What Is Digital Citizenship?
The digital landscape is expanding at lightning speed and bringing with it amazing opportunities and complex challenges for everyone. Just as we practice and teach students how to be responsible citizens in the physical world, it is also important to guide them through the online world so they will become responsible Digital Citizens.
Today’s students are members of Generation Z, born in the mid-1990’s thru 2009. Did you know…
- Generation Z was born into a world overrun with technology. What was taken as amazing and inspiring inventions, are now taken as a given for teens.
- Gen Z’ers were born social. In fact, nearly 92% of Gen Z has a digital footprint.
- A full 40% of Gen Z are self-identified digital device addicts.
Read more on the 8 Key Differences Between Gen Z and Millennials.
PVSchools began a district initiative in 2014 to provide awareness, resources, and education about digital citizenship to students, parents, administrators, and employees. Please visit the PVSchools Digital Citizen web site “Be the One” to learn more.
How the Digital Citizenship Program at PVSchools Works
We all have a digital fingerprint, a profile of us and our behavior in electronic environments. Becoming aware of how each of us builds this profile enables us to make informed and critical choices. The aim of the Digital Citizenship program is to raise awareness by parents, students and teachers of online responsibilities, how to learn and have fun online safely, and of the consequences that can occur when online responsibilities are not fully understood.
It works by providing students in-class tuition on subjects as varied as internet safety, cyberbullying, digital footprints and reputation, through to copyright issues, digital law and plagiarism.
In addition, there is an array of materials for parents so that they are not only conversive on the issues, but can discuss digital citizenship with their children in the home.
How Do Students Learn About Digital Citizenship?
The in-class activities are STEM-based virtual simulations of real-life scenarios. Activities come in the form of games, apps, quizzes videos and more and are designed to be a fun, engaging, yet challenging learning experience.
For more information on the program, visit the PVSchools Digital Citizenship website.