The One With Rights and Responsibilities

Through this week's readings, the Digital Citizenship Education Handbook really stuck out to me. One area in particular, our rights online. According to the Handbook, rights and responsibilities are something citizens enjoy in the physical world, and digital citizens in the online world also have certain rights and responsibilities. Digital citizens can enjoy rights of privacy, security, access and inclusion, freedom of expression and more. However, with those rights come certain responsibilities, such as ethics and empathy and other responsibilities to ensure a safe and responsible digital environment for all. 

As educators, what rights and responsibilities should we instill in our students for them to become outstanding digital citizens. Students need to understand they must still abide from rules, laws and guidelines when online, same as they do in person. Here is a brief list of some important rights and responsibilities that all students should know before immersing themselves in the digital world.

RIGHTS

Knowledge- The right to understand how the internet works and how they can best utilize its resources

Access- The right to access information online and share information with others

Participation- The right to participate in discussions and engage with others on the internet on any topic of interest

Privacy and Protection- The right to understand privacy settings to ensure safety while on the internet and to protect from cyber bullying and violence. This includes ability to report inappropriate or unlawful behaviors.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Respect Others- As digital citizens, we have a responsibility to respect others privacy as well as use appropriate language and behaviors. Being respectful of others ideas and comments.

Intellectual Property-- We have a responsibility to obey IP laws and be mindful of what we share and provide attribution if sharing other work online

Protection- As we have a right to report inappropriate behaviors it is also our responsibility to report cyberbullying, threats and other behaviors that may harm an individual

Respect Yourself- It is our responsibility to look out for our own digital footprint and ensure we are not oversharing or putting ourselves in dangerous digital situations.