Digital Footprint

Almost all of us have a digital footprint. There is something about us online. Whether that be a website or a social media account that we created, or something that is posted about us through our workplace. There is almost always something online about us. This is something to be aware of. Is what is online about us positive and professional? What will our employer see when they look up our name? These are all important questions to think about in a world where there is information about us at anyones fingertips.

In a classroom it is important for students to have a model of a positive online presence. This means that when your students look you up, there are positive and professional websites, accounts, etc about you. Modeling this for students may include an artist website or a website about teaching. I could show my students what these look like, and model for students what might be best to have online when you look yourself up.

It is also important to be a part of creating a positive and professional online presence for students. This means having assignments that help them to create a website that holds a portfolio of their work. There could also be an assignment where students are asked to create an art Instagram account that once a week (or more) they post about their process and or finished work. This would allow for students to work towards creating a positive online presence for themselves. It would also get students thinking about their online presence and how that might look to future employers.

Resources:

Article about valedictorian with a purpose through his digital footprint:

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/valedictorian-anonymous-instagram_n_7571462

Website Creators for students to make artist portfolios: https://www.weebly.com/ https://www.wix.com