In late 2022 I was able to attend the State Educational Technology Director’s Association (SETDA) annual leadership summit in D.C. The big buzz and talk there were all about the new National Educational Technology Plan (NETP) that was being worked on. This plan is issued out of the Department of Education’s Office of Educational Technology, and the last time it was updated was in 2017. Technology moves fast, and a lot happens in 5 years with technology. The plan, with its policy guidance, was needed.
When listening and talking to other educators and administrators about the upcoming plan an emphasis was made on digital citizenship. I provided my own feedback as well as others, emphasizing the need for students to be digital citizenship and safe and responsible online. I was happy to see that feedback incorporated, and the new NETP plan addresses digital citizenship as part of its three key digital divides.
The NETP is not just a policy document but advocacy plan. It’s right there in the title: “A Call to Action for Closing the Digital Access, Design, and Use Divides.” The gaps it identifies are:
- The Digital Use Divide: This divide includes applications of technology, and opportunities for students to learn and create.
- The Digital Design Divide: Design in this gap This pertains to the opportunities for educators to expand their professional learning. This refers to things like time, support, capacity and instruction for teachers.
- The Digital Access Divide: Equitable access includes issues like internet connectivity, having devices, digital content, accessibility and safety.
Digital citizenship is found in the third divide, Digital Access. Access has always been the foundation of digital citizenship. How can you be a digital citizenship without first being able to access it? The NETP states, “digital health, safety and citizenship as key elements of digital access.” However, the NETP plan goes beyond that foundation, to call for skills and support across all grade levels in digital citizenship subjects such as: internet safety, digital health and medical literacy.
The NETP plan is a call to action, for educational leaders at all levels, and the community to integrate technology within the learning experience. It looks at the situation holistically. Digital learning, including digital citizenship, should not be a “one-off” lesson or program, but embedded across all areas of teaching, design, implementation, evaluation and more. In five years a lot has changed in educational technology, and that change will continue to happen. But by looking at tech not just an “extra” or separate, schools will help their students better prepare for the future.
