Week 12

It's here!

It’s hard to believe that we are nearly done this course! To me it doesn’t feel like that long ago we actually just started! I have definitely learned lots about tools and my own learning habits throughout our exploration.

After receiving the rude awakening in week 1 that essentially everyone that uses the Internet has a digital footprint, I have been very conscious of the things I put online. I realize that we have to consider everything that we say and do, because once it is done, it can never truly be undone. While going through this course I have keep this important fact in mind, keeping my privacy settings as high as possible and being conscious of what I do say. That being said, I was still a little bit surprised when I Googled myself and didn’t find anything extra than what I had way back at the beginning, I guess it did work! As you can imagine, we have done lots of work online, so this shows that although my presence is high, I am still able to keep a positive digital footprint - victory!

I think that anyone that wants to use the Internet needs to be taught and be aware of what we have learned in this class! It would really be hard to sum it up quickly, as you can see we have taken a full semester to go through and absorb that course work and understandings. I ABSOLUTELY think that kids need to start learning this stuff as soon as they start school, in some form or another. I think many young people that have grown up with the Internet don’t understand how powerful it truly is! It can be a good or bad thing. Good because there are so many opportunities and tools at your fingers tips to utilize. But you can also do quite a bit of damage to your name if you don’t have the skills to be a good digital citizen. And once something goes online, even though you may remove or delete it, it is never really gone! This is something that needs to be emphasized so kids realize that the actions they take today can have an affect on their future! They problem is making them understand the implications of their actions while they are still so young.

We all need to work together to make sure “newbies” understand what being a good digital citizen means. There are lots of different articles and blogs with much of the information we have learned in this course. The obstacle is to have it all in one place so that others can learn from it as well. As informed individuals it is our responsibility to pass on the knowledge we now have to others that may not be as well informed. We have to work together to keep the Internet safe; safe from people, in all sense of the word. We have to take the necessary steps to mitigate these risks to be able to enjoy and reap the benefits that the online world has to offer.

TTFN