Teaching students about digital footprints is so important. What we post on the internet will follow us everywhere and I think that this is something that students need to know at a young age. I found this video that does a great job of explaining why we should care about our digital footprint; it is worth a watch!
When we are young, we post almost anything on the internet without thinking. I know this because in class we had to look up our name, and when I did that I found my old Facebook account that I made when I was around ten years old. I cringe every time that pops up on the web. I wonder who will see it such as friends, future job employers, etc. I’ve tried to get rid of the account, but Facebook said they can’t do anything about it. Nonetheless, I have to deal with the consequences of my actions of making a Facebook account when I was ten years old. (lol)
I will teach my students the importance of a digital footprint by making sure that what they post online is appropriate. I will teach them that anyone can see what they post, such as on Facebook unless they have certain privacy settings turned on. I will teach them that even when you send a picture on Snapchat and it “disappears,” that it has not actually disappeared and it is still out there somewhere. All in all, I will teach my students to be aware of what they are posting and doing online because it will follow them in to their future. They may not think it does, but it does!