SUMMARY: TEACHING DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP

Teaching Digital Citizenship to Digital Natives

Joe Gupton
Western Kentucky University

SUMMARY: TEACHING DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP

SUMMARY: TEACHING DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP

Figure 1. Infographic.

SUMMARY: TEACHING DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP

Teaching Digital Citizenship to Digital Natives

We live in a world in which we are surrounded by technology. We have access to limitless
information through the Internet. We are teaching to digital natives, and we are tasked with equipping
them with skills to navigate the digital world safely and responsibly. For this project, the instructor set a
goal for students that they would increase their understanding of the concepts of digital citizenship and
Internet safety. My Student Growth Goal reads
During the session, students will improve their knowledge of what it means to be responsible
digital citizens. All students will improve their score on a digital citizenship quiz. Furthermore, 5
out of 6 students will answer at least 9 out of 10 questions correctly on the Digital Citizenship
Quiz.
The quiz that was used is an online quiz from the site
http://www.proprofs.com/quiz-school/
story.php? title=NTU3Mjg0. The quiz addressed topics such as viruses, spam, identity theft, giving out
information online, netiquette, cyber-bullying, and phishing.
The six students were from Brandenburg Primary School in Meade County. Meade County is a
school in a rural setting. All students were Caucasian. Two students were third grade girls, one student
was a second grade girl, and three students were second grade boys.
Following the pre-test, students were provided with instruction about digital citizenship. Then
students were allowed to explore a game about digital citizenship through the website
http://pbskids.org/webonauts/. Throughout the week, students followed this pattern of receiving
instruction at the beginning of the lesson and exploring and reinforcing the concepts through the web
game. The instructor presumed reinforcing the concepts through the game could be an effective way to
maintain engagement while reinforcing the concepts. Hill (2015) explores the implications of embedding
literacy and digital citizenship skills in instruction while using the game, Minecraft. The literature review
served as inspiration and a reminder that connecting with students on a personal level is important when
teaching anything, including Digital Citizenship.

SUMMARY: TEACHING DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP

The game also allowed the instructor to go around and individually check for understanding
through observation. If students understood, the instructor would make a small check. If students were
having difficulty, the instructor would make an x. Because of the small class size, usually if the
instructor observed that someone was missing something the instructor was able to immediately address it
and help him or her understand. Another form of informal formative assessment that was used during
discussion was thumbs up or thumbs down to allow students to communicate their level of understanding.
The instructor also used formative assessment when he presented an Internet safety scenario to the
students. He would tell what I did in the scenario and students would need to tell me what I did
wrong. These formative assessments were an embedded part of our class time and happened naturally
without disturbing the flow of the learning.
At the end of the week, students retook the Digital Citizenship quiz that they had taken for the
pre-test so that we could measure improvement. To close out our time together, students took a Student
Voice Survey through the website https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/R9BWN5F.
Results
As we progressed throughout the week, students were actively engaged in learning about Digital
Citizenship. Instruction was provided. Conversation was shared, also questions and ideas. The instructor
might present a scenario and students would provide responses. The instructor was very pleased with the
level of participation, particularly in the discussions. The instructor had expected that students would
enjoy exploring the game part of the lesson, but feared that during the instructional or discussion time he
may end up lecturing rather than sharing in discussion with the students. Happily, this was not the case.
Students were happy to talk. They would say things like, Oh yeah thats like when I do this at home.
They also asked good questions.
Preddy (2016) provides a good overview of what digital citizenship is and why it is important
that we teach it. She also provides a good list of the individual life skills associated with Digital
Citizenship. The willingness to have conversation and the clear level that students were engaged was a
clear indication that what was being taught was relevant to the students. Digital Citizenship and the

