VOICE.

Dev eloping c it izens – Paths to core compet enc ies t hrough a problem-based learning proj ect in civ ic educ at ion
510806-LLP-1-2010-1-DE-COMENIUS-CMP 2010 - 4193 / 001 - 001

Worksheet 1: DIGITAL LITERACY FOR PUPILS

Let´s get digital!

Digital skills are not only technical capacities to access media,

or to manage, create and share knowledge. They include also
the following issues:
→ being aware of opportunities and potential risks of Internet
and social networking via electronic media (Web 2.0)
→ to access, critically analyse and process online information

Whether you are researching a homework paper or having fun

in chat rooms or in Instant Messenger – each one of these
skills is important to participate actively in civil society.
Cartoon: Download from www.amazingonly.com

1. Engagement in safe and constructive social Potential risks

networking - Internet safety (virus, spams, rip off in Internet)
- Cyberbulling/Cybermobbing: bullying which is carried
Already uploaded your latest funny party photos on out through an Internet service such as email, chat
Facebook or Youtube to show them to your friends? room, instant messaging or mobile phones.
You will probably be more or less familiar with the - It is impossible to really know who you are
broad range of opportunities of digital social communicating with (this may result in unpleasant or
networking (Web 2.0). But what about the potential exploitative face-to-face contact in real life).
risks? - Exposure to harmful or illegal material.
- Quality level of content could be potentially low
Some opportunities and tools of Web 2.0 and/or one-sided in blogs or Wikis.
□ Share platforms for photos and videos (e.g.
Youtube, Flickr)
□ Create Weblogs/Blogs (e.g. via Keep in mind: The Internet does not forget
www.wordpress.org) anything! Personal data leave documented marks and
□ Communicate in Online Communities (like could tentatively even be used against you (e.g. by
MySpace, digital communities for students, employers) and without your authorization (via
Facebook etc.) and Chatrooms or Instant profiling, marketing).
Messenger (e.g. ICQ, MSN)
□ Edit Wikis: collaboratively edited free online Personal data protection – tips and hints
encyclopedia (free Wiki spaces: ● Give personal data only when required and only if
www.wikispaces.com/content/wiki) proportional to the goal set (no personal data like
Most commonly used encyclopedia: Wikipedia. phone number, address, school). Use settings for
□ Apply Social Bookmarking: a personal list of “privacy” (make your dates available only for people
interesting Web sites. You can tag and save whom you trust).
bookmarks online and share them with other people,
● In case of doubt, it is legitimate to ask: „Why“, „Who
(e.g. via www.delicious.com/help/learn)
is managing this information?“, „What are my rights of
access?“
Which Web 2.0-type are you – A, B or C? ● Always use complex passwords. Use several e-mail
Do you use Web 2.0 primarily for passively seeking addresses and several usernames so as not to expose
entertainment or information (A), for communication
purposes (B) or as active producer of web content (C)?
your personal data and those of your close relations.
● Think carefully about the content you put online. Do
Benefits of mentioned tools not put content online (text, photos) which could have
- It is the cheapest way to stay in touch with friends. negative consequences for you or for others.
- You can easily search, collect and process ● When paying online, always make sure that URL
information. addresses begin with https (secure Internet channel for
- You can interact with subject specialists. banking and commercial transactions).
- They allow people with similar interests to share
information and to collaborate despite geographical Source (adapted): Under surveillance, produced by the
separation (language learning opportunities!). League of Human Rights, France (2010).

