Digital Citizenship- Using Technology Appropriately

After reading the article, I realize people need to be familiar with the nine themes of digital citizenship. Digital citizenship is defined as the norms of appropriate, responsible behavior with regard to technology use according to the article. Theme one deals with digital access. It basically means that in order to become productive citizens, we need to be committed to equal digital access. Theme two is digital commerce. Digital commerce deals with the electronic buying and selling of goods and products. Theme three is about digital communication, which is the electronic exchange of information. It also tells about the expanding communication options. Digital literacy is discussed in theme four. It deals with the teaching and learning about technology, as well as the use of technology. Digital etiquette is theme five which discusses the electronic standards of what is appropriate in the digital world. The sixth theme is digital law which deal with the fact that people are responsible for their actions and what they say digitally. Digital Rights and Responsibilities is the seventh theme. It deals with the freedoms that are extended to everyone in the digital world.  There is a basic set of rights to everyone in the digital world. Theme eight is digital health and wellness. It deals with educating and training people on how to protect themselves from the physical and psychological dangers that can come from technology. The last theme, theme nine, is digital security. It deals with the electronic precautions to guarantee safety in the digital world.

Furthermore, I think is is extremely important that educators become familiar with these nine themes of digital citizenship. It is also important to educate students on these themes to ensure digital safety. A good way of teaching the themes of digital citizenship is REPs, it stands for Respect, Educate, and Protect. REP one is respect yourself and others. This is where digital etiquette, access, and law would be taught. REP two is educate yourself and connect with others. This is where communication, literacy, and commerce would be discussed. REP three is protect yourself and others. This is where rights and responsibly, safety, and health and welfare would be discussed. I think REPs is a great concept for teaching digital citizenship to ensure digital safety and appropriate technology use.