I was fortunate enough to have been born before the world of social media, therefore my birth announcement was not shared for the world to see! With that being said, I am a mother of three little ones, and the thought of what I share on the internet is always in the back of my mind. Your digital footprint refers to your traceable history of all your digital actions, activities and communication made on the internet.
https://www.cyber.gc.ca/en/guidance/digital-footprint-itsap00133
As an educator, teaching the importance of digital citizenship in this modern world should be taught through engaging students in critical thinking and reflective skills. Kids are choosing to access the internet at young ages, so enforcing good practices at an early stage is vital. As an educator, I intend to bring up the topic of lasting impressions and permanence when it comes to the online world. Unlike footprints in the sand, your actions on the internet do not wash away, everything you share is there forever in some capacity and it is critical for students to understand this concept. You can work with this idea by discussing how to appropriately give out personal information, comments and photos online. Solidifying to students that this personal information will be permanent and attribute to the success of one’s social and professional profile in the future. Having these discussions as a class helps bring awareness to a topic that can have lasting consequences.
Throughout my observational practicum, I have had the opportunity to sit in on a presentation given by our local RCMP regarding online bullying. This was given to a grade 3/4 class and many of the students were already familiar with a lot of the terminology and content that can be harmful online. This goes to show that kids at very young ages are dealing with cyberbullying and online presence. By having the these hard conversations and bringing in outside professionals students will hopefully feel more comfortable and confident in dealing with situations like this.
I came across a classroom recently that displayed a poster with the acronym THINK in regards to various forms of social media that kids are on today. This word was used to remind kids of the questions they should ask themselves before posting or commenting on social media. I think this is a great visual reminder for the classroom.
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