What is digital citizenship? And how can we teach it?
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Digital citizenship
One of the key concepts within the Digital Technologies Curriculum is interactions and impacts. The interactions and impacts concept focuses on all aspects of human interaction with and through information systems, and the potential for positive and negative economic, environmental and social impacts enabled by these systems. It covers appreciation of the transformative potential of digital systems in people’s lives. It also involves considering the relationship between information systems and society and, in particular, the ethical and legal obligations of individuals and organisations regarding ownership and privacy of data and information. An important aspect of these interactions is in the area we refer to as digital citizenship.
A digital citizen refers to a person who has the knowledge and skills to effectively use digital technologies to communicate with others, participate in society, and create and consume digital content.
Digital citizenship includes confident and positive engagement with digital technologies. By educating students about digital citizenship, we give them the opportunity to develop an understanding about the following concepts:
- digital and information literacy
- internet safety
- privacy and security
- cyberbullying, relationships, etiquette and communication
- creative credit and copyright
- digital footprints.
For more information about digital citizenship, take a look at the topic page of the Digital Technologies Hub website.
Lesson ideas
The Digital Technologies Hub features lesson ideas with step-by-step instructions for implementing one or more of the Australian Curriculum: Digital Technologies content descriptions for each band of the curriculum.
Try one of these lesson ideas or resources to implement Digital Technologies in your classroom.
Years 3–4
Agreeing to an ICT agreement
Students work together to brainstorm the dangers, problems and pitfalls in using ICT and online spaces. They collaboratively agree upon a set of protocols and rules for using technology, and develop processes and procedures to follow when using ICT.
Years 7–8
Privacy basics: Passwords, tracking, and data retention
Students learn about web mechanics, security, and privacy as they analyse and reflect on common surveillance practices, as well as their own privacy habits.
Years 5–6
When I post something online, how permanent is it?
Students engage in a photo rip-up activity to emphasise the permanency of online information. They explore factor trees, doubling and line graphs, and develop a set of protocols around sharing information online.
Years 7–10
NovaLab: Cyber security
Learn about the simple things you can do to protect yourself and your information. See how encryption can protect your privacy. Find out the true meaning of hacking and some of the many reasons hackers hack.
Careers with STEM
In 2017 Refraction Media will deliver more than half a million Careers with STEM magazines directly to every Australian secondary school across each of the STEM disciplines — Science, Technology (Code), Engineering and Maths, with a bonus Health edition too.
The core narrative of Careers with STEM is STEM + X, where ‘X’ is a goal, an interest, a passion or another discipline.
- Engineering + health = biomedical engineer
- Tech + fashion = wearable electronics designer
- Maths + sports = football statistician
- Science + art = 3D animator
The possibilities are endless. Be a part Careers with STEM 2018 in print and digital formats at CareerswithSTEM.com
Read the latest edition of Careers with STEM magazine: Careers with Engineering. Inside you’ll find over 30 stories and exciting career journeys, including 30 engineering women. It also comes with free teacher notes and classroom posters.
Webinars
Digital citizenship
Presented by: Matthew Vines
4 October 2017, 4.30–5.30pm AEDT
Matt is a former teacher, and is now an Education Improvement Leader (Bayside Peninsula) for the Department of Education, Victoria. Matt has also been involved in writing content for the Digital Technologies Hub website.
This webinar will cover what digital citizenship is and why it is important; alignment of digital citizenship to the Australian Curriculum; and practical lesson ideas and approaches to: digital footprints (helping students understand that they have a digital identity), respectful online behaviour, and digital safety.
Approaches to support assessment of the Digital Technologies Curriculum
Presented by: Rebecca Vivian
Rebecca and her team have developed a framework to help teachers with the interpretation of the ACARA achievement strands. In this webinar Rebecca shared some resources to support assessment of the Digital Technologies Curriculum. She discussed some approaches that can be used to design assessment tasks.
The recording for this, and all of our previous webinars, can be found on our webinars page.
Free Digital Technologies Curriculum workshops
The Australian Computing Academy, an initiative of the University of Sydney and the Australian federal government, is running 2-day professional development workshops for teachers this month in Cairns, Hobart, Launceston and Burnie.
These workshops will explain the key concepts and vocabulary in the Digital Technologies Curriculum, point you to a wide range of practical activities and resources to support your teaching, introduce you to the Digital Technologies Challenges, and provide accreditation.
For further details, and to register, please use the following links: Cairns, Hobart, Launceston, or Burnie.
Student Wellbeing Hub
Browse the Student Wellbeing Hub resources for educators, parents and students on a range of topics related to health, safety and wellbeing.
Three students looking at laptop © Education Services Australia
One of the most accessed topics is Being safe online with curated, curriculum-aligned and age-appropriate resources to support schools in navigating the many issues related to safe internet use. A popular resource from our podcast series is Digital Citizenship, which builds awareness on the importance of teaching students to be responsible and respectful digital citizens.
Stay Smart Online Week
Stay Smart Online Week runs from 9 to 13 October, and is a national awareness initiative that puts online security in the spotlight, reminding us all to set aside some time to focus on the important but easy steps that we can take to stay safe online.
This year’s Stay Smart Online Week is all about simple steps to online safety, with a focus on five key areas: privacy of your personal information, strong passwords, software updates, backing up your important information and avoiding online scams.
Upcoming events
Find out what competitions, conferences and professional learning opportunities are on offer in 2017 through our events calendar.
- Digital Technologies Workshop: Cairns — Tech in the Tropics; 13–14 October, QLD
- Lego Robotics and Coding Workshop: Scienceworks; 15 October, VIC
- Technology in the Tropics conference; 16 October, QLD
- STELR Professional Learning Session; 16 October, QLD
- TASITE Seminar Series: Minecraft EDU — The Amazing Race (South); 18 October, TAS
- Victorian Schools Games and Apps Challenge; 22–29 October, VIC
- Digital Technologies Workshop: Hobart; 23–24 October, TAS
- Digital Technologies Workshop: Launceston; 26–27 October, TAS
- Sphero Rollbot Workshop: Scienceworks; 28 October, VIC
- Digital Technologies Workshop: Burnie; 30–31 October, TAS
- ICT Educators NSW October Workshop; 30 October, NSW
- Lego Robotics Workshop: Scienceworks; 5 November, VIC
Digital technologies making news
- Are you a good digizen? Know your rights and responsibilities!, Scootle Lounge
- The growing expectation for digital communications in K–12 schools, Blackboard Blog
- How schools can harness social media minus the pitfalls, The Guardian
- Bringing digital citizenship into the school curriculum, Google
- Connecting families, Common Sense Education
- Cyber safety education is the key for keeping students safe online, Education Matters
- Developing students’ digital identities, Teaching in the wild
- Thanks to the internet, education is finally becoming personal, Huffington Post
- Safe and responsible use of digital technologies, Victoria State Government
- Digital citizenship lessons
Have your say: Teaching the Digital Technologies curriculum
Calling all Australian F–6 and pre-service teachers. Please complete this survey, which explores your confidence in teaching the Digital Technologies subject of the Australian Curriculum. The survey should take 15–20 minutes to complete, and it is open to all Australian educators.
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