In a changing world when ICT is
becoming more prominent in our everyday life including school, it is important we
as teachers equip our students with the tools and knowledge to use ICT safely.
As professionals, we as teachers have
to follow the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers these are in place
to give our students the highest quality education. There are 7 standards
teachers should follow, Standard 4 ‘Create and maintain supportive and safe
learning environments’ is important because it is directly related the having a
safe learning environment. Sub section 4.5 ‘use ICT safely, responsibly and
ethically’ is extremely important we as educators can demonstrate and teach our
students how to use ICT safely not just at school but also in their everyday
lives. It is important that students understand how to use ICT safely and
recognise the dangers involved in using ICT. To learn more follow the links
below
The Australian Curriculum has 7 general
capabilities that should be taught in conjunction with all learning areas in
the Australian Curriculum and one of these is Information and Communication
Technology (ICT).
Organising elements of ICT
capability
One of the key elements to the ICT general
capability is Applying Social and Ethical Protocols and Practices when using
ICT as seen in figure 1. There are 4 issues within the Applying Social and
Ethical Protocols and Practices when using ICT these are and these are broken
up into 6 levels in the learning continuum;
·
Recognise intellectual property – throughout
primary school students should gain the skills to understand who owns a certain
piece and begin to understand and recognise where they got their information
source from. In levels 1-2, children should begin to
understand that they do not own a piece of work and should be able to explain
where they got it from. from levels 3-4 students should start listing
all sources, URLs and understanding that this is not their work in the and in
the senior years of primary school level
5 students should be understanding the importance of referencing someone
else’s work to avoid plagiarism.
·
Apply digital information security practices- in
the early years of school levels 1-2 students
should start to learn about personal information and keeping it safe by logging
onto computers and networks by using login and passwords to keep their
information safe. During the middle levels
3-4 students should learn to save pictures
and work to personal folders and start to understand how to use personal
emails. In the senior years of primary school years level 5 students should learn the importance of not putting
personal information onto the web and understand the consequences and dangers
in doing so.
·
Apply personal security protocols- students in
the early years of school levels 1-2 should
learn and understand that they should only share information with people they
know and learn to keep personal passwords safe and secure. During the middle
years of primary 3-4 should learn
and understand where they can and with whom they can share personal pictures, information
and start to recognise what cyber bullying is. Students in the senior years of
school level 5 students should
understand that their how sharing friends information can affect not only
themselves but the person they are sharing the information about. Students
should also become aware when others people are being cyberbullied.
·
Identify the impacts of ICT in society- Students
in the early years of primary school Levels
1-2 understand that ICT is available
on different devices, where it can be used and what ICT is used for. In the middle
years of primary school level 3-4 students
recognise that ICT can be quick way to find information and the interaction
people can have using ICT. In the senior years of primary school Level 5 students understand the positive
and negatives affects ICT has on their lives in school but also at home.
As teaching professionals
it is important for us to also learn and
understand how to do these things because if we as teachers cannot do these
things, how are we able to lead by example and teach our students about the
importance of using ICT in a ethical and safe way.
For further
information on the learning continuum and to find out more visit the learning continuum
on the Australian Curriculum website at;
As a teacher it is important that
you are aware of where you can find resources that can inform you on the policies
and procedures which you should follow to for allow your students to use ICT in
safely. A Good Resource for this is Cyber- Safety Keeping Children Safe in A
Connected World Guidelines for Schools and Preschools. This resource is a
good resource for schools to have because it gives directors, principals and
teachers more understanding of the policies and guidelines they need to follow
in order to keep students safe in a connected world. Follow the link below to access the fall
document Cyber-
Safety Keeping Children Safe in A Connected World Guidelines for Schools and
Preschools Department for Education and Child
Development (DECD) 2014
What is Creative Commons and how
can it help you?
Creative Commons is a non- for
profit organisation which can help you as a teacher, it gives you the
opportunity to share free information including pictures, and using it right
will enable you to avoid any copyright infringements. Using the Creative
Commons website is the easiest way to find material you can use in your class
room is the easiest way to show your students how Recognise intellectual property which is a key
element to Applying Social and Ethical Protocols and Practices when using ICT. For
more information visit the Creative Commons website below.
It is important we as teachers
have a positive digital foot print, that will help us demonstrate to our
students and others we are responsible uses of ICT. This could include making
sure certain personal information on social media and blogs is only available
to certain people, making sure all public information on you as an individual leaves
a positive footprint.
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