DEVELOPING A GOOD DIGITAL FOOTPRINT AND A POSITIVE DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP AS A RESULT OF TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIAL MEDIA INTEGRATION IN CLASSROOMS.

Digital footprint refers to the data that is left behind after being online. It is very important that we look after what we post on social media due to the fact that it has an impact on our lives and what we post can be used to build or break our reputation, as it can reveal who we are and what our interests are. We also have to be careful about what we post and make sure that what we post does not go against the law or violate other people's rights. We have to make sure that we post and socialize with responsibility.(Hinds,Joinson, 2018)

As the educational system has integrated social media in classrooms as a new educational tool due to the fact that it provides support to a variety of learning approaches and studies have proven its effectiveness in the classrooms, it is essential that we have a positive digital footprint.(Hamadi, et al, 2022)

The picture below illustrates a clear indication of what digital footprint is and how it can be understood, and the video explains how one can develop a positive digital footprint:

Digital citizenship refers to the ability of being able to navigate our digital environments in a responsible and safe manner, and to be able to engage respectfully and actively with others on all digital platforms. As now the usage of digital platforms is broad and there is also integration of them in schools, learners need to practice being good digital citizens, and teachers have to be the ones leading them in order for them to become good digital citizens and have a positive digital citizenship. Digital citizenship is based on digital footprint, as for one to be considered as a good digital citizen, they have to be considerate of what they have left online. (Kim and Choi,2018)