Digital Citizens? Who are they?

Teach them to be citizens of this digital world.
How? What is a digital citizen? How do we move from the paradigm of fear blockage into a learning world of educational usage? There are hundreds of educational videos posted on YouTube -- how many are blocked in your buildings? Students use cellphones, smartphones, iPods, and friends on Facebook and MySpace to work through their homework and make personal plans. Do they have access to these tools inside the school walls? Should they?

These are just a few of the questions that go through my mind everyday as I work with teachers trying to move students toward "digital citizenship". It seems that I am not alone.

A group of concerned educators have started a new project addressing just these issues. Their opening sentence states a lofty goal: We are educators who wish to work with others to create information that may be widely disseminated about best practices for digital citizenship, safety, and success. They are all volunteers and I am ready to join them. One of the first goals is to development a course to assist teachers, parents and all of the cybersphere in promoting responsible use of digital resources in educating our students and moving them toward a digital citizenship. A noble goal - I suggest you stay tuned to their (our) progress and join if you feel the urge.

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