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This study of policies for information and communication technologies (ICT) in education and training in Australian education systems and agencies is the initial component in a project undertaken for the Australian Department of Education, Science and Training (DEST). The project comprises three components: the development of a searchable online data base where policies, both Australian and international, are summarised, and which can be accessed through edna (http://www.edna.edu.au); this report on Australian developments; an international report covering ten countries in Europe, North America and Asia, as well as Australian systems. The Australian report provides the platform for the comparative analysis of the international report.

"In this digital world, opportunities for education are available like never before. Though teachers using online tools are empowering students take part in their education, they may also expose them to inappropriate material, sexual predators, and bullying and harassment by peers. Teachers who are not careful with their use of the sites can fall into inappropriate relationships with students or publicize photos and information they believed were kept private. For these reasons, critics are calling for regulation and for removing social networking from classrooms -- despite the positive affects they have on students and the essential tools they provide for education in today's digital climate. "

Hence more reasons why teachers must be well read and prepared and willing to work with a team/committee to help solve the issues of safety, legality and ethical behaviours before working on their school DLE.

"Information and communications technologies (ICT) policies in schools have two dimensions. One is to ensure that students are protected from pernicious materials on the Internet. The other is to enable student access to the extensive resources on the Internet for learning and teaching. While these two dimensions are not intrinsically in conflict, in actuality, such can become the case."

There are no secrets online. That emotional email you sent to your ex, the illness you searched for in a fit of hypochondria, those hours spent watching kitten videos (you can take that as a euphemism if the kitten fits) - can all be gathered to create a defining profile of you. Advertisement: Story continues below Your information can then be stored, analysed, indexed and sold as a commodity to data brokers who in turn might sell it to advertisers, employers, health insurers or credit rating agencies.

Some interesting research going on in the EU on how social media can be used to inform policy: Social networking technology provides major new opportunities for policy makers (eGovernment) to engage with the community (eSociety). We will develop a toolset that allows full advantage to be taken of a wide range of existing and well established social networking sites (Facebook, Twitter, Bebo, WordPress etc.) to engage citizens in two-way dialogs as part of governance and policymaking processes. The tools will make it possible to detect, track and mine opinions and discussions on policy oriented topics. The tools will allow discussions to be seeded and stimulated through injection of policy discussion points into relevant communities in a secure and managed way. The tools will allow the origins, bias and evolution of opinions to be tracked to provide auditable records of provenance, guard against misuse, and ensure trust and privacy for all involved. A key feature of our approach is to allow policy makers to move away from the limitations inherent in the current practice of using bespoke and dedicated platforms (e.g. specific opinion soliciting websites hosted by government) and instead make full use of the high levels of participation and rich discussions that already take place in existing social networking communities. In this way, WeGov will develop the tools and techniques for closing the loop between policy makers and the citizens.

A wonderful short summary of Horizon Report 2013 K-12 Edition.

"Google is a technology giant that provides a huge variety of services, many of which are free. Gmail, Google Drive and Google Hangouts can be used without paying a dime. Instead, pay by providing information about yourself, which Google can use for advertising. Though it started in search, the lion's share of the company's profits come from ads."

"Perhaps that makes the 55-year-old teacher sound like a dinosaur. What he discovered is, after all, one of the most obvious realities shaping education policy and parenting guides today. But, as Loewy will clarify, his revelation wasn't simply that technology is overhauling America's classrooms and redefining childhood and adolescence. Rather, he was hit with the epiphany that efforts in schools to embrace these shifts are, by and large, focusing on the wrong objectives: equipping kids with fancy gadgets and then making sure the students use those gadgets appropriately and effectively. Loewy half-jokingly compares the state of digital learning in America's schools to that of sex ed, which, as one NYU education professor describes it, entails "a smattering of information about their reproductive organs and a set of stern warnings about putting them to use.""

"At the end of the twentieth century, intellectual property rights collided with everyday life. Expansive copyright laws and digital rights management technologies sought to shut down new forms of copying and remixing made possible by the Internet. International laws expanding patent rights threatened the lives of millions of people around the world living with HIV/AIDS by limiting their access to cheap generic medicines. For decades, governments have tightened the grip of intellectual property law at the bidding of information industries; but recently, groups have emerged around the world to challenge this wave of enclosure with a new counter-politics of "access to knowledge" or "A2K." "

"A growing number of educators and advocates in the online safety field are now embracing the term 'digital citizenship' to describe education about privacy, safety, security and responsible use of information and communication technologies (ICT). There is also a growing understanding of the importance of beginning this education when a child first starts their use of ICT. "

The full version of this does not seem to exist :(

Explore the concept and practice of digital citizenship, from social, economic, political, ethical and technological perspectives, and consider how a knowledge of new media strategies and activities coupled with information policies in schools can develop the capacity of students and teachers as digital citizens. This page is inspired by and curated for ETL523 at Charles Sturt University

This article mainly uses data from the ABS 2009 and 2006 Children's Participation in Cultural and Leisure Activities Survey (CPCLA) and the household use of information technology topic in the ABS 2008-09 Multipurpose Household Survey (MPHS). Both the CPCLA and MPHS exclude people living in Very Remote Areas of Australia.

"Social media and online communication opportunities are important and can have a positive impact on all elements of the teaching and learning process, the school and learning community. We see teachers and other professionals creating networks to share ideas and resources, children and young people crowd source ideas and information. They seek and receive feedback on their work while parents engage more fully with teachers, their children and the school. Furthermore, even if we feel too old or too busy to engage with social media ourselves then we, as teachers, must still be able to model appropriate, safe and positive use of social technology for our learners and the wider learning community."

"Users should use and reuse weak passwords for websites which don't hold valuable information, say researchers from Microsoft, overturning decades of accumulated wisdom on internet security. By not having to worry about remembering complex unique passwords for every individual website, users can focus their efforts on recalling secure passwords for high-value sites like banking or e-commerce."

In a very influential essay that appeared about 15 years ago ("Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants" [pdf]), Mark Prensky coined the term 'digital natives', asserting that "students today are all "native speakers" of the digital language of computers, video games and the Internet" and that, as a result, "today's students think and process information fundamentally differently from their predecessors". In contrast, "[t]hose of us who were not born into the digital world but have, at some later point in our lives, become fascinated by and adopted many or most aspects of the new technology are, and always will be compared to them, Digital Immigrants." While Prensky's views on this topic have evolved over the years and become more nuanced (those interested in his particular views may wish to visit his web site), this original definition and delineation of what it means to be a digital native and a digital immigrant remains quite potent for many people.

"Information and communications technologies (ICT) policies in schools have two dimensions. One is to ensure that students are protected from pernicious materials on the Internet. The other is to enable student access to the extensive resources on the Internet for learning and teaching. While these two dimensions are not intrinsically in conflict, in actuality, such can become the case."

How much do teens understand what they've agreed to give up when they start an account with social media sites?

""Digital citizenship" is an umbrella term that covers a whole host of important issues. Broadly, it's the guidelines for responsible, appropriate behavior when one is using technology. But specifically, it can cover anything from "netiquette" to cyberbullying; technology access and the digital divide; online safety and privacy; copyright, plagiarism, and digital law, and more. In fact, some programs that teach digital citizenship have outlined no less than nine elements that intersect to inform a well-equipped digital citizen. It's an overwhelming array of skills to be taught and topics to explore."

VideoAmy explores the topic of digital citizenship with this playlist of videos on the importance of online safety, manners, privacy, and responsibility.