MY ONLINE CODEWHAT DOES IT MEAN TO DO THE RIGHT THING ONLINE?

IT AFFECTS YOU

“Of 381 college admissions officers who answered a Kaplan telephone questionnaire this year, 31 percent said they had visited an applicant’s Facebook or other personal social media page to learn more about them — a five-percentage-point increase from last year. More crucially for those trying to get into college, 30 percent of the admissions officers said they had discovered information online that had negatively affected an applicant’s prospects.”

-N. Singer, New York Times, Nov. 9, 2013

“Ethics are what you do when nobody’s watching.”

-Mr. Winmill (quoting Frasier)

KEY VOCABULARY

Ethics: a set of principles and morals governing people’s behavior, including honesty and respect toward others

Online Ethics: a set of principles and morals governing people’s behavior as it relates to the Internet and digital devices

“…the first thing is to be honest with yourself. You can never have an impact on society if you have not changed yourself... Great peacemakers are all people of integrity, of honesty, but humility.”

-Nelson Mandela

ETHICAL LIVINGThink of the people in your life, or people in the public that you know of. Think of someone that you believe is very ethical.

• In what ways is this person you identified ethical? Consider honesty and respect.

• What are examples of ways that people behave unethically in their dealings with others?

• What are examples of ways that people behave unethically in the community? Consider school and your larger community, or even the planet.

• What are examples of ways that people behave unethically online? Consider the violation of honesty and respect.

ETHICAL BEHAVIOR

Compare and contrast:

• Ethical and unethical behavior in the offline and online worlds

KEY TO ONLINE ETHICS

Privacy: Respecting the privacy of others online

Self-Expression & Identity: Presenting yourself in an honest and genuine way in the online world

Connected Culture: Treating others in a kind and respectful manner, and avoiding cyberbullying

Respecting Creative Work: Giving credit to others and/or asking permission when you use their work as part of your own

JUDGING JEFF’S PROFILE

Find your way into four separate groups

Each group assigned to one of the previous topics (corresponds to different parts of the handout)

Analyze fictional profile: consider online ethics involved in some of the postings (take 10-15 mins)

Group share-out: summarize content of your part of Jeff’s profile and share your responses to the questions

KEY VOCABULARY

Digital Citizenship: navigating the digital world, safely, responsibly and ethically

COMPLETE THE SENTENCE

A good citizen of the digital world_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________.

Consider your responsibilities as a digital citizen: to family, friends, community

Remember the 4 topics explored with Jeff’s profile (Privacy, Self-Expression & Identity, Connected Culture, Respecting Creative Work)

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

How can schools help students become better digital citizens?

What are policies already in place that students know about?