After taking EDUC 536 I became interested in Digital Citizenship issues. Each week in class we would review articles, blogs and videos in class. I was amazed how students and adults were not practicing good digital netiquette and foot printing with various online outlets. I decided that I was going to make this my project and bring these best practices back to my college. As part of my final media project I worked with a group of students in a College Experience class to promote awareness of this important issue. Each week I met with the students to discuss Digital Citizenship. By the end of the semester we were blogging about current social media issues and how they can affect our daily lives. Many times college students are not thinking about what they post today could affect their future employment opportunities. I think all of us working in the academic arena, at all levels are responsible for educating or promoting awareness to students about Digital Citizenship issues. I would like to see colleges offer a course that is dedicated to this topic during the freshman year. What do you think? How is technology, social media (to include safety and security) and Digital Citizenship integrated into your degree programs?
The link below is a great activity for adult learners on how a digital footprint is created with information we provide on a daily basis. There are a series of questions with multiple choice answers. The total time to complete this activity is about ten to fifteen minutes. It is a great eye opener!
http://dsc.discovery.com/convergence/koppel/interactive/interactive.html
This semester is the first time I have heard about digital citizenship and have been surprised at how much is going on with technology. I also think that courses should be required and taught to students, however I am at a high school and feel that it should be implemented before then and throughout. Students are using the internet at such a young age that it is important for them to learn about proper use way before college. I am going to try your link to the activity as I am interested in the results.
ReplyDeleteFrank, I agree with you. Many many students (high school, college, maybe even younger) don't think twice about what they post online. The important thing to remember is that once it's out there, it's gone. Once something is published, there's no turning back. People need to be smart about how they use the internet, and maybe part of the issue is that some people are just not educated in this area. I think your idea about colleges offering a class on digital citizenship is a great one.
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