Source: Digital Access Key Image; Morgue File; http://mrg.bz/xJqkIW;
Hello, ladies and gentlemen. Today, we are going to kind of combine everything we have learned up to this point and really focus in on helping teach students how to create that positive digital footprint. What are those students' roles and responsibilities when creating that persona online?
For today's quote, I've chosen a proverb which I really like, which is that "Footprints are not made by sitting down." I think this is an excellent way of reminding students that they are actively creating that footprint every single day they interact online.
By the time you are done with today's lesson, you should be able to first understand what a digital footprint is, explain how to discuss digital footprints with students, and identify tips for really creating that positive digital footprint.
So first, let's look at what is a digital footprint. Well, a digital footprint is really a trace or record of everything that you've done online that can be actively or passively collected. Let's take a look at those two terms-- actively and passively collected. Active collection refers to things like posts that are made online to various social networks like Facebook or Twitter, things that you are purposefully putting out there into the world.
Passive collection is more like those cookies or the traces of your web browser history, information that's stored on that computer and within the network but isn't necessarily something that you are actively putting there.
So that digital footprint-- it's important to note-- is not just what you are purposefully putting out there. But all the information about where you've gone, what you've looked at, and everything else impacts your digital footprint.
So how can you discuss these digital footprints with students? I think one of the best ways is using a learning activity that's really just questions, focusing on some really pointed questions that you can ask students and get them thinking about the way in which they might engage with their digital footprint.
For example, you could ask, if we were to search for your online profiles, what would we find? What kind of information have you been putting out there on the various social networks? What kind of information is out there about you?
What kinds of online activities leave digital footprints? I think it's often very surprising for students to find out all of the different things that they do online and sort of the back channel, passive information that's collected from that. Even taking a picture when logged in to either a data plan that you have with your phone company or a Wi-Fi network leaves a digital path and digital footprint passively. And I think this is a big surprise for students.
Asking them, is there any information about you online that you wouldn't want your teacher or parents to know? This seems like the kind of question that students would roll their eyes at. And quite possibly they will.
But rolling their eyes or not, it's important for them to know that since no information ever goes away, do they really want that on there now? Do they still want that on there in five years? Are they going to want to be able to find that information in 10 or 15 years down the road?
Finally, ask, what pops up when you Google yourself? Most adults are pretty familiar with the process of googling their name and seeing what comes up. If you have a fairly common name, sometimes it can be hard to find the actual you version of yourself.
But for a lot of students, they've never actually tried to Google their own name and see what kind of information comes up not just on that first page but the second or third or fourth or fifth in. And I think students are often surprised how much of their interactions get put out there.
Next, let's take a look at some tips that you can offer for really creating that positive digital footprint. Here are some tips that you, as a teacher, can give your student. First, never post anything you'll regret later. It is much easier to take back a word spoken than a word written. And I think that this is something that we should constantly be telling our students. They might not do it. They might not pick up on it. But if they are remembering it, hopefully they think twice when it really counts.
Be careful when posting pictures. Students, I think, sometimes believe that if I post a picture, only my friends can see it. And that is a big mistake. Students need to know that they can never be totally sure about who else is seeing those pictures. In fact, just the other day, I have a very specific policy of not friending any of my current students, meaning anyone still in high school, on Facebook.
And I was told by another student that she had been, quote, "creeping" on my wedding photos. And this came as a surprise to me because I have a fairly particular set of policy regimes. I thought I knew what was in place.
And yet, I found out she was able to go in through a student who had graduated, find my information, and then look at my photos that way. Now, thankfully, I followed the other tips and not posted anything I would regret. But it's very eye opening to think how many different channels there are for people to look at that information.
Making sure that they're familiar with those privacy settings-- do they know what all of the possibilities are for a privacy setting? And have they thought carefully about what they want their privacy setting to be? This is especially important when it comes to social networking sites. You want to make sure that your students are familiar with the privacy settings of those social networking sites so that they know and can control who sees what content they're posting.
Don't post personal data. This is really important to hammer home to your students. Things such as addresses, phone numbers, banking information, all of that can be found. Even if it's being sent in a private message, there's a possibility that that can be gained by some unauthorized access to the account.
If something like that needs to be shared online, best to do it first and foremost in a private message, but even better than that would be through email or just saying, hey, I'm going to private message you my number, something that's maybe a little less catastrophic if that gets out. And then I'll share with you that banking information that you need.
I've even had to do this with my husband before where I need his social security to fill out paperwork. And my first thought is, well, I'll just send a text and ask him to write it back. And then I think, no, no, no, better to call. Better to wait till I see him in person to get that information.
The other really important part that you want to make sure that you hit home when it comes to the elements of what you post online is that be sure that you are seeing that even when an account is deleted, there is not always the successful deletion of archived data.
You can't always delete that. So it's really important to encourage students to think on the front end what am I putting up. Because if I can't fully ensure that all of this is deleted, am I going to be OK with this information living out there in the digital world?
Reminding students don't engage in any online bullying. Now, it's really important to break down what we mean by engaging here. Most students will say, yeah, of course, I shouldn't be an online bully. And that's one thing. But I would take it one step further and say, do not become any part of the problem-- commenting on it, being associated with it, retweeting it, anything like that that could associate you with it.
If they want to become the solution, it's not always best to write, hey, you guys, quit doing this online, but rather to go to those appropriate adults so that there's no confusion about what role they played in that situation.
Finally, it's really important that your students remember that all online information is almost impossible to completely remove, at least in our country. And therefore, it's archived, making it retrievable at any moment. If students remember that, I think they will think a little bit harder about what information they put out there.
Now that we've come to the end of today's lesson, you should be able to understand what a digital footprint is, explain how you should be discussing that digital footprints with your students, and finally, what are some of the specific tips that you're going to give your students for creating that positive digital footprint.
Now I would like to take just a moment for reflection. Now that you've learned about the ways to help your students create a positive digital footprint, what would be the first step you might take to begin implementing these tips and tools in your classroom? Feel free to pause the video for a moment to think about that question.
Now it's your turn to apply what you've learned in this video. The additional resources section will be super helpful. This section is designed to help you discover useful ways to apply what you've learned here. Each link also includes a brief description so that you can easily target the resources that you want. That's all we have for right now. But I hope you have a wonderful rest of your day.
(00:00-00:39) Intro
(00:40-00:55) Objectives
(00:56-01:59) What is a Digital Footprint?
(02:00-04:11) Discussing Digital Footprints with Students
(04:12-08:52) Tips for Creating a Positive Digital Footprint
(08:53-09:11) Review
(09:12-09:56) Reflection
Your Digital Footprint
Prepared by the Internet Society, this website helps students understand their digital footprint and how to create a positive digital footprint. The site is in student friendly language and includes videos and infographics that are easy for students to follow and understand as they learn the significance of their digital footprint.https://www.internetsociety.or...
The Power of A Digital Footprint For Students
This article from the ACSD journal discusses how in the Web 2.0 world, self-directed learners must be adept at building and sustaining networks.http://www.ascd.org/publicatio...