School librarians and teachers are instrumental in ensuring students build strong digital citizenship skills--even while they're learning from home

Promoting digital citizenship during a pandemic


School librarians and teachers are instrumental in ensuring students build strong digital citizenship skills--even while they're learning from home

When the coronavirus pandemic forced school closures and stay-at-home orders across the country, the internet became a social and academic lifeline for young people. Students are now engaging in distance learning daily. They’re also spending more time on social media as a way to stay connected to friends and family.

This increase in the amount of time spent online also means there is greater potential for problems such as cyberbullying and other concerns. It highlights the importance now more than ever of understanding and practicing good digital citizenship.

Related content: Moving from digital citizenship to digital leadership

Being a good digital citizen requires understanding how to be safe, respectful and informed in the online world. For example, it’s important to understand how to behave properly in an online classroom, how to identify “fake news” disseminated online, and how to engage in social media in a positive way. Here are some issues to consider, and some ways to promote good digital citizenship during the pandemic and beyond.

Set rules of etiquette for online classes and video chats

As learning has moved online, schools, library media specialists, and teachers should communicate expectations to their students for online classrooms and video lessons.

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