In the 21st century, there are many types of citizenship, nationalities, and origins for the people around us. When we introduce ourselves to others, we may say: “Hello, my name is ____ and I am from ____.” This introduction in the physical sense has informed the way that we interact with the world and how those interactions shape us. As we go into becoming a more digital age, it is even more important to think about how we are interacting with each other on the internet. If you are reading this, you may be wondering to yourself, what in the world is digital citizenship and why is it so important? ^[1]

4 key concepts of digital citizenship are:

• Empathy
• Digital Literacy
• Digital Divide
• Digital Wellness

Empathy

When we think about “Empathy” in the in-person sense, our mind immediately flickers to thoughts of interpreting and understanding how someone is feeling and why they are feeling that way. Online, empathy works in a similar manner, and having empathy online is crucial to being a good digital citizen. Empathy online means trying to understand another person’s perspective and understanding them beyond the digital screen, because everyone online is a person with feelings that we must respect. Having empathy online means that we:

• Remain responsive to others in a positive and open manner
• Be understanding of a person’s living situation
• Refrain from making rude comments
• Recognize that certain verbal expressions may be missed online, as everything is text-based
• Always use respectful language
• Be compassionate

Digital Literacy

In simple terms, digital literacy is being able to understand the purpose of technology, and how to use that technology effectively.

Picture this: you’re a teacher during the pandemic and you have students who have never taken an online lesson. Digital literacy is the ability to understand how to navigate that environment, such as being able to open a web browser, view your emails, send text messages, write blogs, or create resources.

Digital literacy also involves the ability to verify information. One downside of the instantaneous information that is available on the internet is that much false information is shared. The practice of assessing and evaluating sources is a critical piece of digital literacy.

While digital literacy is important in terms of understanding the basics of the internet, digital literacy is also extremely important in terms of understanding the dangers of the internet such as:

• Phishing
• Viruses
• Imitators (people who lie about their identity online)

Digital Divide

The Digital Divide refers to the equity gap that exists regarding the digital and technological age. This divide exists between students who are able to access technology freely and students who are cut off from accessing that technology due to socioeconomic or other factors. Understanding the digital divide helps us understand the needs of students who do not have the same access.

The digital divide is based upon two key factors, which are race and income. Students in underrepresented populations are significantly impacted. Many schools that serve the majority of African American students are underfunded and therefore, have fewer computers. At home, fewer African American and Hispanic students have access to computers. Income is a factor as well, as many parents do not have the money to buy students computers and tablets to complete their schoolwork. Beyond that, a parent may be provided a laptop from school, but not have enough money for internet service.

Digital Wellness

Digital wellness is incredibly important to overall wellness and being a good digital citizen. Digital wellness is essentially the practice of checking on your wellbeing in the digital environment and how that digital environment is impacting you in your personal and professional life. Digital wellness is the most important aspect of digital citizenship because it directly impacts a person outside of the classroom. Digital wellness includes how individuals interact with social media comments from friends and how they internalize new social media trends. Wellness may also be impacted by mean or derogatory internet comments meant to make a person feel bad about themselves. Digital usage and behaviors impact overall wellness within the dimensions of health. ^[2]