Digital Citizenship

Digital Citizenship is an important topic of learning for students today, as the online world becomes more ever-present. To understand what is meant by digital citizenship, it is worth starting with a definition of citizenship.

Citizenship is defined as the qualities that a person is expected to have as a responsible member of a community. (Merriam Webster)

So we can think about Digital Citizenship as responsible online behavior. A good digital citizen observes norms of behavior and uses technology appropriate and respectfully. Use the resources here to further investigate and learn about just what this means.

Another Perspective on Digital Citizenship and what it is -
“The quality of habits, actions, and consumption patterns that impact the ecology of digital content and communities.”
~ Terry Heick

Video playlist for students in grade levels k-12 that covers the basics of digital citizenship for beginners.

Video playlist for students in grade levels 3-5 that covers responsibility, cyberbullying, and sharing personal information.

Video playlist for students in grade levels 6-8 that covers relationships, self-image online, and using social media safely.

Video playlist for students in grade levels 9-12 that covers social media strain, hate speech online, fake news sources, and how to have conversations online.

Students learn strategies for maintaining their personal safety on the internet including identifying inappropriate content and fostering positive connections
Students reflect on how they can use intrapersonal and interpersonal skills to build and strengthen positive online communication and communities. They delve into the concept of digital citizenship and digital ethics, and they reflect on their online interactions.
Students learn strategies for managing their online information and keeping it secure from online risks such as identity thieves and phishing. They learn how to create strong passwords, how to avoid scams and schemes, and how to analyze privacy policies.
Students learn what to do if they are involved in a cyberbullying situation. They explore the roles people play and how individual actions — both negative and positive — can impact their friends and broader communities. Students are encouraged to take the active role of upstander and build positive, supportive online communities.
Students learn to protect their own privacy and respect the privacy of others. Our digital world is permanent, and with each post, students are building a digital footprint. By encouraging students to self-reflect before they self-reveal, they will consider how what they share online can impact themselves and others. These lessons are designed to help students explore their own digital lives, focusing on their online versus their offline identity. Students learn the benefits and risks of presenting themselves through different personas and the effects on their sense of self, their reputation, and their relationships.
Digital information literacy includes the ability to find, identify, evaluate, and use information from electronic sources effectively. Students will learn effective search strategies and techniques to evaluate the quality, credibility, and validity of websites and give proper credit.
Living in a “copy/paste” culture, students need to reflect on their responsibilities and rights as creators in the online spaces where they consume, create, and share information. From addressing plagiarism to piracy, students learn about copyright and fair use.