Reflection Blog 3
Digital literacy encompasses technical skills as well as social skills and cultural competencies:
Figure 1: Retrieved from CI3342, Social Media & Connected Learning.
Digital citizenship is directly connected to digital literacy, focusing on the social skills and cultural competencies.
The Digital Citizenship Website defines digital citizenship as “the continuously developing norms of appropriate, responsible, and empowered technology use” (2017). They explain 9 elements of digital citizenship which Xu et al display well in an easy, at-a-glance graphic, which I will refer back to later in this discussion:
Figure 2: Xu et al 2019, page 3, Framework of digital citizenship, based on Ribble and Miller (2013).
I think of digital citizenship the same way I think of citizenship in the physical world — it’s about how you behave as a member of your community, whether that community inhabits your physical world or the digital world.
One place where the physical world and the digital world can exist harmoniously is in the workplace by use of a private social networking platform. These tools share many of the same attributes of other social media sites, but they are accessible only by members of the company — and by all members of the company.
While businesses previously limited social networking to recruitment and branding activities, they now find that using private social networking can add value to their business as well. Ana Gotter cites a recent study that 60% of employees are not satisfied with their company’s internal communications, and 44% saying that nothing has changed in their communication approach in the past five years (2020). She indicates that private social networking can help address these concerns and improve employee morale by bringing transparency and inclusion to the workplace.
The Framework of Digital Citizenship notes two important aspects are Educating Yourself and Connecting with Others. Ben Rossi indicates that private social networking can help employees “connect, learn, share and grow. It allows for open communication inspiring creative dialogues across generations and geographies” and he further explains how his own company’s internal social media site went “from an experiment to the bedrock of company culture” (2015) — the key values being transparent communication and employee engagement.
In a study by Sharm and Bhatnagar, the authors found that private social networking empowers employees to expand their network and connect to people across the organization to collaborate, share ideas, problems, and solutions. They further explain these tools only work if employees use them and can feel free to share both positive and negative feedback without fear of being monitored. “This happens when organizations create an open and transparent culture where employees realize that their voices are not only heard but also valued and acted upon” (p 17, 2016).
While Sharm and Bhatnager note the importance of employees not feeling they are monitored, I believe that this is not avoidable in a business environment. When you use your own name and are easily identified, and when you know that everyone from your co-worker to the CEO can view your post, it will inevitably impact your communication. However, I also think this helps support The Framework of Digital Citizenship aspects of Digital Etiquette, Digital Rights & Responsibilities, and Digital Health & Wellness. Even if people aren’t knowingly displaying these values of digital citizenship, their participation is likely to incorporate these values, as they know their colleagues will see it.
In his 2016 research, Breunig found that private social networking can foster workplace learning between colleagues across the globe. We experience this in 2020, with Covid-19 as even those typically in close physical proximity are now working remotely from home. Breunig’s study found that “the learning mechanisms involved in virtual collaboration do not differ much from what is reported on face-to-face workplace learning” (p 1, 2016).
Considering my own workplace, we have a rich platform where employees around the world regularly engage on work-related matters. But what has previously been missing is the personal side. Posts were typically limited to notifications of events like professional webinars, or questions related to work-specific problems. Since Covid-19, the personal nature of our private social networking has spread as quickly as the virus itself. People are seeking and sharing advice on topics as diverse as challenges of working from home (especially with young children), free online education opportunities for both children and adults, recreational ideas, inspirational websites, and just simple words of encouragement. This new development has helped us all feel closer during these trying times.
But in order to engage, it is critical that everyone knows how to use the tool, which brings us back to digital literacy. A co-worker contacted me for help using our private social networking. While she has viewed the site many times, she has never posted anything or commented on another post herself. She wanted to be able to more actively participate and engage within the community, but she didn’t know how to do that. While this is relatively simple, she was nervous and as a professional didn’t want to “do it wrong” in front of the entire company. She needed this basic digital literacy technical skill to be able to participate fully.
I think platforms such as private social networking at work are a great way to foster digital citizenship. But it is important that all participants know how to use the tool, feel they are valued members of the community, and actively engage.
Resources:
Breunig, K.J., 2016. Limitless learning: assessing social media use for global workplace learning. The Learning Organization, 23(4), pp.249–270.
Digital Citizenship, retrieved from: https://www.digitalcitizenship.net/home.html
Gotter, A., 2020. Internal social media options and what they can do for your business. Retrieved from: https://revive.social/internal-social-media/
Rossi, B., 2015. The evolving role of internal social networks in the workplace. Retrieved from: https://www.information-age.com/evolving-role-internal-social-networks-workplace-123459336/
Sharma, A. & Bhatnagar, J., 2016. Enterprise social media at work: web-based solutions for employee engagement. Human Resource Management International Digest, 24(7), pp.16–19.
Xu, S. et al., 2019. Social media competence and digital citizenship among college students. Convergence: The International Journal of Research into New Media Technologies, 25(4), pp.735–752.
