Digital Citizenship

Digital citizenship.  What is it?  Who is involved in it?  How does one become a digital citizen?  To those who do not participate in any form of online or digital communication, these terms really do not mean very much.  However, if you are one of the many users of electronic communication you are a member of digital citizenry.  And if you are an educator of students K - 12 you have a responsibility to model and teach students how to be a responsible, safe member of cyber or digital communication.  According to Ribble (2007), the nine areas which make up digital citizenship are:

• Digital commerce
• Digital  communication
• Digital literacy
• Digital etiquette
• Digital law
• Digital rights and responsibilities
• Digital health and wellness
• Digital security

The nine principles could be applied in any area of teaching students.  In a classroom setting we all encourage students to respect each other by not stealing and to use appropriate language.  We want them to use books and other supplies correctly and safely, show kindness and respect to others and to understand the consequences if they choose to ignore the rules.
AASL says that, "Multiple literacies, including digital, visual, textual, and technological, have now joined
information literacy as crucial skills for this century," and that our libraries should "provide equitable physical
and intellectual access to the resources and tools required for learning in a warm, stimulating, and safe environment."  Students need to learn how to search the web, participate through Skype,  blog, or use any electronic communication in a safe, non-threatening way, both for them and those on the other end of the computer in class.
When planning lessons in advance we all need to evaluate our school district's acceptable use policy (AUP) and become familiar with it to make sure we are teaching the important values of equality and safety in regards to electronic communication.  As computers, cell phones and other electronic items are used by younger and younger people, we need to "keep up" and be sure to teach our students correct and proper use of these resources.  Digital citizenship can be as easy to teach as any other subject in school, but just as any other subject, our students learn more, when we model the appropriate behavior.

Ribble, M., & Bailey, G. (2007). Digital citizenship in schools. Eugene, Oregon:
     International Society for Technology in Education. (Original work published
     2007)
Standards for the 21st century learner. (2007). [Brochure]. Retrieved from
     http://www.ala.org/aasl/standards