Digital Citizenship and Responsibility
You've heard it before... Be safe online, don't give out your information, beware of predators, blah, blah, blah. Right?
But have you ever taken the time to really think about being safe and responsible online? Have you really thought about the consequences? The reason adults seem to harp on about this is that it is actually really important to you. Before you tune out, let me explain how being safe and responsible online benefits you.
I have divided this page into nine different things to consider about your online interactions:
But have you ever taken the time to really think about being safe and responsible online? Have you really thought about the consequences? The reason adults seem to harp on about this is that it is actually really important to you. Before you tune out, let me explain how being safe and responsible online benefits you.
I have divided this page into nine different things to consider about your online interactions:
- Online/Digital Reputation
- Online Safety
- Protecting Personal Information
- Social Networking
- Online Gaming
- Copyright
- Plagiarism
- Cyberbullying
- Sexting
Online/Digital Reputation
What you post online is there forever. Have you ever considered what your mom or your future spouse or your future employer might think of what you post online?
This guy didn't, and it is affecting him years after the fact
This guy didn't, and it is affecting him years after the fact
The point is - think before you hit send (or post). If you are still not sure if you should post something, try taking this quick true/false test from NetSmartz to get another opinion.
Online Safety
What do you really know about the privacy settings on the sites you use? Do you check them regularly?
One of my favorite resources for online safety and responsibility is NetSmartz. They explain things things in an easy, fun to watch way. Watch the following presentation about online safety.
One of my favorite resources for online safety and responsibility is NetSmartz. They explain things things in an easy, fun to watch way. Watch the following presentation about online safety.
Time for a brain break. Protect your village in this game by creating strong passwords. (And remember strong passwords in the real world can protect your identity and your personal information).
Protecting Personal Information
So now you know how to create a strong password, but what else can you do to protect your information? First lets find out what people can find out about you if you are not careful.
So how careful are you with your information. Take this quiz to find out.
Not only do you need to think about your own privacy settings, but what happens if one of your friends shares something you post? Watch this video to find out.
Social Networking
Watch this video about social networking.
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Here are some great tips for safe use of social media:
Online Gaming
No matter what kind of gaming you are into there are some key tips to staying safe. |
Copyright Issues
Copyright laws and issues can be really confusing.
This video has a great explanation of what copyright is.
This video has a great explanation of what copyright is.
Still have some questions? This Cyberbee site has easy to understand answers to common questions about copyright.
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Plagiarizing
This video gives some good examples of what plagiarizing is. |
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Now that you know what plagiarizing is, what can you do to avoid it? Watch this video to find out! |
Cyberbullying
I'm sure you've heard of cyberbullying; using technology to harass someone. You probably know that that it is just as or more harmful than traditional bullying, since the attacks don't stop when you are away from the bully, they follow you home and everywhere you go in your pocket (on your phone). So if you know that bullying in any form is not OK, why talk about it? Did you know that bystanders (people who notice bullying happening and do nothing about it) can do just as much harm as the bully themselves? Read the following account of a bystander and think about the damage that he could potentially do - just by doing nothing or by simply forwarding a text message that started from someone else.
Check out this comic that illustrates this point very well.
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Commit to end cyberbullying in its tracks! Defeat the cyberbully zombies in this game by NetSmartz.
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So now you know how and why to stop the spread of cyberbullying, but what if someone is bullying you? Watch this video from NetSmartz.
Sexting
Have you ever felt pressured to do something you were uncomfortable doing? Sexting may seem innocent, but is actually VERY damaging to everyone involved in taking, sending, and spreading the sext. Once you send a message you completely lose control of who sees it or what happens to it. Please be careful! Below are some great tips for preventing sexting from NetSmartz.
This video is the story of a girl that sent a sext to her boyfriend, and how one picture message changed her life.
Now that you know more about why you really should stay safe online hopefully you want to improve your online safety. Leave me a comment in the form below with how you are going to change your interactions online to be more safe.