We’ve marked our calendars for 5:00 pm (PST), February 6, to join Illinois #FutureReady librarian and author Kristen Mattson for the #michED Tweet chat on digital citizenship.
Tweet chats are public conversations, via Twitter, connected by a unique hashtag (#). No matter where you are teaching, digital citizenship conversations have much in common. In fact, many of our best #digcit resources have come from fellow educators outside our district. Likewise, lessons and resources we’ve created have been shared nationally and even globally.
If you haven’t participated in a Tweet chat before, we can promise you it’s a fast-moving hour. For that reason, we’re drafting our responses to Kristen’s seven questions (see graphic below) in advance so we can fully focus on the chat.
Each of the seven chat questions invites discussion at a global, national, district or school site level, starting with Q1. The challenge is to limit your answers to 280 characters (the maximum number of characters allowed by Twitter).
Q1: To help develop a shared understanding of ‘digital citizenship’ as a concept, please complete this sentence:
I want my students to be digital citizens who can/are ____________.
A1: We want our students to be digital citizens who are ready and willing to confront hate speech & other acts of intolerance by crossing the line from bystander to upstander, changing school culture and climate where/when needed. #michED
Q2: Who “owns” digital citizenship lessons in your school or district? When/where are students receiving these lessons?
A2: We are starting to see a shift in our district from #DigCit being taught as stand alone lessons during advisory period or computer lab time to a more integrated approach. We are also reaching out to see if/how other districts hold students accountable for #digcit. #michED
Q3: A lot of digital citizenship curriculum focuses on personal behaviors over skill development. What are some of the skills digital citizens need to be successful in global communities? How are you helping students gain those skills?
A3: Using technology to take student voices beyond the classroom and zip code is exciting. Today through blogging, videoconferencing, VoiceThreading, etc., students can effectively read, write and communicate with authentic audiences on topics they care about. #michED
Q4: Digital citizens should have opportunities to explore digital ethics. For example, “Should the government be able to access data collected by private companies?” What areas of digital ethics do you think students should explore?
A4: Although protecting online privacy is one of four main themes for our district #digcit program, this year we’re putting a focus on protecting student data privacy. The sample question is a great one to spark classroom conversations and drive interest-based research. #michED
Q5: A hot topic in digital citizenship right now is balance. How do you balance time online and off? What does “balance” mean to you? How might you help students reflect on their digital practices and achieve a healthy balance?
A5: We’re trying to find that balance ourselves. If we were in the classroom, we might share a “screen time diet” plan, starting with cutting back on the number of times we check our phones. We also use iOS/Android screen time weekly stats. #michED
Q6: Reflect on your own knowledge and abilities as a teacher of digital citizens. What is one way you can grow this year? How might you go about improving your content knowledge or practice?
A6: In 2018, #MediaLiteracy for students was a top priority. In 2019, #MediaLiteracy/#DigCit for adults is a priority. We could all benefit from a #MediaLit skill set. Would love to hear what others are doing on this topic. #michED
Q7. What are some of your favorite resources for teaching digital citizens? Hit us up with links to activities, blog posts, books and more.
A7: We are proud to be a Common Sense district, which puts Common Sense at the top of our list. We love the range of relevant resources for parents, students and teachers, covering all areas of #DigCit. #michED
A7: For the latest research on cyberbullying, we appreciate Sameer Hinduja and Justin Patchin continually updating the Cyberbullying Research Center website. #michED
A7: For tips on protecting student data privacy, we like the Connect Safely’s Parent Guide and Common Sense’s Tips for Teachers short video. #michED
We’re looking forward to joining and learning from Wednesday’s #michED chat. We invite our EGUSD Digital Citizenship Coordinators to join us. For those of you who participated in our January Saturday Seminar workshop: Twitter, the Best PD on the Planet, this is a great opportunity for putting your new Twitter skills into practice.
If you cannot join the live chat, you can follow up on the conversation anytime by searching #michED on Twitter.
Hope to see you Wednesday.
