Project Idea: Becoming Digital Citizens

How do we teach students to become good digital citizens? We now live in a day and age where everyone is a publisher. This is dangerous for many reasons. We can’t always discriminate between fake and real, safe and unsafe. It can be tempting to contribute to media in negative ways. In this project, students learn how to be responsible consumer and producers of media literacy. We can teach digital citizenship by encouraging students to be inclusive, informed, engaged, alert and balanced.

Use the project below and you will be ready to teach digital citizenship effectively to your students.

Becoming Digital Citizens

OVERVIEW

This learning experience is as much about learning about fake news as it is about taking a step back in our hectic online lives and pausing to reflect. What role do you play as a digital citizen? Are you a safe, ethical and responsible consumer and producer of digital media?

Designer:
Ms. Brooks

Grades:
1

ROADMAP

Stage 1 - Be Inclusive

Where does fake news come from? From mainstream media to politicians, from memes to Facebook and Twitter posts, fake news can come in many shapes and sizes and from many sources. There are two common reasons why fake news spreads: political advantage and financial gain. Here are a couple of recent examples to illustrate this. 1. Political movements: During the 2016 referendum on whether the United Kingdom should remain or leave the European Union, campaigners on the left side created fake news to influence voters. This led to the famous Brexit bus which claimed the UK gave $350m a week to the EU but also to headlines like the one above which touched upon the UK's love of tea (here are some of the debunked myths from the Leave Campaign). https://www.ted.com/talks/carole_cadwalladr_facebook_s_role_in_brexit_and_the_threat_to_democracy?language=en 2. Political Gain/ Entertainment The fact that people thought that an alien invasion from Mars was happening is a testament to the talent the producers of the show had in making it seem real, but also how easily we can be influenced as humans. https://www.history.com/news/inside-the-war-of-the-worlds-broadcast 3. Financial Gain https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/fake-news-how-partying-macedonian-teen-earns-thousands-publishing-lies-n692451

  • Watch this digital citizenship clip on Belouga: https://belouga.org/series/digcitcommit-redefining-digital-citizenship Quickwrite: How do you play a role as a digital citizen? What could you do differently?

  • Watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKxDLe62zqk&feature=youtu.be and share a 1-minute video clip of your opinion on this statement "Complete objectivity is probably something we will never fully achieve". Agree or disagree? Why?

  • Brainstorm. Why do we need to be able to identify fake vs. real news? Share a mind-map of all the possible consequences of believing fake news.

Stage 2 - Be Informed

In this stage, you will challenge whether you think chosen media is real or fake using the attached flowchart. Resources https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-8760dd58-84f9-4c98-ade2-590562670096

  • Watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YaSbs-HdroU&list=PLIW5Gou0MLtoLNbLh27Me4cqG44_YCCv5. Create a draft document or list outlining what you think are the top 3-steps to identifying fake news. Share with peers, seek feedback and adjust your list.

  • Select 1-2 articles, social media posts or broadcasts and share their link to the feed captioning: Real or Fake. Choose 3 posts from the feed to comment on. Determine whether the posts are real or fake and explain why.

  • Find an online resource, and apply the 6 step analysis and report your findings in a google doc. Is it newsworthy, fake news, clickbait, satire, hate news or a conspiracy?

  • Create a list of web-based tools/ resources that will help you and your peers identify fake news. Share them to the feed.

Stage 3 - Be Engaged

Explore the BBC site below. There are so many ways we can play an important role in solving the problem of disinformation. Explore how other students have drawn attention to disinformation and created a piece of journalism to address the issue. It's your turn. First, identify a topic you are passionate about when it comes to the spread of disinformation (Eg. COVID-19, Ukraine, Politics, Sports Highlights, Scientific Discoveries, Markets, Celebrity News, etc.) You are going to create a piece of journalism that draws attention to the issue. Be creative. You can create a broadcast, blog, SM account/post, news article or any other popular form of journalism. BBC Beyond Fake News website https://www.bbc.co.uk/beyondfakenews/

  • Explore BBC Beyond Fake News. Share your thoughts. What did you learn? How do you think you can play a more active role in the spread of fake news?

  • Identify interest

  • Create a draft piece of journalism around this interest. Expose what is fake and celebrate what is true. Share your draft for feedback, revise and post your work again.

Stage 4 - Be Alert & Balanced

Engage in this Belouga Playlist: https://belouga.org/series/abandoning-social-media Reflect on the role media plays in your own life. What changes can you make or boundaries can you set for yourself to live a healthier life?

  • Watch the "I'm Alert" playlist on Belouga. Share a reflection (video or blurb) addressing your own habits. Do you believe you are alert and safe when browsing and contributing media? Do you think you live a balanced life: creating space for both online and offline activities? Explain. What practices will you change?

  • Create your own habit tracker on Canva. You may use the image attached to this stage for reference. Make a list of healthy habits that can replace your online activities and keep track of them for at least 1 week.

Want to access the project? Sign up for a Spinndle account to customize this project and share it with your students. Students share their work to each task to easily track formative assessment pieces.

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