As a district, EGUSD has long recognized the importance of teaching and modeling positive digital citizenship. Other districts have even reached out to us for guidance in implementing a K-12 program and working towards Common Sense District certification, which EGUSD has earned for another year.
“We applaud the faculty and staff of the Elk Grove Unified School District for embracing digital citizenship as an important part of their students’ education. The Elk Grove Unified School District deserves high praise for giving its students the foundational skills they need to compete and succeed in the 21st-century workplace and participate ethically in society at large.” – Liz Kline, VP, Education Programs, Common Sense Education.
Three main steps that have helped us to achieve our Digital Citizenship Initiative goals include:
Step 1: Require every school site to designate a Digital Citizenship Site Coordinator.
Step 2: Require every site, at the beginning of the school year, to submit a Digital Citizenship Implementation Plan (via a Google Form) stating how the site plans to teach digital citizenship (i.e., identifying lessons per grade level, determining when and where each will be taught: within the core curriculum, during Advocacy, through various school events, parent outreach nights, etc.).
Step 3: Require every principal, at the end of the school year, to sign and submit to the district coordinator(s) a Digital Citizenship Verification Form stating that digital citizenship has been taught at his/her school .
We truly appreciate and want to acknowledge the efforts of our Site Coordinators (Step 1) in building impactiful digital citizenship programs for their schools, and in facilitating Steps 2 and 3.
With so many of our sites tapping into Common Sense lessons and resources, we’re pleased to announce a significant update for the 2018-2019 school year to their curriculum, built on new research with Harvard’s Project Z. The curriculum materials are now available as Google Docs, including lesson quizzes in Google Forms. Besides being able to download, edit, and add lesson materials using Google Drive, teachers can also share student videos and interactives to Google Classroom. The updated curriculum is being released in phases over the course of the school year:
- August 15: Grades 3–5 lessons are available now!
- January: Grades 6–8 lessons launch.
- Fall 2019: Grades K–2 and 9–12 lessons launch.
To learn more about the updates, visit CSM’s website. We’ve also posted the CSM lesson scope and sequence on our Digital Citizenship Curriculum Site. Note: Access to the Digital Citizenship Curriculum Google Site is limited to EGUSD staff only. You must use your district Google account to login.
Across the district, EGUSD students are putting their #DigCit skills into action to make a difference at their schools. It’s exciting to find a Facebook post or a Tweet showcasing school-based examples, such as KAMS students kicking off the new school year with their “3Be’s focus.”
How are students flexing their digital citizenship muscles at your school? We would love to showcase their stories! Please leave a comment if you have examples to share.
