At Newington, the use of educational technology is regarded not only as a necessity, but also as a contributor to the development of key skills for our boys to be effective digital citizens. For some students, the responsible and ethical use of the Internet is not something that they consider to be important.

The Well-being program in Term 3 has been designed by Teaching and Learning Librarian Ms Lily Young  with the guidance of the Head of Students, Mr Bob Meakin, to address what fluencies are needed for digital citizens. In doing so, it helps define what the term ‘digital citizenship’ and ‘digital fluency’ means.

‘Fluency’ derives from the word ‘flow.’ When we think about being ‘fluent’ in any context, it refers to being flexible, accurate, efficient, and appropriate.* The purpose of the Digital Citizenship Mentor program is to allow students to develop and use a specific set of skills in an online world. Topics in the program include social media, technology and wellbeing, and digital organisation.

As Mentors, the program is used to facilitate student learning in such a way that encourages boys to effectively find and use information, respectfully use intellectual property, assess credibility and relevance of information from media in all formats all with one aim – to develop an academic digital footprint. The program has resulted in students and staff sharing the many ways for using technology to safely learn, work, and play, whilst infusing it meaningfully in the learning environment.

Click here to read more about Digital Fluency.