Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Camille Maydonik
36428084
December 6, 2009
The Importance of Digital Citizenship 2
Abstract
education. The fourth standard of the ISTE’s Educational Technology Standards for
elaborate, teachers understand local and global societal issues and responsibilities in an
evolving digital culture and exhibit legal and ethical behavior in their professional
practices.
Teachers:
a. advocate, model, and teach safe, legal, and ethical use of digital information and
c. Promote and model digital etiquette and responsible social interactions related to
However, in some cases, there are many restrictions in place at the school board level that
teachers are not able to meet this standard, or teachers themselves do not have the skills
teachers, students, and administrators in K-12 education must be educated in the day-to-
Do not train a child to learn by force or harshness; but direct them to it by what amuses
their minds, so that you may be better able to discover with accuracy the peculiar bent of
the genius of each.
- Plato
networking sites, and other digital content. The majority of these students may not
understand the rules that dictate the ethical use of digital files and may not understand
why these issues are relevant (Microsoft, 2008). According to Ribble and Bailey (2004),
“digital citizenship can be defined as the norms of behavior with regard to technology
use” (p. 13). That being said, Ribble and Bailey (2007) caution that “few social
guidelines have been developed for the use of digital technologies” and they reason that
“we can decide, as a society, that anarchy is the norm. Or we can decide that digital
organization led by concerned parents and individuals with experience in child advocacy,
public policy, education, media and entertainment. This organization recognizes the need
for digital literacy and citizenship. In their paper “Digital Literacy and Citizenship in the
This dynamic new world requires new comprehension and communication skills,
as well as new codes of conduct, to ensure that these powerful media and
technologies are used responsibly and ethically. Much of this interaction in this
digital world happens at a distance, which can diminish the rules of cause and
The Importance of Digital Citizenship 4
effect, action and consequence. Additionally, much of digital life takes place
under the cloak of anonymity, making it easier to participate in unethical and even
responsibility for their content as well as their actions when using the Internet,
The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) has also developed
standards for students. The fifth standard for students is “Digital Citizenship”: Students
understand human, cultural, and societal issues related to technology and practice legal
a. advocate and practice safe, legal, and responsible use of information and
technology.
In this digital era, these standards for students and teachers can only be achieved if a
structure that can teach students and teachers how to act with respect to technology is
implemented. Ribble and Bailey (2007) explain that “some stop-gap measures have been
created, such as acceptable use policies (AUPs), which are designed to help define the
rules of technology use in school” (p.9). However, AUPs should not be confused with
digital citizenship:
The problem is that few of these AUPs teach the use of digital technology. Most
often, AUPs simply tell the student what they can and cannot do with technology
The Importance of Digital Citizenship 5
at school. These rules do not teach students what is appropriate and why, and
instead simply define the uses that are restricted in the school setting. (p.9)
educators and the school community to help define appropriate technology use not only
in the physical world, but in a digital, virtual world as well. Ribble and Bailey (2007)
contend that:
This new citizenship is global in nature. American children will have to learn
provides us all with a starting point for understanding each other. (p.12)
encompasses the skills, access, and education needed for participation in the information
age; The ability to participate in society online. In order to do this, Ribble and Bailey
(2007) provide a framework for understanding the technology issues that are important to
ways. To understand how the elements interconnect, Ribble and Bailey (2007) propose
three categories “based on their immediacy to the typical school environment” (p. 36) to
2. affect the overall school environment and student behavior (digital security,
3. affect student life outside the school environment (digital health and wellness,
Ribble and Bailey (2007) caution that “technology leaders should be careful when
deciding which elements of digital citizenship to focus their attention on” (p. 36).
of Ribble and Bailey’s (2005) work on digital citizenship, they state: “Everyone has an
The Importance of Digital Citizenship 7
internal compass, but adults need to teach children how to find and use it” (p. 36). One
of the tools that they have developed is a digital citizenship compass that is used to guide
discussions with students about potential situations in the digital world. (Fig. 2) The
compass is one of many tools available to educators to teach students about digital
citizenship. That being said, the strength of this tool lies in fact that students recognize it
It is important for educators to have tools such as the digital compass at their
disposal to teach digital citizenship, as they themselves may not have the technical
knowledge and skills to do so. All members of the school community, regardless of
abilities, must “value the importance of a digital citizenship program and its connection
to current policies and future practices” (p. 41). It is crucial to develop a plan for digital
citizenship.
The Importance of Digital Citizenship 8
This brings us to the issue of digital divide. In the past, the role of teachers was to
deconstruct knowledge for students, in order to build the knowledge back up in a way
that students could understand and learn. “School was truly empowering. It exposed
kids for the first time to a wide variety of useful things they knew nothing about, in ways
that the students were unable to do on their own” (Prensky, 2008). However, times have
changed and our reality now is that educators have slid into the 21st century and into the
Prensky is credited with coining the terms digital natives and digital immigrants.
