Technology and Digital Citizenship

Digital etiquette in Education

https://www.brainpop.com/technology/digitalcitizenship/digitaletiquette/fyi/#tab=0  

This topic has been a very controversial topic for many scholars and educational systems. The use of texting and net vernacular has always been a particular point of consternation for educators and parents as they believe that it compounds the issues with their writing skills of children. However, like personal etiquette it is important that people participate in a manner that is positive, proper and relevant with the time. It is like speaking without the sound and certain rules apply that can improve the tone of messaging in any setting and to anyone. Whether it is knowing when to use the “caps” button or posting the proper emoticon, it is important that we have a grasp of how to speak to people over our net device.

I chose this particular technology because we live in a world where regular manners have become deplorable and people do not know how to talk to one another without sparking controversy. As well many people have become sensitive to everything and it is best that certain accommodations in messaging be known. We have numerous scenarios where we can have multiple people discussing controversial topics and a certain language should be used with supporting net emoticons. Schools have now adopted group work through the internet as a viable practice for education and learning opportunities for many different people from across the globe, so tensions can run high if a certain etiquette is not followed and misunderstandings can arise if people are not conscious of the use of this etiquette.

This particular site has a host of activities that make learning about digital etiquette fun and interesting. I think that a program like this at the beginning of your on line group centered class could help prevent many issues throughout the term of your course.  Just like the traditional classes where you have to put down rules for engaging in class discussions and group work, this site lays the rules for digital manners in digital settings. I find it to be non-threatening to egos and easy to understand for individuals who might not be as tech savvy as others.

Safety on the virtual playground

http://www.edutopia.org/article/digital-citizenship-resources#graph1

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/tool-weapon-addressing-cyberhate-classroom-jinnie-spiegler

                I found this topic to be very interesting as it highlights many things wrong with the use of social media and how people communicate. This site is about teaching people how to manoeuvre through and use strategies to handle cyber bullying and hate. This is a part of netiquette but I have to focus on it because our social sites have become a hotbed for flaming and postings degrading people. This site gives you a list of strategies and courses of actions on how to deal with and not support cyber hate.

                In our world of social media it has become very difficult to not see the constant defaming and bullying of people or groups of people. Many individuals have committed serious acts because of the bullying and hate being spread across these sites. In a classroom that uses internet groups it can be the same thing. A wrongfully framed post to severely criticize a comment by another student might cripple that first student’s drive to want to participate in the class.  It is just as easy to post a criticism in a positive tone as it is to do so in a negative one.

                This is very important in the classroom whether it be traditional or internet based. It is important to spread a sense respect for yourself and others when talking or messaging in discussions. This not only is useful in classroom settings but in personal development for the real world. Many jobs require personal interaction and a positive set of manners can be the difference between having a job or not. Plus in cases of bullying, we can learn strategies for handling events and not allowing them to affect us as they would normally have and at the same instance giving us an outlet as to how to prevent it from happening or continuing.