Journal 6 Meets NETS- T 3 A and 4 A

Christie Greenhow, . (2010). A New concept of digital citizenship for the digital age. Leading and Learning, 37(6), Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=March_April_No_6_1&Template=/MembersOnly.cfm&NavMenuID=4516&ContentID=25564&DirectListComboInd=D

Many educators believe that in order for young students to grow up successful academically and be to be successful in their professional life, they must show they are competent in 21^st century technology. The six important 21^st century competencies that young students should be competent in (as stated by ISTE and the Partnerships for 21^st Century Skills in the United States) are technological fluency, innovation, communication and collaboration, research and information fluency, problem solving, and digital citizenship. To be competent in any of them I feel one must first achieve digital citizenship. Once they achieve that, they should be able to achieve the rest of the six 21^st -century competencies. Blogging, social networking sites and other social media formats are really able to get young people involved in what is “going on” in the world. They are able to put in their opinion and learn about current events in a way they are used to. When I was growing up, we learned through reading print magazines, but nowadays children would read their current events online. Instead of having a classroom discussion about a topic, a teacher might give it as homework to have everyone respond to a peers’ current event through replying to their current event post on their blog. I was surprised to read that employers will actually recruit though social networking. Digital citizenship can be very valuable, but there is still a ways to go and there is more research to be done, in order to unlock its full potential.

Do I think using social networking is useful in getting students involved in “whats going on”?

Yes. I think it is very useful. No one form this day and age wants to read the newspaper. It is much more fun to read about it online and hear opinions of people we actually know, rather then from someone who we have never met before. For example, I believe that all the social networking President Obama did during the election was to his benefit. He got a lot of young voter that way.

Do I think that it is fair to teach young children the six important 21^st century competencies?

Yes. I think that it is a technological world and that to be successful students must be competent in it all. No matter what a student chooses as their future career, they will need to be competent in all aspects of technology.