I chose the issue of social networking because some of my students already have a facebook account. Since they are already publishing things about themselves now, it is important to teach them what is digital citizenship.
Issue: Social Networking
Element: Digital Access
I would like to create a discussions section on my school website at school. This would be much like a chat room so the students would be able to discuss topics in or out of school. All students will get a username and access wherever they can get internet. I would also find time either during morning work or end of the day routines to give everyone an equal opportunities to voice their thoughts or share. I already have some students with facebook accounts but I can’t promote using them because they are denied access through our school server.
Element: Digital Commerce
I would like to teach a mini lesson on advertisements and pop-ups on the internet. My students are between the ages of 8-10 and may be tempted to start clicking on things they are curious about on their screen. I would like to warn them to never click something before reading. The blogging I would like to create in my classroom will not have any advertisements though they will see some through facebook.
Element: Digital Communication
This is a very important thing to teach to my students because so many are now accessing things like facebook. I think that by having a chat room through the school website they will get to practice talking to each other than face to face or on the phone. I will have to discuss with them beforehand about what they type will have an affect on them. I will show different examples of how people made bad choices while communicating. I would also like to give them a survey through the internet to deepen their understanding.
Element: Digital Literacy
I would like to assign some tasks through the chat room. For example I might just ask a question – Who is Henry Ford? The students can share the different search engines and websites. In the end they will have used the internet to locate information and teach themselves and each other. In the future this will be a very important skill for my students. So it would be great to get them into the habit of finding answers themselves now.
Element: Digital Etiquette
This element seems very similar to digital communications to me. I will teach it the same way as digital communication with a mini lesson, discussion, and survey. I would also like to post some digital etiquette rules up on a chart paper for my students. For example one etiquette rule would be to reply to a question within 48 hours. Another would be to not exclude anyone in the chat or single anyone out. I would explain our chat room to be similar to our community circle that we do in the classroom. Treat everyone with respect.
Element: Digital Law
I would really like to share with students illegal downloading and messing with others’ work. It might be easy for someone in my classroom to obtain another student’s password because their passwords at school are their birthdays. I would stress to my students to never forget to log out and to never work under someone else’s name. I would set up a consequence with my principal for such an offense. Hopefully this will get my students’ attention and understanding that some things are private. I also want to stress with them about downloading because I’m sure that they have older brothers or sisters at home who are doing these things. I would like to warn them to not steal even though it is easy to do.
Element: Digital Rights and Responsibilities
When starting the chat room I know that I am going to have to discuss what things can be typed and when. I will tell everyone that they have a right to share their opinion and will not get judged even if everyone else in the classroom feels differently. I will also tell the students that they do not have the right to share others’ thoughts and feelings without permission. For example I don’t want my students writing sentences that start, My parents think… Not only would this possibly make an ugly situation pop up, but it is not fair to the parent to have something privately said to be published. I will make sure that a letter is sent home for parents and that parents do have access.
Element: Digital Health and Wellness
I will tell students about possible side effects from staring at a screen for too long. I will ask students to not be on the discussion page for more than 30 minutes. I will also send home a letter to parents with sources explaining these health concerns.
Element: Digital Security
The most important thing I think for my students to learn about this element is posting pictures of themselves. I would love for a police officer to come into my classroom to help explain how having their name, address, and picture on facebook is very dangerous and scary. I would suggest to my students to only have a few face shots and never include their last name. I would also like to tell them that it’s okay to have a made up name. I would also stress to never become friends or chat with a stranger.
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