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This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This communication/publication reflects the views only of the author, and the
Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
VOICE. Dev eloping c it izens – Paths to core compet enc ies t hrough a problem-based learning proj ect in civ ic educ at ion
510806-LLP-1-2010-1-DE-COMENIUS-CMP 2010 - 4193 / 001 - 001

Cyberbullying can assume many faces – exclusion, Do you know? More than a million people a day visit
outing, harassment, damage reputation etc. What steps the Wikipedia site. It has approx. 3,687,299 articles (source:
would you advise to the following targets of cyberbullying? Wikipedia, July 2011). Wiki is a word which means „quick“ in
Discuss with your classmates.(source:http:csriu.org) the language of Hawai.
- Greg was changing in the locker room. Matt took a
picture of him with his cell phone camera. Within seconds, False or true? Evaluate the quality of Internet
the picture was flying around phones at school. based data
- Millie tries hard to fit in with a group of girls at school. Check the information before quoting, processing
She recently got on the“outs” with a leader in this group.
Now Millie has been blocked from the friendship links of all
and forwarding it!
the girls.
● AUTHOR: Who wrote the article and was the author
Webtips for you an expert on the topic (you could use:
Cartoons / game: www.whois.net)? Which institution and which interests
→ Under surveillance (cartoon for youth dealing with are behind the internet source (e.g. commercial
Internet safety, by League of Human Rights, interests, political positions and ideologies)?
France): ● CONTENT: Which genre and which category of text
www.edri.org/comic-book/en/Under-surveillance- is the document (journalism, academic paper, blog,
comic-book.html polemic)? Where does the information come from and
→ Through the Wild Web Woods: A game by the what evidence is used? What is the purpose of the
Council of Europe which aims to get people to know site? When was the site created, updated, or last
and respect Children´s rights. Available in 25 worked on? Are there citations in the piece? Links to
other websites? What is not being discussed? Who is
languages!
the audience for this information?
www.wildwebwoods.org/popup_langSelection.php#
● PURPOSE: Is the information useful for my specific
purpose?
Other useful resources:
→ Glossary of Internet terms (English): Compare information
www.scoilnet.ie/pdf_webwise/10_glossary.pdf If you search information, check at least 3 different
→ Center for Safe and Responsible Internet (USA, Websites and compare the content you find on them.
Oregon). Student guide to Cyberbullying, Download: This is important, because anyone can create and
http://csriu.org/cyberbully/docs/cbstudentguide.pdf publish information on the net. You can save a page
by clicking on the Favourites menu on the top toolbar
and adding the page to the favourites.
Try out: Which tracks do you or people you know
leave in the Internet? Browse names by means of different Quotation rules
searching engines (Yahoo, Google, Altavista). What are You may use quotes from other authors (e.g. for your
the results? Are the results the same when browsing with presentation), but you should refer to the sources. Add
different search engines? all available data, so that the reader can find the
original.
2. Access, critically analyse and process online • Name of author and/or institution
information • Year of publication
• Title and number of pages
What is YOUR way of searching, collecting and
• Type of source (internet source or book)
processing information in the World Wide Web, if
Quotation from Internet: Indicate the complete
you do some work for school?
Internet address (URL) and data of last online entry (in
brackets). Theses quotation rules also apply for
„If there is text on a screen, returned through the first
photos, films, audio contributions, games etc. –
ten Google hits, then it must be correct and
whether you work on something for school or create
relevant“. Do you agree or disagree with this quote?
your contributions for blogs, Wikis and Internet
Are you more tending towards the „copy-paste-style”
platforms.
or do you thoroughly verify sources?
Google, Blogs and Wikis are easily accessible and Laws on intellectual property
helpful tools to approach a subject, but on the other Do you want to publish data from other authors (e.g.
hand they demand capacities to sift, discard and music, fotos, films, texts) for your blog or the school
judge information: what is trash, what is relevant, newspaper? Ask the author for his/her permission to
what is polemic, what is popular, what is quality and do so, otherwise the author could file for injunctive
reflects diverse views to construct an argument, relief in the worst case.
which ones are reliable sources? The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European
Union protects privacy and personal data.
www.europarl.europa.eu/charter/pdf/text_en.pdf

