TED ELAzIĞ COLLEGE / 9-B
The Responsibility and Rights of a Conscious Digitial Citizenship
Elif Duru CaNaLaN
96
The concept of digital citizenship is a concept that emerged with the development of technology and the transfer of individuals to digital environments . With this digitalization , by using the Internet and being in online environments new individual rights and responsibilities have emerged .
First of all , digital citizens need to use the Internet consciously and safely , and respect the rights of others in online environments . A digital citizen knows the ethical consequences of his online behavior , does not abuse technology , and encourages correct and moral behavior when communicating in the digital world . In this context , both families and children should be informed about being conscious digital citizens . To raise awareness on this topic , a project named Eu Kids Online was conducted with 25,142 children aged 9-16 , including Turkey . According to the average , 60 % of the children are connected to the Internet regularly every day ( Livingstone , Haddon , & Ólafsson , 2011 ) and 59 % of them may encounter various risks online depending on their Internet usage habits . With this study , the statistics of Turkish children ’ s safe use of the Internet , unfortunately , took the last place compared to all European countries .
Secondly , teenage digital citizens appear to know how to use technology as content much better than adults . The point that is overlooked here is the necessity of teaching digital citizens how to take responsibility , rather than teaching them how to use technology as content . Since online technologies have one of the most important shares among digital tools , conscious , safe , and effective use of the Internet should be brought to digital citizens . Considering these factors , one of the most important studies on the conscious , safe , and effective use of the Internet in Turkey is the work carried out under the Presidency of
Telecommunication and Communication ( TİB ). TİB , which carries out awareness-raising programs about citizenship has opened web portals . TİB is obliged to take action against illegal content produced on the Internet . Citizens can report the content of crimes to the Notification Web . Institutions like TİB should play a more active role in the process .
To sum up , digital citizenship is a term that is about our responsibilities and rights considering some factors such as safety and privacy on online platforms .