As I was watching the video, "A 30 Year History of the Future" by Nicholas Negroponte, I was reflecting about the fact that I have lived through this technological growth. I have lived from black and white TV with aluminum foil on the antennas to streaming videos in my hand. Negroponte has made the prediction that in 30 years, knowledge will be ingested. Like swallowing a pill and knowing a subject. I was talking with my husband and friends about the issues that could arise from this technology. Who would get the knowledge? Would it be the rich? The popular? It really concerned me. What happens to those without the knowledge?
As I was mentally debating this issue, I happened into an accidental political discussion by text (which was my first mistake) with my uncle. My uncle has always been a fun loving kind of person to me, but texting can be misinterpreted. What I thought was a light-hearted discussion was very serious on his end. I could not read his feelings from his texts until the end. Needless to say, I think some feeling were hurt, but this leads me back to Nicholas Negroponte. My uncle and I both have some political knowledge, but we see things differently. The way we have lived and things we have seen have formed our perspectives. Just because we have the knowledge does not mean that we will use it in the same manner. Just because our views are different, doesn't mean that they are wrong.
Right now, many people have unlimited knowledge. It is at our fingertips through smartphones, tablets, and laptops. It is not about the knowledge, it is about how we are using this knowledge. Are we preparing our students to interpret and use the vast amount of knowledge they have? This is where digital citizenship comes into play. We must teach our students digital citizenship. Digital citizenship takes traditional character values and adapts them to the digital age (Ohler, 2011). Without these understanding and values, our young adults will not be able to safely reap the benefits of all the technical knowledge available.
Link to Pew research on digital usage:
https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2015/10/08/social-networking-usage-2005-2015/
Links to digital citizenship resources from Jason Ohler:
Resources:
(n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.eun.org/focus-areas/digital-citizenship
Ascd. (n.d.). Character Education for the Digital Age. Retrieved from http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/feb11/vol68/num05/Character-Education-for-the-Digital-Age.aspx
Perrin, A. (2019, December 31). Social Media Usage: 2005-2015. Retrieved from https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2015/10/08/social-networking-usage-2005-2015/
Ribble, M. (2015). Digital citizenship in schools – Third edition. Eugen: International Society for Technology in Education.
As I was mentally debating this issue, I happened into an accidental political discussion by text (which was my first mistake) with my uncle. My uncle has always been a fun loving kind of person to me, but texting can be misinterpreted. What I thought was a light-hearted discussion was very serious on his end. I could not read his feelings from his texts until the end. Needless to say, I think some feeling were hurt, but this leads me back to Nicholas Negroponte. My uncle and I both have some political knowledge, but we see things differently. The way we have lived and things we have seen have formed our perspectives. Just because we have the knowledge does not mean that we will use it in the same manner. Just because our views are different, doesn't mean that they are wrong.
Right now, many people have unlimited knowledge. It is at our fingertips through smartphones, tablets, and laptops. It is not about the knowledge, it is about how we are using this knowledge. Are we preparing our students to interpret and use the vast amount of knowledge they have? This is where digital citizenship comes into play. We must teach our students digital citizenship. Digital citizenship takes traditional character values and adapts them to the digital age (Ohler, 2011). Without these understanding and values, our young adults will not be able to safely reap the benefits of all the technical knowledge available.
Link to Pew research on digital usage:
https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2015/10/08/social-networking-usage-2005-2015/
Links to digital citizenship resources from Jason Ohler:
- Common Sense Media (www.commonsensemedia.org/educators) provides free digital literacy and citizenship curriculums for elementary and secondary students, covering three areas: safety and security, digital citizenship, and information literacy. Also available are free media education materials for schools to use with parents.
- Character Education Partnership (www.character.org) offers many resources and publications, including Character Education Quality Standards: A Self-Assessment Tool for Schools and Districts (www.character.org/uploads/PDFs/Pub_Quality_Standards_.pdf).
- Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use (www.cyberbully.org) contains resources addressing nearly every aspect of cybersafety and responsibility. Materials target students, teachers, parents, and administrators.
- TeachersFirst (www.teachersfirst.com/safety.cfm) offers a comprehensive collection of Internet safety lessons and materials for use with students of all ages.
Resources:
(n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.eun.org/focus-areas/digital-citizenship
Ascd. (n.d.). Character Education for the Digital Age. Retrieved from http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/feb11/vol68/num05/Character-Education-for-the-Digital-Age.aspx
Perrin, A. (2019, December 31). Social Media Usage: 2005-2015. Retrieved from https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2015/10/08/social-networking-usage-2005-2015/
Ribble, M. (2015). Digital citizenship in schools – Third edition. Eugen: International Society for Technology in Education.