It's all about your digital footprint
What is a digital footprint? It's an important question to answer before we further reflect on the matter. Think of the footprints you leave in the sand on the beach. Being an active on the internet is like walking in the sand because you are leaving footprints while entering information. Unlike the beach where the tide washes away your footprints, your digital ones won't simply wash away, hence the importance of leaving a positive digital footprint.
Image retrieved from:
So where am I leaving these prints you may wonder? the next image may help you get a better visual of what your digital footprint may look like.
Image retrieved from: http://mrfrew.weebly.com
The notion of leaving digital footprints everywhere in the online world may be a scary one. For quite some time educators were discouraged from having a digital footprint as mentioned by Dodie Ainslie in her blog by saying "When I first started mentoring teachers the advice that was given to them was to try to avoid having a digital footprint. Don’t comment on blogs and above all don’t have profiles on Myspace or Facebook". This was probably the advice propagated in the wake of a rapidly growing social media phenomenon by school boards scared of the potential legal ramifications of mishandled digital footprints. Luckily this view is now changing.
The first question we need reflect on is; Do I want a digital footprint? For years I've personally tried to maintain a small digital footprint because I value my privacy. When I think of it from an education standpoint I see a great opportunity. Completely ignoring or staying away from the digital world would be a great mistake in today's day and age where people are using these means as an integral part of their lives. This gives educators more opportunities to connect with their audience, help, exchange ideals, influence change, interact with peers, keep up with emerging trends and discover new ways or technologies related to teaching/learning. I've decided that this blog would be my first digital step in increasing my digital footprint and I'm eager to further expand beyond that.
This brings us to the second question, what is a positive digital footprint? How do we make sure we have a positive one? It starts with yourself by always keeping in mind that what goes online leaves your digital footprint and that this should be managed the same way you do your career for instance. At work we all observe a certain code of conduct which dictates what is or isn't acceptable in our workplace. As you may have read in my previous post on Digital Citizenship, the digital world has it's own code of conduct which everyone should familiarize themselves with to ensure they leave a positive footprint.
It can be easy on the internet to forget that we are still responsible for our words and actions in the digital world despite just facing a screen. Managing your digital footprint goes beyond what you control because others may be affecting it by posting negative comments about you or propagating false rumors for instance. That's why you also need to keep track of where and how your name is being used online. This step often starts by going to your favorite search engine and searching your name to see what comes up but other sites like http://socialmention.com/ will show you what people are saying about you on social media.
What conclusions have I drawn from all this? When I conducted the above mentionned searches on myself I confirmed what I previously stated about having maintained a small digital footprint. I simply couldn't find anything about myself or even any mentions of me anywhere, I am a digital ghost. I now feel the need to increase my visibility and shine a light on not only who I am and what I do but on what I have to say and the contributions that I could be making in someone's life by sharing my stories, experiences and knowledge. I want to increase my presence not only by posting my thoughts in here but reaching out for others who share my passion for learning/facilitating and share or exchange ideals. That will be what I aim to improve as I go forward and hope that when I look back on this reflection I'll be in a position to say that I've succeeded.
What will you do to increase your digital footprint? How do you manage yours?
Mat
No comments:
Post a Comment
Share your ideals/comments here