Communicating on the internet can be a beneficial, quick, and easy way to reach someone without having to move away from your computer desk. Internet communication can also be violent, unsafe, and falsely provide information. Growing up in the 1990’s and 2000’s technology was blasting off like a rocket, whether the world was ready for it or not. As a future educator, I believe that using the internet safely (talking about cyber bullying) and rules to follow when making a digital footprint are a top priority when developing digital citizenship classrooms for the future. I use the internet daily to communicate with peers about school work, professors about grades, and family members about life. The tools that I use the most when using the internet are my cell-phone and laptop. Growing up I remember my experiences with the internet to be mostly positive, until cyber bullying became a “thing” and I would witness it on the chat room called MySpace. My sixth grade teacher would not allow the class to use social media sites and neither would the computers (as they were considered restricted sites). As stated by Hicks (2015) “Cyber bullying has hurt many people and even caused many children to take their own lives. Students need to understand that their actions, even those taken online and behind multiple computer screens, can and do have enormous consequences” I believe that internet safety should be a top priority because of the risk in dealing with online predators and cyber bullying. As a teacher I will explain to my students why they need to respect others online as the way they would like to be respected and be careful of what they post about themselves. Another important experience I had as a student growing up with technology had to do with introducing a cyber footprint and what it entails in the future for everyone. My previous teachers explained it as once you say something you can’t take it back or once you put something on MySpace you can’t take it back, it will always be there. In the article What's in Your Digital Citizenship Survival Kit (2015), the author explains an example to use for the students: “Showing students a tube of toothpaste can be a metaphor for the information that they are sharing about themselves online—once it’s out, it’s almost impossible to get back in the tube”. The example made me question the way that I was taught about a digital footprint, it wasn’t stressed enough in the classroom. From the metaphor, I understood that whatever I put on the internet is out there, I can delete it at anytime, but I will never be looked at the same because my history can be found. This is a part of technology that can be negative for students who post inappropriate things to the internet leaving themselves a bad digital footprint. Recently, I have had college professors talk about digital footprints and how as a future educator I need to pay attention to what I post because everything is public. I believe that students should be taught about digital footprints right away when learning to have proper digital citizenship. What's in Your Digital Citizenship Survival Kit has confirmed my belief that establishing rules to follow when using the internet will ensure for a safe and positive digital footprint for students. Works Cited Hicks, K. (2015, July 9). Teacher’s Guide to Digital Citizenship. Retrieved September 13, 2016, from http://www.edudemic.com/teachers-guide-digital-citizenship/ What's in Your Digital Citizenship Survival Kit? - edWeb. (2015, June 02). Retrieved September 13, 2016, from http://home.edweb.net/whats-in-your-digital-citizenship-survival-kit/
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AuthorHere are a few reflections about how I plan to integrate technology into the classroom effectively. . Archives
November 2016
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