Category Archives: Digital Citizenship

Connected Leader, Connected Learner, Digital Citizenship, Growth Mindset, ProfessionalLearning

DigCit Toronto 18

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As excitement builds for first Digital Citizenship Summit Toronto on Saturday October 27th, I look forward to participating, sharing and networking at the event.

Digital Citizenship is an ‘old‘ but important concept –  brought to life at the birth of social media.  Areas of consideration and discussion included your digital footprint, staying safe online, building and participating in online communications etc.  Educators shared ideas and resources regarding approaches to embed Digital Citizenship into the classroom. In the educational context, current work expands to digital leadership, using digital tools to solve problems, expanding understanding (global perspectives) and to move society forward in positive ways.

Context: 

I can remember the early adopter days 10-12 years ago.  Everyone, at least in my mainly educators circle,  was focusing on the potential – new connections, sharing blog posts and resources, kicking the tires on new ideas and approaches, developing your PLN etc.  The future looked bright and rosy.

When you consider how things have evolved,  the complexity is overwhelming! While I do think the ‘solid base’ I described above is still there, one must contend with Influencers, bots, fake news, the far left,  the far right, alternative agendas, promotion of “the negative”, privacy challenges etc.  We owe it to today’s youth, our students, to learn to navigate this digital landscape safely and positively with an eye for opportunity and “doing good”.

Check out related blog posts by other conference organizers Jennifer Casa Todd and Tina Zita

If this topic interests you, consider attending the first Digital Citizenship Summit Toronto,   this Saturday (October 27th, 2018). I hope to see you there!

~Mark

 

 

21st century learning, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Digital Citizenship, podcast, privacy, Social Media

AI and You

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As I settle into my new retirement/flex time groove, I am dedicating more time to reading, listening and learning from blogs, podcasts and video channels as I find tuning in “on the ground” to learn and reflect with people who openly share really rewarding.

The great find this week was a CBC podcast titled “The Dangers of an Insular Web”.   The podcast digs into some important challenges of curating information in a personalized way in our digital online society.   Without giving away the details of the interesting panel discussion,  if these elements of digital communications tickle your interest, then this podcast is for you.

  • open internet
  • participatory internet culture
  • impact of smart phones and apps, power of geo location to personalize info
  • triangulation:   tech companies, data, personal use/habits
  • triangulation:   AI, algorithms, full user control and
  • personalizing is a dual edged sword

Social Media Information Overload

Whether you are a heavy digital communicator,  new to this arena or perhaps a teacher considering media literacies,   I am sure you will find this podcast raises your awareness and  stimulates your thinking.

Live link to the CBC podcast:
Screened Off: The dangers of an insular web

As always, please consider sharing your learning and thinking through a comment here or connect on  twitter.

~Mark
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Graphic credit:  creative commons license from Flickr user Intersection Consulting .  

Digital Citizenship, Presentation Resource, ProfessionalLearning

Crowd sourcing for SSPD

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On Friday April 22nd I am presenting a “Let’s Get Social” workshop with  Mary Hingley  as part of our support staff professional learning day.

We will be focusing on “getting social” from a photo sharing perspective.  Our plan was to include an example of a crowd sourced photo share.

We invite you to contribute a suitable photo  that you took to this  Google Presentation.  Thank you for considering this opportunity.

~Mark
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Digital Citizenship, GAFE, OSAPAC, OSSEMOOC, Presentation Resource, SAMR, Social Media, Technology Enabled Learning, TEL

English Association Presentation Resources

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This post combines the slide decks and resources from the 2 English Association sessions on the April 17th professional learning session into one presentation.

~Mark

Digital Citizenship, OSAPAC

Your choice?

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I often listen to the morning CBC KW broadcast hosted by Craig Norris on the way into work.  Recently Craig had a piece on the show about an app called Yik Yak that caught my attention.

Wikipedia describes Yik Yak as an app that “allows people to anonymously create and view “Yaks” within a 10 mile radius …. for sharing primarily with those in close proximity to the user, potentially making it more intimate and relevant for people reading the posts.  All users have the ability to contribute to the stream by writing, responding, and liking or disliking yaks.” Read more detail [here] .

yak2

      Image from http://services.flikie.com/

Hmmm … location based,  anonymous,  instant messaging … It doesn’t take much pondering to recognize the huge potential for misuse.

But,  it doesn’t have to be that way.  Each of us has choices to make, personal responsibility and accountability for our actions.  One could choose to share positive thoughts, ideas, comments, compliments etc.  through this type of service.   Why not?

