Digital Literacy in the Classroom

Digital literacy is the ability to find, evaluate, utilize, share, and create content using information technologies and the internet.

There are many different advantages to being digitally literate. Essentially, digital literacy can help you:

• Save time
• Learn faster/ study at your own pace
• Stay informed and connected
• Make more knowledgeable decisions
• Teach you skills important for many jobs. 

Since there is such an emphasis on technology in our world today, it is important for schools and teachers alike to encourage digital literacy in the classroom and out. Students who are unable to work in a digital world will struggle with connecting through technology and may not be as proficient both in the classroom and the working working.  Students who are unable to work in a digital world may also learn slower since their skills to access to the information is typically slower.

Pomo. (2014). Digital Literacy. Retrieved from http://pomo.com.au/blog/digital-literacy/

Digital literacy is important for all children and in all different environments. Digital Literacy promotes higher order thinking, breaks down the walls of learning and information, and prepares students for a digital  post K-12 world.  

Teachers can incorporate digital literacy into the classroom with information shared through google slides, the information on PowerPoints, google docs, and slide share. Students can also use digital literacy at home through social media websites like Facebook, Twitter, and researching topics of interest on search engines like Google or Yahoo.

Wikipedia. n.d. Copyright. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyright

Copyright means that the tangible work that I produce will be protected. This protection means that if I produce a piece of writing or a picture of any kind, the tangible document will be protected. Not only is it important for teachers to know the rules of copyright, students should be informed, as well.

Students need to learn about copyright because in today’s millennial society students share and take so much information from one another and from other sources that they need to know how effectively conduct themselves professionally with their work.Copyright infringement is very serious and they should be careful to not directly copy any works from online (avoid copy and paste) and to avoid coping information and changing a few words. Turning in prior work is also a copyright infringement on themselves which many students may not be aware of.

Older children need to understand that plagiarism is any act by which they are stealing the intellectual property of another content creator. In order to properly teach plagiarism and copyright, teachers should show students examples to explain their similarities and differences. Children should be taught the severity of this act and that there are severe penalties to both.

Molly Pennington (2014), Tips to Help Your Child Avoid Plagiarism. Retrieved from: https://www.noodle.com/articles/tips-to-help-your-child-avoid-plagiarism