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This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This communication/publication reflects the views only of the author, and the
Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
VOICE. Dev eloping c it izens – Paths to core compet enc ies t hrough a problem-based learning proj ect in civ ic educ at ion
510806-LLP-1-2010-1-DE-COMENIUS-CMP 2010 - 4193 / 001 - 001

DIGITAL LITERACY FOR TEACHERS

Modern technologies like computer, internet or handys are central elements in everyday life of children and youth.
Young people grow up with new social environments and they easily access at a mouse-click a virtual space that
has a remarkable influence on their social relationships and the ways of communicating. As a matter of fact, digital
literacy does not only mean for teachers to add some more literacy tools to the literacy toolbox of learners, but ,in
addition, also to explore new ways of teaching and learning strategies.

As to which skills should youth acquire in order to be able to orient themselves in democratic societies? Some
central points related to digital literacy and Education for Democratic Citizenship in schools:
□ LITERACY AND CRITICAL/ANALYTICAL SKILLS OF LEARNERS: Many young people believe most of what
they look up online. Active citizenship in the light of digital literacy in school context basically means promoting
critical and analytical skills of learners.
□ SAFETY: It has become important to consider issues of child protection. Anonymous, instant and far reaching
communication capabilities of the Internet have brought new dimensions to child protection issues such as
Cyberbullying, group-related and/or racist attacks or even suicide and sexual exploitation.
Other topics related to internet safety: Data protection, privacy and laws on intellectual property.
□ LEARNING STRATEGIES: Enhance your own professional skills as a teacher and explore tools of Internet and
Web 2.0 for teaching. There is a multicoloured variety of options for educators.

Some suggestions how you and your class could use Internet and Web 2.0:
• Make use of expert online communities when dealing with a particular subject.
• Generate a WebQuest, e.g. via 1.2.3. TU WebQuest (http://questgarden.com.author/overview.php)
or the free Internet tool aula21.net (http://www.aula21.net/Wqfacil/intro.html) in various languages
• Use a Wiki to collaboratively present the results of class work (free Wikis for teachers:
www.wikispaces.com/content/for/teachers)
• Collect links by means of Social Bookmarking
• Documentation of research in a Weblog (Weblogs for teachers: http://edublogs.org)
• Make videos/audios available for your students (platforms for photos, videos etc.)
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ACTIVITIES FOR CLASSROOM

Sources and quoting1

Aims: → To raise awareness about the importance of quoting
→ To practice quoting
Material required PC/Internet, (at least 4 computers) or using PCs at student´s home
Duration 1 – 2 hours
Instruction 1. Class is divided into different groups. Each group works on one topic (migration, democracy,
Europe, Human Rights) and prepares a text by means of „copy & paste“ from different Websites
(at least 3). Text should be 1 page, approx. 5 paragraphs. No sources are indicated, but the
respective links are collected (either on a paper, a learning platform or by means of Social
Bookmarking). Time: 15 minutes (alternatively, one group member prepares the text at home).

2. After 15 minutes the text is electronically forwarded to the members of one of the other groups.
The latter (group 2) completes each paragraph with the respective Internet sources by applying
appropriate quoting techniques. At the end of the activity, group 2 receives the list of all links
which have been used by group 1. Step 2 can also be done as a homework.

3. Feedback with 3 main questions on the estimation and opinion of students:

What do you think, why is it important to quote properly?
What should you particularly consider when you are quoting?
What could be the consequences when information about sources is not provided?

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Source of activity (adapted): www.saferinterrnet.at, Resource Erst denken, dann klicken/Think before you click. Web 2.0 -
Das Mitmach-Internet sicher und verantwortungsvoll nutzen. ÖIAT, 2008 (Austria)
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This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This communication/publication reflects the views only of the author, and the
Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
VOICE. Dev eloping c it izens – Paths to core compet enc ies t hrough a problem-based learning proj ect in civ ic educ at ion
510806-LLP-1-2010-1-DE-COMENIUS-CMP 2010 - 4193 / 001 - 001

