Week 2: Digital Identity

Welcome to week two below Erin and I have a few thoughts for you: 

Why does digital citizenship matter so much?

For me Susan, it matters because students matter and really when it comes down to it my family matters. I want to be a good role model for them. I want to leave a positive legacy one they can be proud of. Do I make mistakes? Of course I do, but I want to make a difference for my students and my own children and the only way to really understand what being a good digital citizen meant was to dive in and learn online and so it began in #ETMOOC . A little over two years ago I did not blog, vlog, tweet or know what a google hangout was and now I get the privilege to be a co-conspirator in an Open Connected Learning MOOC, #oclmooc. It will be an amazing experience for us and all of you in the coming month and maybe even years ahead.

Hi everyone, Erin here. Like Susan I have been developing my openness over the last few years. One of the things that really stood out for me last spring, when I participated in #DCMOOC, was the concept that digital citizenship, although it can sound intimidating, is really not a new concept. We can think about it as becoming a responsible citizen. Citizenship is something that we should strive to DO in all our daily environments.

There are nine components of Digital Citizenship that you could think about while creating your resources this week.

Digital access: full electronic participation in society.

Digital commerce: electronic buying and selling of goods.

Digital communication: electronic exchange of information.

Digital literacy: process of teaching and learning about technology and the use of technology.

Digital etiquette: electronic standards of conduct or procedure.

Digital law: electronic responsibility for actions and deeds.

Digital rights and responsibilities: those freedoms extended to everyone in a digital world.

Digital health and wellness: physical and psychological well-being in a digital technology world.

Digital security (self-protection): electronic precautions to guarantee safety.

In week two we hope you step out of your comfort zone as we have several ideas for you to try. Remember you can do what you like and leave the rest. You have the ability to make a positive impact online by what you say and do.

Wednesday October 1st: Here are some recommended activities:

  1. Take a look at this video by Shots of Awe and our hope is that you will experience some awe this week in #oclmooc .

2. Watch this video by Dr. Barb Brown on Digital Networking:

3. Click here to check on the It’s #SoMe activity for Digital Citizenship. You can add your videos or artifacts to the padlet Barb Brown’s #SoMe wall click here.

4. You may want to join Voxer to create an online book club discussion on Dana Boyd’s e-book called It’s Complicated. You can download a pdf copy of the book here and you may want to discuss chapter one. Or you could just connect with other #oclmooc ‘ers on Voxer to share how you feel about this MOOC.

5. You may want to create a video ( for those of you who are more experienced) on Digital Identity / Digital Citizenship. Maybe you could collaborate with another #oclmooc ‘er and create a video by collaborating and sharing on a Google doc.

Thursday October 2nd we hope you’ll join us in Blackboard Collaborate from 7-8pm mountain time to hear two amazing speakers. If you need a reminder of how to connect to blackboard collaborate click here.

  1. Matthew Johnson from Media Smarts will present first.
  2. Paige Woodard a university student who is a Digital Citizenship advocate will present second. Paige blogs at .

Then you will have an opportunity to ask them both questions. Click here to join the Blackboard Collaborate session between 7-8pm mountain time on Thursday October 2nd.

Need a Digital Citizenship break? Click here.

Were you able to stay focused? It is important for all of us to take time to breathe when involved in a MOOC.

Friday October 3rd is another fun day for learning and creating, but really you can do these activities anytime throughout the week.

Recommended activities:

You can go to Haiku Deck’s website by clicking here.

  • Use smore to share your ideas about digital citizenship. You can see a few examples below. We hope you have fun doing your own:

Example 1

Example 2

  • Create an About Me page or think about updating your existing page. You can sign in to their page to see how.

Saturday October 4th You can work on any of the above activities and post to your blog, share on twitter using the #oclmooc hashtag or in the Google+ Community. If you need help with twitter or blogging click here.

Sunday October 5th we will be having a Google Hangout where we will answer any questions you have and discuss digital citizenship. If you would like to be invited to the Google hangout please send a tweet to @sspellmancann or @ehordyskiluong to let them know and they can invite you in Google+. You need a G+ account to join in the conversation. If you’re not very familiar with Google Hangouts, you might find this information useful.

Monday October 6th Continue working on any creative ideas so that you get a better understanding of digital citizenship. Here is one more fun app that you could use. It’s called tellagami.

Tuesday October 7th at 7pm mountain time we will be hosting a twitter chat using the #oclmooc hashtag. For those of you who feel you can and want to use tweet deck you might find this video helpful.

As educators we wanted to understand as much as we could about digital citizenship, even if you are not an educator Digital Citizenship is vital to being online, so here are a few places to start:

Thoughts: We know most students and adults are already online. What we want you to know:

  • Being online can make a positive difference in your life.
  • Students and adults throughout the world are doing great things online.
  • Act on and off-line as if the world is watching because they are.
  • Learn all you can about being a good digital citizen.
  • Google “digital citizenship”.
  • Be aware of your digital identity Google yourself.
  • Act with integrity on and off-line.
  • Research creative commons and be able to explain it to someone.
  • You can build a positive reputation on-line.
  • You can be a positive creator.
  • YOU create your reputation.

Digital Citizenship has a place in every school and we need to focus on the positive aspects of the internet as well as the things that concern us. We want you to ask yourself:

  • What are the creative opportunities on the web?
  • What are the ethical dilemmas?
  • What are the rewards and the risks of being on-line?
  • How can you make your learning visible?
  • What is your role in creating the kind of internet use you want?
  • How will you teach others about public and private spaces?
  • How do you help others understand social media use?
  • How can YOU model positive digital citizenship?

You may wish to answer some of these questions in a post on your blog or in the G+ community.

Advice for teachers:

It is important to find great examples on the internet of students and others doing things to not only improve their own opportunities, but to improve the lives of those in their school, communities, and around the world. We would like to encourage you and students to look for these great examples as well. We’d like to see schools focus on those students who make a difference online by providing them with a scholarship that recognizes all the good they do online. Anyone interested? Here is a great example of a junior high student making a difference online. This is used with permission by all concerned. There are lessons here for all of us:

Just in case you want more of a choice for an activity this week this last one will make YOU feel better especially if you decide to take action.

Kadri Auvaart a School Counsellor from Australia tried this out with her staff. Click here to find out more. Watch and then act!

Go learn and make a difference online.

6 thoughts on “Week 2: Digital Identity”

  3. Really like the format, the different resources presented this week. After working closely with a cohort of teachers and EdTech peeps last year in Alberta, our group combined our ideas, Mike Ribbles work and Alberta Ed research into two benchmarks. Check out the grade level resources wiki that I updat regularly AND the benchmarks at http://digicitizenship.wikispaces.com.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  4. This is possibly the best MOOC “week” post I have ever come across, and I have done tonnes of MOOCs! It’s got friendly tone, it’s got loads of activities and resources (and even introducing new tools like Smore and Voxer) but somehow manages not to be overwhelming, and I don’t want to leave! I just want to immerse myself in this until I follow every link! I am also psyched ur doing a book club on Danah Boyd’s book! Been meaning to read it, now will check out the first ch and see how that book club is going. Really impressed, such a great “model” for other connected courses 🙂 and that’s valuable in itself!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

Leave a comment