Research

Students with strong digital citizenship skills are better able to cultivate safe online profiles that support their goals in college and career (Richardson & Mancabelli, 2013).

Knowledge of and Comfort with Digital Citizenship Topics

To support children, teachers must be confident with their own digital citizenship skills (National Cyber Security Alliance, 2013).

Summary: 

As a district citing sources, creating an online presence, cyberbullying and online safety are taught very little.  In most cases only taught in the Media Centers or computer lab once a year.  there is awareness of student data privacy however, with teachers report seventy-four percent having at least medium experience to very high experience.

Goal:

The percentage of teachers who teach online safety, the legal use of web content, cyberbully prevention, creating an online presence, and using social networks for learning, more than three hours a year, will increase each year, as reflected in BrightBytes Clarity reports.

Actions:

Create a digital literacy class at Oak Prairie to teach the citing and cyber awareness skills to students.

Have teachers and staff go through data and social media presence training.

Have a cyberbullying awareness campaign.

Have online safety taught as part of the curriculum beyond just the media centers. 

Research:

Students with strong digital citizenship skills are better able to cultivate safe online profiles that support their goals in college and career (Richardson & Mancabelli, 2013).

Summary:

According to the data students are shown how to cite information online.  They however, are not shown about the sharing of information online about themselves. Students are shown how to act respectfully online sixty-two percent at least monthly to weekly.  Students are taught sixty-two percent of the time on the credibility of resources.  At the elementary level students are rarely taught about online safety and cyberbullying or the credibility of sources.  The majority of elementary students do receive training on how to act respectfully online. 

Goal:

Digital safety and awareness will be taught beyond the Media Center but also in the classrooms. 

Actions:

A student contract will be signed by students and internet safety awareness training will be completed by each class each year.

Students will have the opportunity to take a digital literacy class to teach them about social media awareness along with how to find and cite information from credible sources.

Why this is important:

Students are online at much earlier ages, on their parents phones and on school devices.  They may encounter potentially harmful situations of misinformation.  Teaching them early allows them to be ready as they establish more of a web presence.