Salon #6 Passport to Digital Citizenship:

The key question of how great the gap is between those who grew up with technology (digital natives) and the idea of teaching this properly. Mike (Ribble) explores this idea in his article “passport to Digital Citizenship”. He focuses on what is appropriate behavior in his “nine elements of digital citizenship” such as “digital etiquette” and “digital communication”. These are issues faced by people using technology with their students. This year, I began blogging with my students, and I was faced many of these issues. My students were used to a certain mode of communication that is often not appropriate to an educational setting. The nine elements are supposed to prepare them to help tackle this task of facing this new digital world. This world is changing around us, and we need to evolve to face new challenges in using technology. While teaching proper ways to use technology can often be pushed off as a parent’s job that is not always the case. Many parents are simply in the dark in terms of the technology. Teachers need to step up, help bridge this gap, and teach the proper way to use technology when a teaching moment fits into a lesson being taught. If this is started at a young age, it will become second nature for new digital citizens.
I have some issues with the article in general. I cannot help but wonder if I am a full participant. What does this constitute? Many of my students are immersed in the digital world far beyond what one would have imagined just a few years ago. Is it good? Many of my students simply forgo the outdoors to spend time on the computer. They have a hard time putting down their phones and have to be constantly told not to send text messages in class. While it is great to stay in touch and in many cases technology does foster greater education, it also impairs many aspects of people’s lives. Instead of meeting face to face we communicate using social networking, instead of speaking; we text, instead of going outside in some cases, people are glued to their technology. I think this can have more than simply a physical impact on people. It makes them rely on technology and become disconnected from the “real world”.
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