Digital Citizenship

Maryland Middle Schools Incorporate Digital Citizenship Curriculum

• By Sri Ravipati
• 11/02/16

The largest school district in Maryland is promoting practices for students to be safe, smart and ethical online. All Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) middle schools have incorporated digital citizenship education into curriculum, thanks to a partnership with Common Sense Education.

The Common Sense K–12 Digital Citizenship Curriculum “covers issues such as privacy, cyberbullying, internet safety and other digital dilemmas,” according to a statement. The curriculum comprises lesson plans, videos, interactive activities, assessments and resources to take a “whole-community approach” to digital citizenship, like family outreach materials. Users can either filter learning modules by unit or by topics, such as self-image and identity or creative credit and copyright.  

The partnership is funded by a donor gift from the Delaney Family Fund, a philanthropy organization that has previously supported digital literacy efforts from Common Sense.

Students in grades 6–8 are the first to adopt the curriculum, but the program will expand to all MCPS students over the next three years.

To learn more about the curriculum, visit the Common Sense site.