Digital citizenship at school: Democracy, pragmatism and RRI

Abstract

This paper presents a strategy for fostering digital citizenship at school that transcends the mere use of digital devices or instructional methods focused solely on their use. The core premise of this proposal rests on the need for an ethical-political debate concerning digitization in education. In addition, it emphasizes the need to cultivate a form of digital literacy that blends science and technology with the humanities, and erases the traditional boundaries between making and thinking. The proposed approach encapsulates two primary concerns: firstly, it asserts that digital literacy serves as a foundation for meaningful participation in digital societies; secondly, it underscores the importance of democratizing digital technologies by incorporating the perspectives, needs, and concerns of children. Drawing inspiration from the theories of pragmatism and responsible research and innovation (RRI), we present a conceptual framework for digital citizenship. To operationalize this approach, we adapt John Dewey's pragmatic model of inquiry as a method that can be applied within the school setting. This pragmatic methodology serves as a conduit for developing hands-on experience geared towards developing digital citizenship. The practical implementation of this methodology is illustrated through an actualized experience with 10- and 11-year-old children in a public primary school, regarding the issue of care robots. This paper advocates for a symbiotic relationship between theoretical understanding and practical application, and puts forward a concrete proposal for the integration of digital citizenship in schools in the form of a four-phase procedural model, based on the creation of what we term ‘the encounter’ between the educational community and the research and development community.