Cyberbullying/Cybermobbing
Mobile phone and internet use have become common for youth, so has also the misuse of this technology. There is
evidence that Cyberbulling/Cybermobbing is increasingly widespread in schools nowadays and that it has become a
feature of many young people´s lives. Cyberbullying is the use of ICT, particularly mobile phones and the internet,
deliberately to upset someone else. It may consist of threats, harassment, embarrassment, humiliation, defamation
or impersonation. Cyberbullying may take the form of general insults, or prejudice-based bullying, for example
homophobic, sexist, racist or other forms of discrimination (quote from the website of Childnet International,
Download for school staff: http://old.digizen.org/downloads/cyberbullying_teachers.pdf).
Tip for activity in classroom:
► Let´s fight together! A film about cyberbullying. What we can ALL do to prevent cyberbullying (awarded
short-film by www.digizen.org, Childnet International, 2007/UK, English language. A version with German subtitles
is available on the Website). Including teacher´s guide and lesson plans.

Link to the film http://old.digizen.org/cyberbullying/fullfilm.aspx (length: 7 min., 5 min. presentation of

characters)
Aims of the activity Find solutions for a situation of Cybermobbing. Different options for acting explored by a
role-play.
Methods Film, role-play
Instruction 1. Different roles are distributed among students (Joe, mother of Joe, Kim, Rob, teacher,
director). The other students support their colleagues as if they were coaches for the
persons in the different roles (six groups with three to four coaches). 2 or 3 students could
be observing the role-play and making notes about the options which are acted out in the
role play.

2. The situation at the beginning: All role-players come together for clearing conversation to
seek a way out of the situation of Cybermobbing. First, the actors consult with their coaches
and reflect collaboratively how the respective person could act in his/her role. Then the role-
play starts (duration: 10 minutes approx.)

3. Sharing results and feedback: how did the actors feel in their roles, how do the students
evaluate the solution that has been found in the role-play (on a scale between 1 - 10).
Discussion or results and further ideas for alternative solutions.
Source of the activity www.saferinterrnet.at, resource Erst denken, dann klicken/Think before you click. Aktiv
gegen Cyber-Mobbing. Vorbeugen – Erkennen – Handeln, ÖIAT, 2009 (Austria)

Useful educational resources (English):

→ Insafe unites national Awareness Centres in 27 countries in the EU, Norway, Iceland and Russia (co-funded by
the Safer Internet Programme) to raise Internet safety awareness at the national level. Resources in different
languages are available on the Website.
www.saferinternet.org/web/guest/centre-european-map
→ Empowering Students to be Effective, Autonomous & Safe Users of New Media. A Resource for CSPE
(Civil, social and political education): www.thinkb4uclick.ie/Downloads.aspx,
www.thinkb4uclick.ie/pdf/TB4UC_FULL_VERSION.pdf
→ Alan November (USA) is an international leader in education technology: Web: http://novemberlearning.com/
On his website you can find a quiz which you can use for own purposes or in classroom (+ answers)
http://novemberlearning.com/resources/information-literacy-resources/i-information-literacy-quiz/#
→ Read the URL - Examine the content - Ask about Author - Look at the Links
Do you want to know more about the REAL-Strategy (developed by the Internet educational expert Alan
November)? Have a look at the easily understandable and short videos which you can also use for teaching
purposes.
http://netsafe2011.info/IS01/page_75.htm
→ www.webwise.ie is a comprehensive website of the Irish awareness centre of the European initiative INSAFE
containing information for kids and adults (English language): Interactive information for kids and youth (SURFwise,
CHATwise, SHAREwise, GAMEwise) about different aspects of the use of Internet) available.
www.webwise.ie/article.aspx?id=8664
→ Comprehensive overview on Cyberbullying (+ classroom resources): http://old.digizen.org/cyberbullying
(developed by Childnet, UK, see also above mentioned film Let´s fight together!)
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This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This communication/publication reflects the views only of the author, and the
Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.