In Prensky’s (2001) words, the term digital native refers to today’s students. They are
native speakers of technology, fluent in the digital language of computers, video games,
and the Internet. Prensky refers to digital immigrants as those of us who were not born
into the digital world. Digital Immigrants have adopted many aspects of the technology,
but just like those who learn another language later in life, they retain an “accent”
In terms of education, this digital divide, so to speak, may cause a problem. Our
students, as digital natives, will continue to evolve and change so rapidly that teachers
won’t be able to catch up. Prensky (2006) states, “This phenomenon renders traditional
catch-up methods, such as in-service training, essentially useless” (p. 9). There is no
doubt that teachers must be well versed in the day-to-day use of technology in order to
The Importance of Digital Citizenship 9
meet the needs of their students who are growing up in the digital age. Prensky (2001)
states:
Today’s students – K-12 through college – represent the first generations to grow
up with this new technology. They have spent their entire lives surrounded by
and using computers, videogames, digital music players, video cams, cell phones,
and all the other toys and tools of the digital age. (p.2)
The learners of today demand real life experiences that are inline with something in their
lives that’s really engaging – something that they do and that they are good at, something
cases, the sharp division between the two is not as distinct as Prensky describes in the
majority of his articles. Prensky’s broad claim does not account for counter-examples of
this simplistic divide. Digital Immigrants may still have an “accent”, however, it is the
digital immigrants who are putting technology into the hands of the digital natives, if the
proper resources are available. In some cases, the division between digital natives and
immigrants is not due to personal beliefs, skills, teaching abilities or attitudes, but the
lack of access to the necessary digital technologies to effectively teach students in the
digital age. What has been interpreted as teachers not engaging students effectively may
be due to the fact that some school boards have such strict AUPs that teachers’ hands are
tied and it is difficult to move forward with their teaching in new and radical ways. As a
result, teaching responsible digital citizenship becomes very difficult. For example, how
can a teacher effectively teach appropriate use of a website such as Facebook, if access to
it is blocked on the school’s network? Although there are many factors in this debate, the
The Importance of Digital Citizenship 10
digital divide is not fully responsible for the fact that many teachers are teaching using
dated methodologies.
Teaching Strategies
Teaching and learning in the digital age is exciting not only for students, but for
teachers as well. Our goals as teachers have shifted and many teachers have the goal of
making learning relevant for their student’s lives in order to prepare them for the future in
positive, safe and appropriate ways. In order to develop digital citizenship in our
students, teachers must use effective strategies. Prensky (2008, p.45) outlines some
1. Give students the opportunity to use technology in school. Once we let students
take the lead on technology projects, teachers tend to see more engagement and
better results.
2. Find out how students want to be taught. Students like having goals they want to
reach, doing rather than listening, getting involved with the real world.
3. Connect students to the world. Today’s students know that if they post something
4. Understand where kids are going – that is, into the future – and help them get
there. Covering the material and preparing kids for the test is not preparing them
By using these four strategies, teachers will have a good start at incorporating technology
into the curriculum, which will help teachers to be more creative in their planning. Also,
of upmost importance, by using these strategies, teachers will be able to integrate digital
The Importance of Digital Citizenship 11
citizenship lessons into their practice which will best prepare students for the choices
Curriculum
In order to best prepare 21st century learners, the curriculum must be well
matched to the students’ reality. Prensky (2005) maintains, “We have to find how to
present our curricula in ways that engage our students – not just to create new “lesson
In Alberta, Career and Technology Studies Career and Technology Studies (CTS)
program of choice, CTS offers all students important learning opportunities to:
• develop skills they can be applied in their daily lives, now and in the future
• prepare for transition into adult roles in the family, community, workplace and/or
further education.
The course structure of CTS enables schools to design unique programs that meet the
needs of students and take advantage of community resources. Developed across levels
rather than grades, CTS has multiple entry points and provides secondary students with
This program is a very comprehensive program, although it stands alone from all
other core subjects and has only been developed for secondary students. In terms of
teaching digital citizenship, the technology curriculum should be infused across all grade
levels and subjects. At the elementary level in Alberta, technology is integrated into core
subjects, although it is not evaluated or given a grade. Because of this, many teachers do
not use technology in their practice as they are not accountable for it. If teachers are not
using technology in their practice they cannot possibly be teaching digital citizenship or
achieving the ISTE’s Educational Technology Standards for Teachers (2008). This is a
fundamental flaw in the Alberta Curriculum and many other curricula worldwide.
Conclusion
Students are becoming rich content developers through social networking sites and other
Web 2.0 tools. They are experiencing a rich, stimulating environment outside of the
classroom walls that is teaching them about relationships, communities, connectivity and
access. The online world is a great world for teaching and learning that must start with
21st century learners will be doing work that will call upon their artistic abilities,
their ability to synthesize information, to understand their context, and to work in teams.
Therefore, digital citizenship, the way students behave in the online world and how they
find the information they need, must be modeled appropriately by teachers so that
learners today develop this 21st century set of literacies. In order to do this effectively,
teachers must be granted access to the necessary tools, the curriculum must be embedded
The Importance of Digital Citizenship 13
across the grade levels, and teachers must be given the time to develop themselves
References
http://education.alberta.ca/teachers/program/ict/programs.aspx
Common Sense Media. (2009) Digital literacy and citizenship in the 21st century:
Microsoft. (2008) Digital citizenship and creative content, a teacher’s guide. Retrieved
Mossberger, K., Tolbert, C., & McNeal, R. (2008). Digital citizenship: The Internet,
National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers. Retrieved May 4, 2009, from:
http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/NETS/ForTeachers/2008Standards/
NETS_for_Teachers_2008.htm
Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants part 1. On the Horizon, 9(5), 1-6.
doi: 10.1108/10748120110424816
Prensky, M. (2007). How to teach with technology: Keeping both teachers and students
http://partners.becta.org.uk/page_documents/research/emerging_
technologies07_chapter4.pdf
Ribble, M., Bailey, G. & Ross, T. (2004a). Digital citizenship: Addressing appropriate
Ribble, M. & Bailey, G. (2005). Developing ethical direction. International Society for
Ribble, M. & Bailey, G. (2007). Digital citizenship in schools. International Society for
http://search.ebscohost.com