Digital Citizenship at CAC

What does CAC teach students regarding digital citizenship?

At CAC, all students begin learning about internet safety in elementary school and complete an intensive nine-week Digital Citizenship course in 7th grade. For students, this course is broken down into six units based upon Google's "Be Internet Awesome" curriculum, FILTER First, and the ISTE Standards for Students.

The six digital citizenship units are detailed below.

Share with Care

Students learn what content is and isn't appropriate to share online and why.

Specifically, students learn:

Are most people’s social media profiles accurate representations of who they really are?
Are there changes you need to make to your profile knowing that others (not just your friends) may be viewing it?
What is our family policy on "checking in," sharing a location, or always posting in "past tense?"

Students learn to protect themselves from online scams, phishing attempts, and fake news.

Specifically, students learn:

How to discern whether a DM, text, email, or website is real or a scam
How to differentiate between real, satirical, and fake news
Why it is important never to accept a friend/follow request from someone you don't know in real life
Why you should never send any information including your phone number or pictures to someone who asks
Why you should never meet someone in person who requests to meet
Why you should never click on an untrustworthy link or attachment in an email
Why you shouldn't view sensitive information on public WiFi

Students learn how to secure their sensitive information, accounts, and devices through multiple security measures.

Specifically, students learn:

How to create strong passwords
How to enable two-factor authentication
How to securely lock devices
How to control privacy settings
Why multiple layers of security measures offer the best protection for sensitive information and devices

How do you remember all of your passwords?
What is "sensitive information," and what can you do to protect it?
Are all of our family's accounts and devices secure? PIN numbers, strong passwords, face ID, two-factor authentication, etc. . . .

Students learn why being kind (even online) matters and build empathy for others.

Specifically, students learn:

If you have ever said anything hurtful online, how might you attempt to make it right?
How does it feel to receive a negative comment in person? How does it feel to receive a negative comment online? Is there a difference?
In what ways can we live out our Christian faith when online?

Students learn about internet laws, particularly those pertinent to teenagers, texting, and social media.

Specifically, students learn:

What is our family policy regarding what happens when you are sent something inappropriate or illegal online?
How might you respond to a friend that sends you something you don't want to see?
What's the harm in a small copyright infringement if no one will ever know?

Students learn when and how to report inappropriate content online.

Specifically, students learn:

How to discern if something should be reported or ignored
What digital options are available for reporting inappropriate online content
Who are trustworthy adults in the home, church, and at CAC that are available for reporting inappropriate online content
What to do when something "just doesn't feel right"

Since it is impossible to report everything that is inappropriate online, what is our family's standard for when to report and when to ignore?
Who are specific adults both inside and outside of our home that can be trusted with reporting inappropriate online activity?
In our home, will there be consequences for reporting or not reporting inappropriate online activity?

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