What choice would you make when using this service?

Other Resources

The CBC article and interviews.

10 things to know about Yik Yak

Digital Citizenship resources developed by OSAPAC.

30 Days of THINK.

~Mark

BIT14, Bring It Together, Digital Citizenship, ECOO, OASBO, OSAPAC, SAMR

OSAPAC: Four GREAT Resources

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There is lots of exciting news on the OSAPAC front. The new OSAPAC website  was launched at the recent  Bring IT Together  conference.   In this post, I am highlighting four newsworthy items.

One of the new exciting Ontario provincial licenses is for Mindomo, web based mind mapping software for all educators in Ontario publicly funded schools. Have a look at the handy “get started” poster.

mindomo

You should also check out the new Ontario developed  resources: the SAMR model,  digital citizenship  and  OSSEMOOC,  the  Connected Leadership opportunity.

Enjoy the new digital resources!  Grow your mindset!

Check  [here]  for more details.

~Mark

Digital Citizenship, Social Media

30 days of THINK!

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Think,  pause,  and think again.

Would you like a chance to role model your online skills and actions?  Do your online actions reflect kindness, respect and support?

The 30 days of THINK! may be just the activity for you and/or your class.  Check  www.preventingcrime.ca/THINK  for more details.

30 days of think

~Mark

Connected Learner, Connected Learning, Digital Citizenship, GAFE, Social Media, TEL

Meet the Teacher Night Tech Slam

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At this point in my life I find myself with one university graduate and one in first year and on the way.  It has certainly been a long time since I attended an elementary school meet the teacher night.

In a  recent summer conversation with WRDSB teacher  Alison Bullock,  my interest in the parent  aspect of  school year startup was rekindled.  Alison was enthusiastically sharing about her plans to provide parents attending with a fast paced “tech slam” – a quick tour through many of the different online services students would be using in their learning journey with her.  I approached Alison about attending meet the teacher night,  and I was thrilled that she readily agreed.

On parent night evening, I arrived at portable 4 to find an energized room of parents and students.  Students were eagerly leading parents to their seating area.

QRdesk

On the top of each desk was a  QR Code  that linked to a personalized welcome video for each parent.  Students were visibly excited to show their parent(s) how to access the video and have them watch it.

Now it was time for the tech slam.

Wow – actioned packed, filled with key learning statements and clearly highlighted  the connected learner robust technology enabled approach to be used in the classroom.

Casual conversation with parents afterwords showed excitement and interest  about the  approach to learning their child would participate in.

If I had elementary school aged children,  this is the type of classroom learning experience I would want them to have.

Related Resources:

Follow Alison’s class on Twitter: ESTP4.

~Mark

21st century learning, Digital Citizenship, SAMR, student voice

Digital Citizenship meets SAMR

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Setting aside the debate of whether “digital citizenship” should just be “citizenship”,  I think there continues to be a need for  focus on the digital aspect of citizenship as people learn the in and outs of our rapidly evolving digital world.

DC_Web_cube

I enjoyed an opportunity to have an in depth conversation with the WRDSB student senate and trustee  Kathi Smith  last night on this very topic.  The discussion was lively, and a number of important points were made through the evening.

In the end, we landed on digital citizenship (or D.C. as we ended up abbreviating it):

  • is not a “check box” or single event
  • be  embraced and lived
  • must be relevant
  • role modelled by staff and students
  • experienced with real life tools and contexts

There was agreement that action is needed to continue to raise awareness among students in terms of managing your digital profile, understanding what online information about you is actually ‘out there’  and understanding the impact of your choices and actions.

I look forward to meeting with next year’s senate members to explore options to bring the ideas and action items identified into play.

On the drive home,  I was wondering what approaches to teaching, coaching,  mentoring and role modelling digital citizenship would look like if you applied the 4 stages of the SAMR model.   Hmmm.

SAMRgraphic

There it is:  Digital Citizenship meets the SAMR model.

What do you think this might look like?   Wonder with me and share your ideas.

~Mark

21st century learning, Digital Citizenship, Things That Caught My Eye

Digital Citizenship Through Connected Learning

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This tweet from  @ScottMcKenzie27  caught my attention this week.

The approach Scott is taking with digital citizenship in his classroom really brings it to life through relationships,  conversation, collaboration and a real world connected learning experience.

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Thank you for sharing your work and learning openly Scott.

~Mark

Note: Cross post to OSSEMOOC