Educating for a Just World: Empowering K-12 Students as Global Democratic Digital Citizens

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.51357/jdll.v3i2.240

Keywords:

digital citizenship, global citizenship, democratic citizenship, human rights education, global democratic digital citizens

Abstract

Given the incredible growth in online activity since the global pandemic, there is a need for an updated approach to digital citizenship education that positions students as critical designers and producers who use their learning to inform, to support, and to offer opportunities for change in their communities. In this paper, we examine some of the recent conceptualizations of digital citizenship, human rights education, and global citizenship to identify their intersections and move toward the development of a Global Democratic Digital Citizenship framework for K-12 education. We argue that current frameworks target distinct skills and competencies that enable individualistic performance of global and digital citizenship actions but neglect the development of democratic characteristics and the ways in which these are mediated by digital technologies. Students must understand how to engage respectfully with others, make their voice heard, become interculturally intelligent, and act responsibly and democratically online. Citizenship entails participation in representative democracy; therefore, citizenship education must empower youth to actively engage in local and global democratic processes through both physical and digital channels.

Author Biographies

Janette Hughes, Ontario Tech University

Dr. Janette Hughes is a professor and Canada Research Chair (Tier 2) in Technology and Pedagogy at Ontario Tech University’s Faculty of Education. She has received numerous grants and awards for both research and teaching, and is the editor of Making, Makers and Makerspaces: The Shift to Making in 20 Schools. Dr. Hughes is a prolific author and presenter, sharing her work both nationally and internationally in prestigious scholarly and professional journals, keynote talks, and conferences. Her research explores shifting pedagogies in a digital era, how to foster the development of global skills and competencies in K-12 and higher education, and critical digital literacies across the lifespan.

Jennifer A. Robb, Ontario Tech University

Jennifer A. Robb is an educator and researcher who is passionate about the use of educational technologies in combination with transformative pedagogies to position students as changemakers in their various communities. She holds a Master of Arts from Ontario Tech University’s Faculty of Education where she completed her research as part of the STEAM-3D Maker Lab. Jennifer’s graduate thesis explored how students engaged in citizenship and socially conscious activity through passion-based making with the Internet of Things (IoT), garnering local and international recognition.

Molly Gadanidis, University of Ottawa

Molly Gadanidis is a student in the International Development and Globalization program at the University of Ottawa. She is particularly interested in social justice and education. 

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Published

2024-01-23

Issue

Vol. 3 No. 2 (2023): Special Issue - Social Media & Education

Section

Articles