The use of technology has been a growing force in education. Once, classrooms were relatively isolated, nestled into a school in a suburb, small town or city. Now, regardless of physical location, today’s students have access to the larger world through the Internet. However, the focus of education itself has not necessarily changed.

Educating has always been about preparing students to be successful citizens, in whatever way possible. Strong reading, writing and math skills continue to be important, as does character. Being able to get along with others, having self-control and patience, being honest and trustworthy: these have always been traits teachers have hoped to instill in their students, and that remains true today.

Strong character is essential in the use of technology used for classroom learning. The Internet itself is a wide source of knowledge, as well as being the gateway to further content. As students attending traditional and online schools alike begin to use the Internet more and more for research, they need to learn how to utilize this tool in an ethical manner. Thus, teachers should inform students how to find credible websites when working on research projects as well as how to properly cite their sources in order to avoid plagiarism. Teaching students how to use the Internet responsibly early on will not only help students academically but also teach them to respect the work of others.

Good character is also imperative when using the Internet in a more social way. As students interact on the web, they are becoming digital citizens. Just as they must learn to adapt to their role as members of their school community, they must learn that, when they participate online, they are creating an identity representing themselves, and possibly their school.

The use of social networking has the potential to create problems, as students use sites like Facebook to connect and communicate. As a result, issues such as gossip and bullying are no longer left behind when the school day ends, since student communication continues online. Bullying, in particular, has reached new levels with the advent of cyberbullying. Luckily, there are several things students, parents and teachers can do to prevent this. A website created to help promote positive interaction on the Internet gives some excellent tips.

While there are potential problems in the use of technology, it is an excellent instructional tool for developing good character. Social interactions within the school, in the classroom, in the cafeteria and on the playground have always provided excellent teaching opportunities. The Internet simply provides another venue. Teachers can teach proper behavior and take opportunities to get involved and correct when needed. Finally, teachers can model good behavior by considering what they say online, and being cognizant that nothing is private on the Internet.

With the increase in the use of technology, a focus on the basics of good character must be maintained. Being able to interact well with others has always been crucial, but perhaps even more so now, as students are conversing with people across the world, and of many different backgrounds and races. As the world gets smaller, being able to participate in that world in a positive way is more than important than ever.

This post was written by guest contributor Lindsey Wright, a freelance writer who is fascinated with the potential of emerging educational technologies, particularly the online school, to transform the landscape of learning. She writes about web-based learning, electronic and mobile learning, and the possible future of education.

To learn more about educating students for digital citizenship, don’t miss the keynote panel at the upcoming National Forum on Character Education and the remarks of digital citizenship expert, Dr. Jason Ohler.

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We’ve already begun to hear about excited attendees and speakers who are low on funds for the conference. It certainly is a great expense, when you add up the registration fees, hotel costs, flights, and any other expenses that come to mind. We know what it’s like, being a nonprofit ourselves in these challenging time. Know that we are constantly working to find funding opportunities for you. Our Director of Resource Development is as we speak trying to secure funds we can reserve for scholarship money for our wonderful attendees out there, and we will be sure to let you know as soon as funds do become available throughout this registration cycle.

In the meantime, what options are out there for finding funding on your own? Many schools have pulled travel and conference funding as budgets are being slashed across the nation. One of our breakout session speakers initially applied after confirming that funds were available to travel, but has since heard that none of those funds will actually be available. So it becomes vitally important to explore all possible options to find other sources.

Here are some ideas that can help get that process started, many of which have been successful endeavors by previous conference attendees.

Within the Community

Has your school built a relationship with any of the organizations in the surrounding community? Local businesses and groups like the Rotary Club are great candidates to ask for help. They often are interested in helping their local schools and by showing them what you will get out of this conference that will make you a better school leader who can have a bigger impact on the kids, you can show them how important this conference really is.

The best way to pitch your story is often to find out what aspects of the conference are most important to you, personally. By highlighting the pieces that you are most passionate about, those business leaders and community members will see your eagerness and your motivation to get as much as you possibly can out of this conference. Offer to share your insights with them when you get back—maybe they’ll be able to learn something, too!

We at CEP are currently working to get more specific details about the conference online. For example, we are working on getting the schedule of breakout sessions finalized and highlighting descriptions of a variety of sessions that showcase the types of topics our speakers will be covering this year. Right now, you can check out our keynote speakers and events taking place before the official start of the Forum. Keep checking back on the website for more and more details to be posted.

Within the School

What about sources within the school community itself? While there may be no funding available from the school itself, often the students and their parents are invested in the school and see just how enriching character development is for the whole community.

It might be possible to raise money within the school community. You could turn it into something fun for the kids to get involved in, for example by offering some sort of fun prize if enough money is raise. We have a great story from Sullivan Primary School last year, which we hope to post more details on separately, where each classroom raised money and the class that raised the most got to pick which teachers and school leaders were able to come to the conference using that funding.

Parents can be helpful in multiple ways. If your parents are involved and engaged in your community, they may contribute individually, or a request through the PTA could garner some cash for your endeavor. Alternatively, parents may be willing to donate frequent flyer miles. Often families may accrue these miles without ever quite using them up, or perhaps multiple parents could donate enough for you to collect enough points to receive a free flight. Often the flight can be the most expensive part, so this is a great way to remove that cost from the equation.

CEP Funding

As we mentioned above, CEP is actively searching out ways to fund scholarships that can help lower your registration costs. It is still early in the cycle for this, so we don’t have any to offer just yet. As soon as these funds become available, however, we will be sure to post the exciting news to our website, Facebook, and Twitter pages. So be sure to keep a lookout for those notices. (If you haven’t yet added us to your social media network, be sure to do so and you’ll automatically receive these updates!)

We do offer a volunteer rate for participants that are interested in helping CEP during the Forum. We have a number of openings for volunteers. Your responsibilities would include facilitating two breakout sessions to ensure that everything goes smoothly and to collect feedback at the end. The rate is $250 and you would need to send an email to Farrell Harding and Rebecca Sipos (see their emails on this page) explaining why you would like to volunteer.

Other Ideas?

What suggestions do you have for other attendees? Do you have any stories of what has worked for you in the past? Post your ideas, obstacles, or questions below and we’ll generate a discussion to ensure everyone can make it to the conference!

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