Answering Questions about Digiteen: Topics and Subtopics

[Vicki Davis]

I've been asked by some very smart students about the rationale behind how things are divided on Digiteen. Here are the answers.

 

Why is Digiteen broken down in subtopics and topics like this?
Here is the thinking behind how we broke it down:

• If it is easier to research a topic SEPARATELY it is divided (i.e. copyright and safety don't go together very well.) Keep it simple for students.
  
  
• If we want to MAKE SURE a topic is covered - it is divided (virtual worlds and social media - because so many things focus on social media -if we didn't split it - virtual worlds would be ignored in their research.) Make sure everything is covered.
  
  
• We want to make sure that groups are small enough. Students MUST work with people that they do not see in class at the same time. Asychronous communication is the key to their future success so we force it by how we divide the groups. They don't like it but they need one experience of ascyhronous communications or they will not learn. If they can work F2F they WILL NOT work over distance. We have to make sure they understand what we are teaching about a world where f2f is less common.
  

Safety, Privacy, Copyright, and Legal are grouped together in one area - however the bodies of knowledge are HUGE, so we subdivided this to make sure everything is well covered and focused. That one is subdivided for that reason. Too big and each area has a lot of information and is easier to be divided.

Etiquette and Respect - It would be impossible to divide this. It has to stay together.

 Habits of Learning - This is divided because the habits of learning VARY by the technology that is used or topic. Health, Social Media, Virtual Worlds.
The students have to make sure that whatever habits of learning they use that they are healthy in those habits. They need balance. Social Media and Virtual Worlds are very distinct, separate types of technologies and we want them well covered - so they were split out from one another.

Literacy and Fluency - Again, like etiquette and respect, it would be hard to divide this out so it is ONE topic.

Digital Citizenship Perspectives
Looking at everything on the page, each person has a different role to play. Parents, teachers, and teens have to work together. So, we want to look at recommendations from each of their perspectives.

The Summary and Recommendations
At the top of the page are the summary and recommendations of their topic. EVERYONE on the page must work together to make this concise and meaningful. The overall recommendations from the top of each page are pulled off the page and put on the Digiteen Code of Conduct - http://digiteen11-2.flatclassroomproject.org/Digiteen+Code - these are shared with researchers and people following digital citizenship.