Digital Competency: Communicating via Digital Technology

The sixth dimension of digital competency focuses on the effective use of digital technology to communicate. Unlike other dimensions, which focus more on technological skills and critical thinking, this dimension is all about mastering the art of tailoring messages to the appropriate context. 

Among other things, this dimension addresses learning how to select and use the right digital tools for effective communications, while respecting the rules of confidentiality.

• In a teaching context, this might look like: 
• Using digital communication tools to communicate confidentially with a student’s parents about the student’s academic progress (mainly by email, but also via classroom management platforms and video meetings)
• Communicating with one or all of your students to pass on information about class content, homework, and lessons
• Getting into the habit of checking your email or the school portal for important information for all school or school board staff

This video (in French) gives a good overview of the possible applications of digital communication in an academic setting. 

As for your students, they may need to apply their communication skills in order to: 

• Communicate with their peers via social media platforms
• Adapt their language to the intended recipient (e.g., choosing the right tone for an email to a friend vs. a teacher or future employer)
• Select an appropriate discussion tool based on the nature of communication (private or public) in order to protect the privacy of personal data 

To introduce your students to digital communication, you can take advantage of digital tools in class and after school: email, student portals, collaborative documents, classroom management platforms, and more. 

The resources below will help you get familiar with the themes related to digital communication, but it’s important to keep in mind that the skills referenced in these dimensions must be built in real-life situations. Here are a few activities to get your students thinking about this topic: 

It’s not always easy to know how to interact with other people online: What tone should you use? What should you share, and with whom? 

• This resource from School of Social Networks lists a few ideas for activities that explore safe and appropriate communication strategies, taking into account the context.
• This article from GCFGlobal.org explains how students can adapt their tone to their audience when writing an email. 
• The activity À travers l’écran, created by RÉCIT for Secondary IV students (in French only), aims to get students thinking about their online interactions, including communication norms and good etiquette.
• For a better understanding of online communications, the activity Understanding the Internet: Communication and Social Media from MediaSmarts is ideal for students in grades 4 to 6. 

Social media is an integral part of most students’ lives. The following resources and activities will help them understand the implications of social media use: 

• This collection of videos from Télé-Québec (in French only) covers a wide range of topics related to digital communication and social media. This document (also in French only) has companion activities for a number of the videos in the collection.
• Colab’s French-language activities Les caractéristiques des médias sociaux and Les fonctionnements des médias sociaux are designed to help Grade 4 students understand the characteristics and functions of social media. 

Unfortunately, cyberbullying, hate, violence, and other harmful language and behaviour is possible in digital exchanges. To educate your students about appropriate and respectful online behaviour, explore these activities: 

• The RÉCIT activity Comment[aire] la haine, which is designed for use in Cycle 1 of high school, invites students to reflect on hateful behaviours and freedom of expression online (available in French only).
• It’s important to understand the differences between online and offline communication and the possible impacts on others, and the MediaSmarts activity Understanding Cyberbullying: Virtual vs. Physical Worlds tackles the subject in an interesting way (Cycle 1 of high school).
• In the same vein, the MediaSmarts activity Introduction to Cyberbullying: Avatars and Identity aims to introduce students to the concept of empathy in online communications, as well as what to do if they’re the victim of cyberbullying (elementary Cycle 3).

Any public interaction that happens online may be difficult to erase later on. That’s why it’s essential for students to learn about the importance of being careful about what they post and where. 

• Les actions et les attitudes qui peuvent favoriser l'identité numérique (elementary Cycle 3) and La permanence des traces sur le Web (high school cycle 2) are two French-language activities designed by RÉCIT to get your students thinking about the impact of their digital footprints.
• More generally, the Identité numérique website, created by the Centre de services scolaire de Laval, has activities for elementary and high school students on a variety of topics related to maintaining a positive online identity.
• The MediaSmarts activity That’s Not Cool: Healthy and Respectful Relationships Online addresses both unhealthy online relationships and how sharing other people’s private content violates their privacy. It was designed for high school Cycle 1 students.