EDUC639: Trends and Issues in Educational Technology

Our social responsibility as educators has changed over the years as technology has taken hold of our new world and our education.  Kristina (2017) states that students now can communicate and have an impact globally through social media and online. Because of this, it is important as educators to teach our students the impact of their posts and communication online. To do this she had her students participate in volunteer projects through social media to help those in need (Kristina, 2017). Social media does not just have to be entertaining; it can also be useful to help others and help us learn. Callahan (2012) explains that it’s the teacher’s responsibility to educate students about being safe and responsible online. She also explains that it is important for educators to prepare students for the future by learning how to navigate the internet. It’s important to teach our students to be critical of posts and information online, but also the benefits of social media and the inter...

 Think about all the data you have saved on your phone, on your computer, or on social media. Our whole lives are now online, and if we don’t protect and secure our data, we could easily have our identity stolen or our privacy taken from us. Now that you have thought about yourselves, think about your students. Education is becoming more digital and our students' learning and personal information are more than likely stored on a server. We need to not only protect ourselves, but we need to protect our students as well. Because the Internet of Things (IoT) can be a potential risk to our privacy and data, security measures need to be taken to keep that data safe. Chackroun, et al. (2022) state that data security doesn’t just mean protecting our data, but also ensuring the integrity of the stored data. Gangwani et al. (2023) explain the use of blockchains for businesses with multiple users who input data. Blockchains make it so that data added cannot be changed or altered. Blockchai...

 Digital citizenship teaches individuals to engage in technology responsibly, avoid online threats and risks, and respect and care for other digital citizens (Cameron, 2022). As educators, we have the responsibility of teaching our students how to be digital citizens. The ISTE Standard 2.3 states that educators need to promote positive contributions and responsible participation online by creating socially digital experiences, developing curiosity and scrutiny of things that they see online, showing students how to use digital tools safely, legally, and ethically, and by teaching students how to protect their data and other students’ privacy. (ISTE, n.d.) Ashley (2022) lists different areas of being a good digital citizen: digital safety, responsibility, integrity, literacy health, shopping, privacy, etiquette, and identity. It is important for students to learn about strangers on the internet and to only view websites that are meant for them. They also need to learn to be kind a...