Responsible online behaviour
Negative effects of digital technologies
While your digital devices offer many benefits, irresponsible use can lead to issues such as mental health problems, privacy invasion, and cyberbullying (Saptasagar, 2021). On the contrary, being responsible involves protecting your personal information, thinking before you share, and acting cautiously with suspicious material. It is essential for your own wellbeing that you are skilful at being safe online. Here are some examples of how you can do this:
Make Informed Choices!
Create strong passwords.
Use privacy settings.
Avoid interacting with people you don’t know.
Beware of untrustworthy sites or links.
Be mindful of location services on your device.
Educate yourself about online safety.
tips for staying safe
(Amaze Organisation, 2017).
This video is licensed under a Creative Commons CC-BY license.
Identifying unhealthy usage
Sexting & harmful unsafe behaviour
Aggressive
behaviour
Negative
DIGITAL usage
Poor sleep
eye strain
bad posture
less exercise
Sharing
inappropriate
or private
information
Mental Health
issues such
as anxiety
or depression
Cyberbullying
Health
benefits
Creativity
&
digital
expression
Enhances problem solving and critical thinking skills
Positive DIGITAL usage
Develops critical academic skills such as source evaluation
Enriches education
through digital tool usage
Improves communication
(Adapted from Saptasagar, 2021)
Resource
This activity book will help you consider the impact of your digital actions.
Images by Diego Solas Sketchify Korea
via canva.com
Think before you click...
Imagine you're flicking through your social media news feed and an image catches your attention, tempting you to click on it to find out more information. However, when you actually click on it, the actual content isn't as exciting as it suggested, or even worse the content is completely misleading. We call this clickbait. The video below explains this in more detail.
What is clickbait?
This video is licensed under a Creative Commons CC-BY license.
(The Digital Life Skills Company, 2019).
Using keyword searches - top tips
- Be Specific: Use specific keywords related to your topic rather than broad terms. This helps narrow down your search results to more relevant information.
- Use alternative words and create a keyword list: Use an online thesaurus to find other similar words that could be used in your search. Create a word bank as you read so that you collect new and relevant main idea words.
- Evaluate the Source: Before clicking on a link, look at the source URL provided by the search engine.
- Check the Snippet: Search engines often provide a brief preview or snippet of a page's content. Read this snippet to gauge whether the page is likely to contain the information you need.
- Review Multiple Results: Don't rely solely on the first few search results. Skim through multiple pages to ensure you're getting a comprehensive view of the topic.
- Use Trusted Websites: When possible, prioritise information from reputable sources such as government and education websites. These sources are less likely to rely on clickbait tactics.
- Fact-Check: If a headline seems sensational or too good to be true, take a moment to fact-check the information before clicking on the link.
- Consider the Context: Think critically about the context in which the information is presented. Clickbait often relies on exaggerated or misleading headlines to generate clicks, so be wary of sensational language or overly dramatic claims.