As we enter the world of public professionals, our digital footprint poses a great deal of responsibility. Not only are we role models to very impressionable students, we are in the eye of the public and that requires some mindfulness to what we are posting under our name. Posting things on the internet is forever, and now we know that forever means even beyond the point of deleting from our profile.
According to the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security, your digital footprint is described as “the trail of data you create while using the Internet. This trail of data comes from the websites you visit, the emails you send, and the information you submit or download online. You build your footprint both actively and passively.” Building actively is when you are intentionally interacting with certain websites, downloads and posting content online. Building passively is data left behind that is not left intentionally or knowingly and can be data that is linked to your IP address. Knowing this, it is extremely important that both educators and students are mindful of all interactions they have online, including all the links they are clicking on.
Pictured above are some strategies that we can use to protect our digital footprint. In today’s society, where social media runs the world, it’s essential knowledge for all young students to be taught as soon as they are old enough to be independent on the internet. All of these aspects: privacy, profile, permission, positive and protect are what make a good digital footprint, no one can be left out.
While I was in a SD57 classroom, the class was actually using a game program, called Interland (by Google), that was completely centered around internet and technology safety including using games to teach the kids how to protect sensitive info and create strong passwords, among other things. I was very impressed with the content they were using, and what made it even better was that the kids loved it. They didn’t feel like they were just learning something, they got to play and make it fun and that way it resonated with them so much more and also made them engaged and wanting to continue to use the program more. These are super beneficial resources to add into your computer time at an elementary school.
With this in mind, I still have all my social media profiles, where I can post personal content, on private mode. This ensures that my future students won’t be able to have full access to things that go on in my personal life, despite the fact that posts are respectful and appropriate. There are still things that should always remain personal and private. Though educators may form bonds with students, there should never be any interaction on any social media or technology platform outside of the classroom. Another thing I always do, which sometimes backfires on me because I forget what I put down, is using strong passwords to avoid hacking schemes.
You can visit https://www.cyber.gc.ca/en/guidance/digital-footprint-itsap00133 for more information about how the Cyber Centre can support you!
