Does Scratch.mit.edu Promote Global Digital Citizenship?

For this activity I am reviewing the website http://scratch.mit.edu for Global Digital Citizenship using the following questions:

In what learning environments would the technology resource I presented be appropriate?

• Equitable Access - 
• It is free to sign up, so no extra money is needed.
• It could really only work if there are computers available to the teacher and/or students.
• It would be a really easy website to use if there aren't children with fine motor, gross motor, or visual disabilities in the class.
• If you are good at technology, understand coding (when creating animations) and can problem solve, the website is easy to navigate.
• Safe, Ethical, Legal - 
• It can be easily monitored by the teacher, school, or district, because everything is public.
• There is a "try it out" section if the teacher doesn't want the child to use personal information to sign up.
• The website was created specifically for students and teachers, so there are not inappropriate ads or pop-ups on it.
• Socially Responsible - 
• By creating and publishing animations the students must to be aware of who may view their project.  Would they be proud of what others see, or ashamed?
• The teacher would view the discussion boards and make sure that there is nothing inappropriate before allowing the students to go on them.
• By creating an account on this website, the students are making a promise that they will be socially responsible and not share their password with others or post inappropriate things.
• Global Awareness and Cultural Understanding - 
• There are many discussion boards that the teacher and students can participate in, where they can communicate with people around the world.
• Through the discussion boards and various animations the students can potentially learn about other cultures, religions, etc.  This can help the children understand that people come from all different types of backgrounds, ways of life, etc.

In what learning environments would the technology resource I presented NOT be appropriate?

• Equitable Access - 
• If there are children in the class with fine motor, gross motor, or visual impairments and disabilities, the website may be difficult to use.
• If there are not computers available to the teacher and/or students you would not be able to use this website.
• If you are not good at technology or do not understand coding, you may have difficulty.  Even our group had difficulty figuring out how to create, view, and publish animations.
• Safe, Ethical, Legal - 
• Everything the children make on this website becomes public and other people can view it.
• The children use personal information to sign up for the website, which can be unsafe.
• Socially Responsible - 
• If the teacher did not review the discussion boards prior to using the website and the students see or read inappropriate things, the teacher is not being socially responsible.
• If the students do not keep their password private and let other people use their account, they are not being socially responsible.  They do not know what the other person may post.
• If the students create animations or write discussion postings that they would be ashamed of other people (their teacher, family, etc.) seeing, they would not be acting socially responsible.
• Global Awareness and Cultural Understanding - 
• The children could potentially create something that is offensive to other cultures, religions, etc. when using this website.
• The children could potentially see something that is offensive to their culture, religion, etc. when using this website.

How might it be modified to be appropriate?

• Equitable Access - 
• For children with fine or gross motor disabilities you could switch out the computer mouse for a joystick.  This may be easier for the child to control.
• For children with visual impairments, you could change the contrast of the screen or add audio so that they can still participate.
• If the students do not have access to computers, but the teacher does, you could create an animation as a class instead of individually.
• If a teacher is not good at technology or does not understand coding, they could practice using this website and become familiar with the way it works before presenting it to the class.  They could then, more easily, help students when they have difficulties.
• Safe, Ethical, Legal - 
• Have the students only use the "try it out" method so that they do not have to enter their personal information into the website and risk someone getting a hold of it.
• The teacher could teach a class lesson about internet safety so that all of the children are aware of the risks and make good choices when using the website.
• Socially Responsible - 
• The teacher could teach the class how to use only the games and animation sections.  This could keep them completely off of the discussion board area, so they do not have any chance of seeing or reading something inappropriate.
• The teacher could teach a class lesson about the importance of keeping your password to yourself.  They could discuss what might possibly happen if they do not do this.
• The teacher could have the students only use the "try it out" section, because then the students wouldn't have a password at all.
• The teacher could teach the class about appropriate and inappropriate things they can post on the internet.  They could talk about not posting anything the students wouldn't want their family members to see.
• Global Awareness and Cultural Understanding - 
• The teacher could have a class discussion before using this website about different cultures.  They could discuss how people come from all different types of backgrounds.  This could prepare them for what they may read or see on the website.