Connecting with Ribble’s Elements of Digital Citizenship
It is more important than ever to explicitly teach Digital Citizenship in Saskatchewan Schools. There are some creative opportunities to connect Ribble’s 9 elements of digital citizenship into the Saskatchewan curriculum.
- Digital Access
The policy planning guide within the Ministry of Education’s Saskatchewan curriculum document describes Digital Citizenship as
“the state of being a citizen of a particular social, political, or national community (which) carries both rights and responsibilities”.
The concept of community as well as rights and responsibilities of belonging to a particular group or community surfaces in almost all the Social Studies curriculums K-12. The Concentus.ca resource lays out lesson plans and resources for this. Access to resources is of particular focus in the Grade 4 curriculum. An example of a specific outcome would be:
RW4.3: Assess the impact of Saskatchewan resources and technological innovations on the provincial, national, and global communities.
2. Digital Commerce
Banking, money, buying and selling would obviously relate to the Math curriculums. To connect to the buying and selling of the tools and safeguards, again, the Social Studies curriculums provide many opportunities in the Resources and Wealth category such as in:
Grade 3
RW3.2- Analyze the creation and distribution of wealth in communities studied.
Grade 6
RW6.2 Contribute to initiating and guiding change in local and global communities regarding environmental, social, and economic sustainability.
Grade 5
RW5.1 Explain the importance of sustainable management of the environment to Canada’s future.
RW5.2 Hypothesize about economic changes that Canada may experience in the future.
3. Digital Communication and Collaboration
The concept of belonging and connecting with others could be applied within the Health curriculums. There are also connections within the ELA curriculums since they really value viewing media that identity, community, and social responsibility and this starts as early as Grade 1.
The Grade 8 ELA curriculum heavily focuses on issues of identity, social justice, and efficacy. A specific outcome that focuses on identity is
Grade 4 USC4.5- Examine how identity (i.e., self-concept, self-esteem, self-determination) is influenced by relationships that are formed with others.
4. Digital Etiquette
General traits of respect, safety, responsibility, and social skills connect here. The goals is that students are mindful of their behaviour and choices in the digital world. A specific outcome in the Health curriculum would be
Grade 4- USC4.4
Determine basic personal responsibility for safety and protection in various environments/situations.
5. Digital Fluency
ELA curriculums, especially beyond grade 4 really focus on fact checking and seeking credible sources. The Decision making strands within the Health outcomes offer a genuine opportunity to discuss digital fluency.
6. Digital Health and Welfare
Specific Health curriculum outcomes that would connect to the idea of needs, leading healthy balanced lives and monitoring screen time. From Grade 4 going forwards, the Action Planning section requires students to design and implement an actual plan that focuses on specific areas of their own personal health. This would be a great way to encourage students to monitor their own digital uses and the impact it may have on their health; negative and positive.
The Grade 5 outcome reads as follows:
9. Digital Security and Privacy
The policy planning guide within the Ministry of Education’s Saskatchewan curriculum document notes the importance of students and staff become “critical consumers” This concept is related to Health and Social Studies, it is also present in the ELA curriculums, but specific topics such as scams, hacking etc. would need to be included in order to ensure students are aware and protected.