Digital Citizenship and Cybersafety

The widespread adoption of technology and our increasing use of digital platforms means that every New Zealander needs to know how to model responsible behaviours as successful ‘digital citizens’ in real-world contexts. Netsafe states that anyone using the internet should understand how good digital citizenship values apply online.

At Churton Park School this is something we take very seriously. Our moral purpose is to empower connected lifelong learners. We want to ensure students are connected to their future. Akonga (learners) will be future focused and open to possibilities and opportunities, willing to use the best of what we know and do while engaging with new thinking and technologies.

Outcomes - Akonga will:

• Live the school values
• Collaborate to achieve a better outcome
• Relate well to others
• Explore new thinking, new technologies
• Know that it’s OK to take risks and make mistakes to learn
• Know that everyone’s actions have an impact on others.

To ensure all students leave Churton Park School ready to contribute positively in the digital world, we have developed a Digital Citizenship Curriculum that builds knowledge and experience in 5 key areas:

• My footprint - What do I leave behind? Students explore what to share online and builds strategies to think before they post, comment and interact with others. Students learn about how they can make decisions around who can see their work and how they can make the digital world a better place.
• My exploration - How do I explore? Students identify that the internet is vast and easy to get lost in. They build tools to explore the internet safely and effectively by knowing where they are going and using appropriate search tools.
• My property - What is mine? Students explore ‘ownership’ in the digital world and respecting other people's rights through topics such as plagiarism, copyright and sharing photos of other people. Students also learn how to care for digital equipment.
• My viewing - Is it real and can I trust it? Students build skills to think before they believe, and explore how others can see what they view.
• My safety - How can I protect myself? Students explore ways they can protect themselves and their stuff by exploring concepts such as passwords, reporting things that upset them, privacy, health and well being, spam and scammers.

We provide a safe environment where students learn these concepts through doing. Through navigating digital online learning with the guidance and support of a teacher, students are able to discuss and learn from situations as they happen. For example, students are able to make choices about what they share on their secure Seesaw accounts. Teachers model and discuss what is appropriate or not appropriate to share, and students apply what they have learnt through making choices for themselves. The teacher is then able to decide if the post students have shared will be approved, meaning they will be able to be viewed online but others. If the post is not appropriate to share this becomes a learning opportunity for the student, where their knowledge of what to share and what not to share is enriched.

When students leave Churton Park School and the secure environment we provide, students will be able to apply what they have learnt independently to navigate digital environments successfully- making the digital world a better place!