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Digital Citizenship isn't an expression often heard outside of school. The ways in which it's discussed in main stream media are quite different from how it's discussed in schools. Most often the popular press shares sensational negative stories how kids use the internet and their phones to hurt each other. We have to have open and honest conversations about how things can and have gone wrong and what we can do to make things better in the aftermath of things like cyber bullying, online harassment, or sexting. That said, it's a far more powerful message to talk to kids and parents about how engendering empathy helps us understand each other so we choose not to hurt each other. It's also important to share stories and ideas how our modern mobile technologies empower us to effect positive change in the world around us in ways that weren't possible 10 or 15 years ago. We have to move beyond stranger danger and scare tactics. Sharing frightening stories (often overstated) does nothing to model positive outcomes or move the conversation to discussions of how to deal with something gone wrong. Kids need more models of empathy and empowerment. Parents do too.

So Prensky was right the first time - there really is digital native generation? No, certainly not - and that's what's important about this study. It shows that while those differences exist, they are not lined up on each side of any kind of well-defined discontinuity. The change is gradual, age group to age group. The researchers regard their results as confirming those who have doubted the existence of a coherent 'net generation'. "We found no evidence for any discontinuity in technology use around the age of 30 as would be predicted by the Net Generation and Digital Natives hypothesis," says the report. What the reseachers do find interesting and worthy of further study is the correlation - which is independent of age -- between attitudes to technology and approaches to studying. In short, students who more readily use technology for their studies are more likely than others to be deeply engaged with their work. "Those students who had more positive attitudes to technology were more likely to adopt a deep approach to studying, more likely to adopt a strategic approach to studying and less likely to adopt a surface approach to studying."

Great TED talk which shows positive correlation between gaming and enhanced vision. 

"The essay's job is to track consciousness; if you are fully aware of your mind you will find your thoughts doubling back, registering little peeps of ambivalence or disbelief. According to Theodor Adorno, the iron law of the essay is heresy. What is heresy if not the expression of contrarian doubt about communal pieties or orthodox positions? This is sometimes called "critical thinking," an ostensible goal of education in a democracy. "

"Unfortunately, I've come across a number of resources which only focus on the negatives of digital footprints and promote a culture of fear. The message I like to promote is that we should protect our digital footprints and try to ensure that they are positive. Encouraging students to avoid posting or doing anything online just seems counter productive."

"What is new is the talk of "inclusion" and "self-regulation," "authentic assessment" and "DIBELS" and "scaffolding" and, no joke, "positive behavioral interventions and supports.""

"As a learning tool, it has the potential to make a great positive change to learning. The only problem is Apple designed it for individual use. Schools are designed for ( or budgeted for) shared use. "

"The best way to make technology a healthy and positive part of family life is actually to embrace it, educate yourself about it and go hands-on with new devices, apps, social networks and services wherever possible."

"Plotz will create a hollow sphere (and now wizard towers and observatory models) of your chosen size and you can then step through the layers to see how to build it. Plotz will also print a full schematic including a 'ghost' of the layer below to help you position blocks."

Cooperative learning requires positive independence which boosts atmosphere of trust among students and helps them accomplish the task in result oriented and timely manner. The team will suffer if one of the students does not manage to do his/her part. The next important factor is that this type of learning encourages face to face interaction. Students must challenge and compromise one another. Team members must periodically identify the changes to achieve better results in their work.

Does the thought of making a positive impact on the future generation scare the pants off you? Are you looking to get by your evaluations with just enough credibility and success to avoid any repercussions or tough questions? Here are a few tips for you...

Rep. Bob Morris said he was disturbed by what he learned when he did a "small amount of web-based research" on the Girl Scouts. I'm not going to debate Morris's conservative positions, but I am going to call into question his digital literacy skills. The new media literacies we often discuss involve applying skepticism to information, learning how to review sources and look for bias, and the importance of fact-checking.

"Fifty years on from his first novel and it's still unclear whether Alan Garner is in touch with an alternative reality or just the 'dream-maker' he claims. Here, he explains how he died three times and why spending two years in the foetal position is not the best career move"

An argument for encouraging the positive criteria/skill of designing a document rather than prescriptive formatting requirements

<< Smarthistory.org is a free multi-media web-book designed as a dynamic enhancement (or even substitute) for the traditional art history textbook. Dr. Beth Harris and Dr. Steven Zucker began smARThistory in 2005 by creating a blog featuring free audio guides in the form of podcasts for use in The Museum of Modern Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Soon after, we embedded the audio files in our online survey courses. The response from our students was so positive that we decided to create a multi-media survey of art history web-book. We created audios and videos about works of art found in standard art history survey texts, organized the files stylistically and chronologically, and added text and still images. >>

A video about 3rd Culture Kids - seems a little dark - would love to see another with a more positive perspective!

Good article illustrating the need for students to develop a positive digital presence.

If you are a parent who has been limiting your child's computer play because of the claims you have read of harmful effects, the research summarized here and in my previous posts on video gaming might give you pause.  The bulk of the research suggests that the claims about negative effects of video gaming are largely myths and the positive effects are real.  As children know in their bones, the kinds of mental skills that video games help to develop are among the skills that are increasingly important in today's world.

Many educators are interested in the idea of connecting their classes to other classes or individuals that could have a positive influence on their students. They just aren't sure where to find people to connect with. Thankfully, the Internet is full of resources to help classes get connected. Here are 10 places where you can turn