Digital Citizenship

There are professional and practical reasons for educators to be a good digital citizens. Practicing good digital citizenship enables you to benefit to keep your identiy and personal data safe while surfing the internet, and assist you in protecting your computer from malware. You can also benefit professionally as you cite your sources and prevent yourself from any charge of plagarism as well as ensure that you never become sloppy in your practice of scholarship. Practically being a good digital citizen helps you guard your own identity and web presence which can help your career and save you money and time.

All educators can grow and protect themselves professionally by observing copyright and fair use laws as they make their own multimedia presentations which they use in class with their students. By so doing you will also help your students become aware that there are limts and rules which apply to how they can use the information they encounter while surfing the web. When teachers cite the information they use as they teach their classes their students also come to understand that you and they should take plagarism seriously. When you, the teacher, show your students that you are interested in maintaining a high level of scholarship personally, then they will become more interested as well.

A very practical benefit from being a good digital citizenship is the protection of your data safe while you surf the internet. While no one is ever 100% safe on the internet you can take steps to maximize your protection. Creating strong passwords and being aware of your digital footprint are important for your reputation. Having an awareness of how phishing and trojan horse attacks are carried out will help you keep your data and identity safe. Giving your students an awarness of cyberstalking and cyberbulling as well as principles for defending themselves while on the internet perform.

Practicing netiquette will also help educators model the practice and importance of proper digital citizenship for their students. When you, the teacher, practicie netiquette in all of your digital communication with parents and fellow educators you improve the reputation and professionallism for the entire teaching profession. This improved reputation gives you leverage that you can use to represent and help your students.