SUMMARY: TEACHING DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP

various life skills associated with it are a part of everyday life for these students. They truly are digital
natives.
The game on the website provided another level of engagement for the students as well. The first
day, the instructor had to spend time explaining the process of creating a username so that they could save
their progress for the next time. They enjoyed going through the game and customizing their characters.
Then they started diving into the content reinforcement through the medium of the game. Each day,
students were able to pick up where they had left off the day before.
Data Collected
Informal Formative Assessments
Thumbs up for understanding and What did I do wrong? These assessments did not produce physical
data, but provided quick checks of students understandings and to some degree provided indication of
student level of engagement in the lesson. This was of great value because it could help the instructor
individualize their instruction for students and make spontaneous changes if they were needed. This data
was qualitative and served as a quick check for the instructor.
Observational Data
While students were participating in the game, the instructor would observe how they understood. If they
understood well, the instructor would make a small check. If students were having difficulty, the
instructor would make an x. Because of the small class size, usually if it was observed by the instructor
that someone was missing something it could immediately be addressed and the student received help.
Pre-Test and Post Test Data
This data helps the instructor to determine whether or not they were successful student growth goal and
whether or not proficiency was met. The progress made from the quiz also served as an indication of the
effectiveness in helping students to retain the information. This was quantitative data resulting in a
percentage score. (See figure 2)

SUMMARY: TEACHING DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP

100
90
80
70
60
Pre-Test

50

Post-Test

40
30
20
10
0
Student 1 Student 2 Student 3 Student 4 Student 5 Student 6

Figure 2. Results of Pre- and Post-Test shown in Percentages.

Student Voice Survey Results: https://www.surveymonkey.com/results/SM-8G7M98YT/ (You must

copy and paste the link into the browser for the page to open. This link will not open by clicking the
hyperlink in the word document.)
The student voice survey provided valuable data can be reflected upon that would give the instructor an
idea of what students thought about the instruction. What things were good and what things could I
improve upon? The survey was qualitative. Students could respond to multiple-choice questions. The
instructor could then view the percentages of how students responded in a variety of way including by
question and by student.
Data Analysis
The observational data and the other informal formative assessments complemented each other
throughout the lesson. If the instructor observed thumbs up from everyone indicating they understood
following the discussion, the instructor could confirm this by observing their performance on the game. If

SUMMARY: TEACHING DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP

they had given thumbs up they understood, but then were struggling with the same concept, the
instructor would know that something was missed and I could help them.
The observational data complemented the results from the Pre and Post-Tests. There was
significant improvement in students scores. Students met the instructors growth goal while also
achieving a level of proficiency. Observational data showed that my students comprehended the concepts
and the resulting Post-Test confirmed this.
The Student Voice Survey complemented findings from my informal formative assessment and
observations. The instructor had an indication, based on observations and interactions with the students
that they were highly engaged. The instructor remained diligent (the small class size helped) in observing
to ensure that students understood. This showed in the results from the student voice surveys.
Reflection
I feel that my research helped to contribute to the success of my lesson. The triangulated data
shows students made significant improvements in their understanding of Digital Citizenship. The data
also confirmed that Digital Citizenship is an engaging and relevant topic for our digital natives. One area
of improvement indicated in the student voice survey was a question about students being able to choose.
It was my lowest scoring question, and I agree. It is good for students to have more control; I am still
growing in my ability and experience in giving students that control. This research and teaching
experience has also helped me to be more confident of the importance of teaching Digital Citizenship to
our digital native students.
References

Bernsmann, S., & Croll, J. (2013). Lowering the threshold to libraries with social media: The approach of
"Digital Literacy 2.0", a project funded in the EU Lifelong Learning Programme. Library Review,
62(1/2), 53-58.
Hill, V. (2015). Digital Citizenship Through Game Design in Minecraft. New Library World, 116(7/8),
369-382. doi:10.1108/NLW-09-2014-0112

SUMMARY: TEACHING DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP

Marcoux, E. (2014). BYOD. Teacher Librarian, 41(3), 65.
Miller, B. b. (2016). Can I Use This App or Website for My Class? Knowledge Quest, 44(4), 22-29.
PBS KIDS GO! (2010). Webonauts Internet Academy Retrieved from
http://pbskids.org/webonauts/
Preddy, L. (2016). The Critical Role of the School Librarian in Digital Citizenship Education. Knowledge
Quest, 44(4), 4-5.
Storlina. (n.d.). Digital Citizenship Quiz - 4th & 5th Grades. Retrieved from
http://www.proprofs.com/quiz-school/story.php?title=NTU3Mjg0