Promoting Digital Citizenship and The 3 C's In The Classroom

Video Transcription

Hi, everyone, and welcome to Promoting Digital Citizenship and the 3C's. My name is Gino Sangiuliano. And today, we'll be putting all the pieces of the 3C's framework and digital citizenship together and talk about how to promote these practices in our classrooms. So let's get started.

As educators, we realize we wear many hats. We're colleagues, mentors, friends, and advocates. Recently, as a graduate student, I took on a hat of being a student. The topic of living and working in a digital society often came up. I listened to what others had to say and also offered my own opinions. However, I noticed something very interesting when I did.

I found myself pausing to think about and preface what I was saying by identifying which hat I was wearing when I spoke. For example, I might say, as a teacher, I think it's a great idea that students are allowed to bring in their own devices to school in a fifth grade class. But as a parent, I may have serious reservations about it. This illustrates the complexity of the topic we have to consider when promoting digital citizenship.

Digital citizenship refers to the acceptable, appropriate, and responsible behavior in the use of technology. Let's begin by looking at the nine elements of digital citizenship. They include access, commerce, literacy, etiquette, law, rights, responsibilities, digital health, and digital security. These all fall under the category of digital citizenship, one large umbrella term which encompasses these nine key elements.

Next we'll take a look at the 3C's framework. As you'll see, there are three major elements that comprise the three C's framework. They are cyber-safety, cyber-security, and cyber-ethics. These three are not independent. They do overlap.

This model has been adopted by numerous state departments of education and also endorsed by leading internet safety curriculum providers across the country. In order to promote the tenets of both the 3C's framework and digital citizenship, teachers need to seamlessly combine the two through their regular routines and practices as well as the existing curriculum that they're using. When students are exposed to digital behaviors through authentic learning tasks, they will have a real-life context and much longer-lasting effects.

So what is the role of the teacher in promoting these behaviors? Well, just like in other content area you're covering, model and teach. For example, teachers can share with their students real-life examples of digital etiquette that they practice through emails and class posts on social media. Teachers also need to adhere to the acceptable use policies set forth by their school and their districts. And in this case, students, particularly older ones, are very aware of when those lines are being crossed. Finally, teachers should always have security measures in place that protect their devices and share them with their students.

There are also topics that benefit from being taught explicitly. For example, appropriate online behavior is one. It is imperative that students learn how their online activity impacts one's reputation and even carry with it serious repercussions. Matters of safety should also be directly taught. Students need to know that any information that is put online is public. Finally, teaching the dangers about sharing personal information cannot be overlooked or understated.

Here are some hints will help teachers to promote positive digital citizenship and the 3C's framework in their classroom. Firstly, teachers will want to stay current in terms of issues and regulations that have to do with digital media. And they'll want to share this information with students.

Secondly, just like you would any other behavior, you want to encourage wise choices. As stated earlier, integrating practices are always more effective. And finally, teachers should be comfortable users of technology themselves. If teachers are taking advantage of school websites and resources, they have a much better opportunity to promote positive digital practices with their students.

Let's go ahead and summarize today's lesson. We began by reviewing the nine elements of digital citizenship. Next, we looked at the three components of the 3C's framework. They are cyber-security, cyber-safety, and cyber-ethics. Then we discussed the importance of combining the two and what the role of the teacher is in doing that, and the importance of modeling behaviors, but also teaching behaviors explicitly. And finally, we offered some helpful hints to teachers on how to do that.

And now today's food for thought. Reflect on a lesson you recently taught and consider how you could have added a digital component to it that would have promoted digital citizenship. Thanks for watching, and we'll see you next time.

To dive a little deeper and learn how to apply this information, be sure to check out the Additional Resources section associated with this video. This is where you'll find links targeted towards helping you discover more ways to apply this course material. Thanks again for watching. Have a great day.