Online Navigation

ACARA's Digital Technologies Curriculum and the ICT General Capabilities will guide you to specific skills that students need to learn at different stages in their schooling. Keep in mind, the optimum way for students to develop these skills is to ensure they are taught in an authentic context, rather than isolation (Callil, Whitby, Bhattacharya, Callaghan & Dennis, 2012).

Explore these documents and add to the popplet below information you find relating to safety, security and etiquette. Use different colours for different year levels to navigate what is necessary and when.

To instruct a student and explicitly teach them content is not the most effective way for students to develop rich understanding in order to transfer it across a range of contexts. Teaching students in a classroom, where they are exposed to a strict and select range of opportunities will only allow them to understand skills in set contexts. For deep understanding, students require opportunities to have their learning modelled, guided and then a chance to work independently, discovering their learning themselves (Frey, Fisher & Hattie, 2016). Through these opportunities, they can also take time to reflect, evaluate and give their peers feedback (Frey, Fisher & Hattie, 2016; Ribble, 2015). Ribble (2015) also notes that students require opportunities to be reflective in their learning and activities in order to evaluate their activity and make personal adjustments.

Staying safe and respectful online is HUGE - there is so much to know: Use this interactive image as an ultimate "Go-to-guide" in your teaching for fast facts and definitions (question mark), teacher tips to be aware of (pencil) and hands on activities (hand) that will assist in the planning and understanding process.

1. Students need to be explicitly involved in the content of their learning experiences. Introduce the themes of Safety Online and Netiquette with them. The videos will generate conversations, discussions and reflections of student experiences.

Explore these with them to generate an understanding yourself of the platforms that the students use and how they interact in this context

• Design a digital poster

• Write a podcast to share the information about online safety

• Write reflections on a blog about something they have experienced or three things they will always do online

• Create a class rap about Safety Online

• Create digital comic strips to demonstrate appropriate online interactions

• Develop scripts and role plays to show best practice online

• As a class, create a list of non-negotiables or "do's and don'ts"

Preparing Properly: Students need to embed these skills and transfer across a range of contexts

Students are engaging in interactive online communities everyday. Although primary students may not be accessing social media hubs like facebook and twitter due to age restrictions (which can easily be bluffed), they are engaged with applications such as Club Penguin, Minecraft, GalaXSeed and gaming systems connected to the internet like Nintendo and Playstations. West (2010) notes that in order to effectively prepare students for online communities and ultimately, collaboration and communication, as well as working positively in a digital space, they need not only the knowledge but opportunities to practice, learn and strengthen their skills.

These games consist of multiplayer interaction where students are able to communicate and share information with friends, but also strangers. It is critical that they understand the need for safety and security of their identification and information but also that they interact positively and respectfully. As Richardson (2003) states, it is building a "World without Walls" and transferring the explicit instruction into opportunities beyond the classroom practise.

As part of a learning experience have students sign up and play the games they ordinarily would. This leads to rich and purposeful discussions about different elements of Online Safety and Netiquette without naming it explicitly.