Out of Sight, But We Can Still See You Workshop
- Angela Ausbrooks Texas State University
Description
Techopedia defines digital identity as "an online or networked identity adopted or claimed in cyberspace by an individual, organization, or electronic device." Do students in higher education understand they are also creating a "digital Identity" when participating in online classes? Some students adopt a "customer" perspective, and believe that paying tuition provides them the opportunity to engage in class activities as they deem appropriate. Students don't appear to be aware that their participation or lack of participation in online class activities and assignments creates an online identity upon which their academic performance and oftentimes "fit" for their discipline are assessed. Students seem to believe that because they cannot be seen they are anonymous; therefore, they post discussion comments that are disrespectful and biased. The purpose of this workshop is to identify digital identity issues in higher education, and discuss possible solutions for increasing student awareness of their digital identity and its impact on their assessed identity in courses.
Timetable
The session will start with overview of digital identity (5 minutes). Participants will then be asked to identify digital identity issues they may experience in their courses (20 minutes). Participants will then brainstorm specific solutions for issues identified (20 minutes). The last 15 minutes of the session will consist of additional comments, and opportunities for questions.
Interaction
Participants will be asked to work in groups and report back to the larger group when identifying issues and solutions.
Takeaway
Participants should leave the session with practical, applicable solutions and ideas for enhancing students' awareness of their digital identity and how it impacts class performance and assessment of "fit" for the discipline.
Outcomes
One goal is to utilize the outcomes from the session to begin a multi-disciplinary research study on the effectiveness of identified solutions. In addition, the creation of an educational blog is also a goal of the facilitator.