Digital Etiquette and Responsible Social Interactions

Digital etiquette is a huge part of being, what is known as, a digital citizen. When students are using the internet responsibly and ethically, they are being citizens of technology. There are nine elements of citizenship with digital etiquette being one. The other elements include digital access, digital commerce, digital communication, digital literacy, digital law, digital rights and responsibilities, digital health and wellness, and digital security (self-protection). Digital etiquette means that tasks and communication are handled appropriately over any usage of technology. As a digital citizen, students must use personal devices at school for educational purposes only, protect private information from others, respect themselves and others while online, say "No" to cyber bullying, and make safe and appropriate choices while online.

 Communication over various types of technology is helpful for communicating with people around the world. It is important to collaborate appropriately because the conversation can sometimes be seen by anyone at anytime. There are many great things that come from using technology to communicate with others such as having an e-pal, starting a blog, and posting assignments for the class to comment on. But, social media sites such and Facebook and Twitter can have negative effects if it's not used in a safe way. Cyberspace can seem like a safe place to post all of your thoughts and feelings, but potentially anyone can read what you post. 

I feel that it's important to teach students about the etiquette of using technology because it is a public place that can cause harm to others or cause people to lose jobs in the future. I want to use technology in the classroom as much as  possible so that I can engage my students in different variations of subjects. This generation of students is the most tech-savvy and it's beneficial to have students complete their projects using social media, blogs, presentations, and other software. Teaching students to use their tech skills to complete projects in different content areas gives students extra practice in both areas. I want to use e-pals in my classroom especially because it will give my students experience in using digital conversations to converse with other kids their age that come from different cultures.