectful to others when using technology inside and out of school?

Parents should be enlisted to help teach digital citizenship. Sending home digital citizenship lessons and having parents engage in the same dialogue with their children can be a great way to reinforce digital citizenship principles. Adults need to be positive role models of good digital citizenship so children can follow their example.

Finally, students should be led to an understanding of cause and effect with regard to technology use. All forms of technology use, misuse, and abuse have consequences. Teachers should model appropriate technology use on a regular basis. While doing so, teachers should focus on the following questions:

• Am I violating laws, policies, or other codes by using technology in this way? Why or why not?

• Have I seen, read, or heard of similar situations? What were the consequences?

• Does digital citizenship provide direction for determining the appropriateness of my actions? How? Why?

Stage 4: Feedback and Analysis

The classroom should also...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright
• About ISTE
• About the Author
• Contents
• Preface to the Third Edition
• Introduction
• SECTION I: Understanding Digital Citizenship
• SECTION II: Digital Citizenship in Schools
• SECTION III: Digital Citizenship in the Classroom
• Appendixes
• Index