Week 2 Reflection: 

 

     The focus this week was about the impact that technology has on our society.  There are several areas that should be considered besides the convenience that technology brings into our daily lives. We should be aware of the dangers and problems associated with technology.  Embedding digital citizenship within existing curriculum starting in elementary school will help students to realize that it as something that is built into the curriculum and not just added on at the end.  One important component of digital citizenship is raising student’s awareness of what types of information they are leaving in their digital wake. It is our responsibility as educators to communicate the consequences of an unhealthy digital identity.  Another important consideration is equity and access for all. Schools must make sure that all students have the tools and access they need to be successful. We are living in a world filled with new possibilities, but with those possibilities also comes responsibilities and much of the education about those responsibilities must come from the school system.  

    Last week we explored Mike Ribble’s book Digital Citizenship in Schools which explains that there are 9 elements of digital citizenship.  Although we continued to refer to the elements of digital citizenship, this week was dedicated to the things we should think about as we use technology and how we can pass those lessons on to students.  A person’s digital footprint is the trail of data they create when using the internet. This trail, for the most part, is permanent and can impact their future in ways they have probably not thought about.  Children need to understand that even if they delete a post or image, it may still remain and that hurtful words may continue to do damage long after a post is removed (Shapiro, 2014).

    It is important to know exactly what your digital footprint says about you. This week one of our assignments was to search ourselves and evaluate what types of information the search revealed.  It is important to know and manage what is associated with your own name. I was fine, but what I realized is that there could have been something negative about me that I had no control over. We should all be just as vigilant about keeping up with our digital footprint as we are our finances because both could bankrupt us.     

    We also explored the 2015 FCC net neutrality decision. This decision ensured that the internet would remain free and open and that service providers could not filter, block or throttle internet service (Reardon, 2015). This decision was important to schools and small businesses that can’t afford to pay the possible fees if service providers were allowed to charge for certain levels of access.

    I think the overarching lesson learned in the second week of class is that we can’t assume or expect anyone else to keep us safe online. We must be informed and educate ourselves about the hazards that come with being online.  We must also make certain that we are teaching students how to keep themselves safe and be responsible, contributing members of the digital world.

 

Reflection references:

 

Reardon, M. (2015). What you need to know about the FCC's 2015 net neutrality regulation. Retrieved from

     https://www.cnet.com/news/13-things-you-need-to-know-about-the-fccs-net-neutrality-regulation/

 

Shapiro, D. (2014). The Case for Teaching Digital Citizenship. Retrieved from  

     http://www.jewishpress.com/indepth/opinions/the-case-for-teaching-digital-citizenship/2014/01/23/