Week 5 - Digital Citizenship - Why is a good digital reputation important? What values are important?

    Why is it important?? Digital citizenship is important because I believe those who lose a good reputation in digital citizenship also lose their credibility as a professional. To maintain a professional demeanor, it is important to take values of a good digital reputation seriously.

    I feel that as a teacher, our paychecks differ greatly from the standards that we are held to on a daily basis. This extends from the classroom, to the community grocery store, to your facebook profile picture. If you think that your students haven’t tried to look up your facebook, Instagram or Twitter – I am afraid that you are probably greatly mistaken. While all of these allow for privacy through different settings, we cannot be naive in thinking that if we post the worst, or show our less than redeeming qualities that this will go unnoticed – by parents, by students, by coworkers, by the BOE. I feel that the key to good digital citizenship can be summarized as we summarize most citizenship – do not do, or in this case post – anything that you do not want everyone to see.

   I think that by having good digital citizenship, we set a model for those around us. The most obvious value of a good digital reputation is respect of others and yourself. The internet really is not the place to post EVERY thought that comes to your mind, or every picture. Even if you delete a post, someone saw it. Someone has not refreshed the page; and if it’s really bad – someone probably took a screenshot. It is important to maintain good relationships with peers online. If you have an issue to arise with someone, it is best to address the issue in person, or on the phone – not on social media for all onlookers to see. I also consider presenting your best self to be a facet of self respect. This means using appropriate language and grammar. Sure, there is internet shorthand. However there is a difference in IMO (in my opinion) and Wu$ ^ Y@lL. Especially as a teacher, it is known that you are educated – do not abandon that education with toggle typing and replacing letters with symbols. Please?

    Another value of digital citizenship that I find important is being careful about what you repost and/or giving credit to information that you find or post. Please, no chain posts/emails. Also, especially with controversial material – make sure that it is coming from a CREDIBLE source. I cannot tell you how many people I have seen repost articles from The Onion that they have tried to pass off as true, verifiable information. No. Check the source of things before you send the information on, or post it from your own social media page. When you DO find information, tools, or techniques of interest, or perhaps useful in the teaching profession – by all means share! However, it is important to cite your source. There is no need for an APA or MLA style bibliography with each post or e-mail. However, it is important to share where you got your information and give credit where credit is due, especially when you do not provide a link for the site or article from which you gained the information. 

   So, set a good example for your students and peers. Be responsible with what you share, and how you share the information!