Welcome to learning in today’s day and age! For many students and parents, learning now includes access to the Internet. In order to meet that demand, many schools across the nation are allowing students to bring their own devices to school. The Cherokee County School District has a Bring Your Learning Device (BYLD) plan in place and Cherokee Christian School has a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) plan in place. Though the names may differ, there are many similarities. One thing is for sure: no matter where your child goes to school, or where you go to work, it is important to be familiar with digital citizenship and to model good digital citizenship for children and young adults.
If you are not familiar with digital citizenship, there are nine elements involved. These include digital access, digital commerce, digital communication, digital literacy, digital etiquette, digital law, digital rights and responsibilities, digital health and wellness, and digital security. In an effort to partner with parents that may be watching their children experience school in a whole new way, with device in hand, we wanted to highlight a few of these elements.
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Digital Access
There are places where digital access is limited. There are places where it’s abundant. The disparity is most noticeable between rich and poor countries. However, the goal of digitally literate individuals is to extend access across the globe. Access is the first step toward being a true digital citizen. When schools and communities offer Wi-Fi access, and promote to use of school and student owned devices, they are promoting access.
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Digital Commerce
This is basically the buying, selling, and trading of goods electronically. Legal and legitimate sales/purchases are expanding; and now most people shop on the internet regularly. However there are also a variety of illegal activities taking place online. Uneducated parties must be made aware if only so they can watch out. Locally, the Woodstock Transaction Safe Place Initiative has attempted to help promote safe Craigslist exchanges.
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Digital Communication
This is the exchange of information electronically. From e-mail to smart phones and texting applications, the majority of individuals are communicating digitally. With this ease of communication comes mass messaging. One recent study pointed out that female college students spend up to 10 hours a day on their phones. It is important to think about what messages are being sent and to whom they are being sent. Communication is important, but no one wants words or images to come back and haunt them. Please make sure you speak with your children about the fact that digital communication does not go away easily.
Tune in next week as we address digital literacy, digital etiquette, and digital law for parents and students. In the meantime, feel free to check out Common Sense Media to find out more about some of the communications apps students are using these days such as Snapchat, Tumblr, Vine, and Instagram.