Digital Dossier

As defined on webopedia a digital footprint is “…is the word used to describe the trail, traces or "footprints" that people leave online.”

In today’s day and age the internet world offers so much for us to create positive digital footprints but also gives us the temptations of contributing some negative footprints in our life’s journey. Most young adults my age are not really concerned about what they put online because they feel as if over the years they have learned the rights and wrongs of the World Wide Web. Posting pictures from a house party may seem like a positive footprint because it shows that you were enjoying yourself and living life to the fullest however in the long run it can hinder your chances of getting your dream job because it shows unprofessionalism in the eyes of an employer.

image retrieved from: http://picterest.info/V2FpbddQ-digital-footprint-definition/

Before watching the YouTube video “Youth and Media- Digital Dossier” I was like everyone other young adult thinking I have matured enough to know what to and not to post online but in reality there are still some things that I have yet to learn. After reviewing the Nine Elements of Digital Citizenship (textbook, pp.15-44) and exploring the Netiquette Site I have learned that in high school when a friend would tell me to go view someone’s nasty tweet to a peer I was negatively adding to my digital footprint because that twitter page is now saved in my browser history and I was a bystander to cyber bullying which is inappropriate technology use according to the nine elements. This also violates Rule #2: adhere to the same standards of behaviour online that you follow in real life. However, posting pictures on Facebook of family gatherings is positively adding to my digital footprint because family members that weren’t able to attend for whatever reason can view the album and get a taste of what the event was like in their absence. 

Part of week one’s module was to complete the Digital Driver’s License exam about technology and how it should be used in classrooms to help the learning process. I had scored a perfect score of 20 out of 20. After completing this exam I feel that I am a good digital citizen and there is definitely room for learning and improvement however I am on the right track. Over all I believe that I do want a digital footprint because in the future having a positive digital footprint will help me get a job when employers see suitable information about me online. Also it can give me the opportunity to brand myself in an amazing way.

image retrieved from: http://stmb4.wikispaces.com/Digital+Citizenship