I believe digital citizenship is still the best terminology to use in the 21st century. Citizenship implies adherence to a set of rules or guidelines as a citizen of a given country. It is like any discipline with a standard code of conduct to guide one’s behaviour, which one ought to follow if they decide to engage in that profession. Digital has varying meanings depending on the context. The Cambridge and Merriam online dictionaries both indicate that when the term is used in conjunction with other nouns, it means the technological or electronic version of that noun, such as digital media or digital clocks, as opposed to traditional media and analogue clocks. However, what ‘digital’ encompasses will shift over time according to the changing digital environment. When people hear the words digital citizenship as a single term, they have a basic understanding it implies behaving responsibly or in a certain way when participating online. Common Sense Education supports this idea and defines skills in digital citizenship as displaying appropriate behaviour, contributing constructively to online communities, and creating a positive outcome for the future. After reading the first chapter of ‘A Brief History of Digital Citizenship’ by Ribble (2015), I believe my fundamental understanding of the term still stands and is supported by Öztürk’s (2021) article, which demonstrates a similar definition of the term. They both concur that the term regards ethical and behavioural standards one should uphold in the digital realm. I believe the term ‘digital citizenship’ will remain until digital landscapes evolve and experts coin more fitting terms for new circumstances. At this point in time, the term digital citizenship still has its place.

References:

Barks. (n.d.). Flat banner illustration for knowledge, technology, business and education etc [Stock image]. Shutterstock. https://www.shutterstock.com/image-vector/flat-banner-illustration-knowledge-technology-business-1403518733

Cambridge Dictionary. (n.d.). Digital. In Cambridge.org. Retrieved March 5, 2024, from https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/digital

Common Sense Education. (n.d.). Everything You Need to Teach Digital Citizenship. https://www.commonsense.org/education/digital-citizenship

Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Digital. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved March 5, 2024, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/digital

Öztürk, G. (2021). Digital citizenship and its teaching: A literature review. Journal of Educational Technology and Online Learning, 4(1), 31-45. https://primo.csu.edu.au/permalink/61CSU_INST/15aovd3/cdi_proquest_journals_2844067431

Ribble, M. (2015). A brief history of Digital Citizenship. In Digital citizenship in schools : nine elements all students should know (3rd ed., pp9-17). International Society for Technology in Education. https://search-ebscohost-com.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=1072357&site=ehost-live&ebv=EB&ppid=pp_17