Pinterest is an image-based site, you have the ability to organise information through visual pins which you can sort into boards, which are essentially virtual collages. Pocket differs from Pocket as it allows you save information in the form of articles. You can transfer an article to your saves, where it can be accessed at any time. When you click on an article, you have the ability to highlight words or sentences. Similarly, to Pinterest, you’re also able to organise your saved articles into tags. 

 

After familiarising myself with both apps, I found that I preferred Pinterest. Pinterest has  more features compared to Pocket, for example, you have the ability to search for specific boards or pins. For some searches such as ‘hair’ I found that I could filter this search even more by specifying hair type or colour which I found useful and convenient. Pocket doesn’t have a search bar, so you have to rely on the algorithm completely to find you relevant articles. I also found the interface more accessible than Pocket. 

 

Pocket’s layout felt awkward to use and less intuitive, especially when I was trying to organise any articles I saved. The tag feature is useful to an extent but felt more time consuming as opposed to the board mechanism on Pinterest. I really liked how I could organise my pins into subsections on boards, whereas my saved articles were all placed under the same tab. The tag feature became less effective for me as I continued to save more articles and I felt like my saved section was getting cluttered and hard to navigate. Although I found both apps useful, I preferred Pinterest overall.

 

The purpose of Padlet is to present information the form of text and images in a timeline or slideshow. I have found this to be very convenient for organising the content I have created, and this has allowed me to develop my organisation and presentation skills. I did struggle with taking full advantage of the aesthetic aspects of Padlet and I felt that I could have been more creative in terms of my wallpaper, colour scheme, etc. However, reviewing other Padlets helped me form new ideas. Being able to present data in this way is vital in this era of the internet’s development as a digital citizen because technology is becoming so intrinsic to the workplace. (Wallace, 2004). I intend to use Padlet for future presentations that I undertake throughout the duration of my course. 

 

Datawrapper is another tool I have used in this module which serves a similar purpose; however, data is presented in the form of maps. This tool provided me with more scope for possible presentation ideas. Although I found some aspects of the UI somewhat complicated, I believe this experience has been beneficial. Adapting to unfamiliar websites as an internet user is essential in this era of Web 2.0, where information is constantly changing in its forms (Alcott, 2008).

 

I’m very passionate about politics and like to stay up to date on current affairs. However, this has been difficult on platforms such as Twitter, where there is an infinite feed of news and it’s difficult to differentiate what is reliable and what isn’t (Vosoughi et. al, 2018). Pocket provides a space where I can organise and manage news articles on a simple interface so that I can stay informed. At first, I found organising my saved articles challenging but I discovered the tag feature which acted as a filter and in future, I will create more tags to organise my articles further. Going forward, I will make use of the recommendation feature to promote my views and opinions as a politically active digital citizen, it is essential to not only express my own ideas, but also support information coming from verified news articles. 

 

My use of Pinterest during this module has enabled me to express myself creatively. Pinterest is unique compared to other websites as it is image-based. As opposed to creating content myself in the form of text or images, I had the opportunity to curate virtual collages or ‘boards’.  My use of Pinterest has allowed me to discover that I’m not limited to the mode of text and language in order to exchange content with fellow internet users. The use of image-based content ensures that I can collaborate with others without language barriers, and in doing so, expressing myself artistically online as a digital citizen. (Forini, 2014).

 

Personally, I have always been a visual learner. Taking this into consideration, I have struggled at times in the past when given written instructions for a task and learn far better from visual demonstrations. YouTube is a phenomenal tool for this purpose. (Suciu, 2021). Creating a tutorial YouTube video myself accompanied by a voiceover using the screen-recording tool Screen-O-Matic provided me with an opportunity to explore an alternative function to YouTube that I was not accustomed to as a viewer. Navigating the multiple components or producing a video such as filming editing, combining two digital tools was challenging but provided me with an enriched insight into a method of communication that I had never utilised online previously. One aspect of YouTube that fascinates me is the comment section. Although I didn’t receive enough interaction to receive comments, I will take full advantage of this in future use as it enables content creators to from a connection with their consumers and can provide great insight into these individuals as people (Tolson, 2013). Possessing this ability is invaluable for the way that I present myself and form connections as a participant in the digital sphere.

 

Lastly, I found the Peerscholar aspect of this module hugely valuable. As an ICS student, communication is integral to my studies, therefore I find peer feedback highly beneficial. As part of this exercise, I read two of my peers’ reflections and provided feedback, in turn receiving feedback for my own reflection. The main consensus was that I wasn’t specific about previous knowledge I possessed prior to the module activities. Secondly, I didn’t specify any struggles I encountered when using any named platforms. I took this feedback into consideration and altered my reflection accordingly. Overall, I felt that peer reviews improved my final reflection.

 

In conclusion, the use of platforms such as Pocket, Pinterest, Padlet, Datawrapper, Screen-O-Matic and YouTube has provided me great insight into the potential of my influence and abilities as a digital citizen.

 
Bibliography:

Hintz, A., Dencik, L., & Wahl-Jorgensen, K. (2018). Digital citizenship in a datafied society. John Wiley & Sons.

Wallace, P. (2004). The Internet in the workplace: How new technology is transforming work. Cambridge University Press.

Vosoughi, S., Roy, D., & Aral, S. (2018). The spread of true and false news online. science, 359(6380), 1146-1151.

Forini, A. (2014) ‘How Pinterest Became a Booming Factory for Creativity’ WIRED. Available at: https://www.wired.com/2014/07/pinterest-creativity/ (Accessed 5^th March 2023)

Suciu, P. (2021) ‘YouTube Remains the Most Dominant Social Media Platform’ Forbes. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/petersuciu/2021/04/07/youtube-remains-the-most-dominant-social-media-platform/?sh=6e670a976322 (Accessed 5^th March 2023)

Alcott, M. (2008) ‘What is Web 2.0?’ CBS News. Available at: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/what-is-web-20/ (Accessed 5^th March 2023).

Tolson, A. (2013). A new authenticity? Communicative practices on YouTube. In Self-Mediation (pp. 93-106). Routledge.

 

 

 

 

-The right to remove any videos I have posted. Any duets or stitches of my removed videos should not continue to show my portion of the post. 

-I have the right to receive full disclosure over how my content is used. I should be notified and be given to option to opt out of any exchange of my data between third parties.

-I have the right to a safe and pleasant experience on TikTok. TikTok is responsible for taking appropriate action such as removing a user’s account if they harass or pose harm to me as a user on the platform. 

-I uphold the right to conscious use of TikTok. I should provided with guidelines for healthy use of the site such as recommended time usage. 

-As a user, I have the right to be informed of all TikTok features. This includes full disclosure about the creator fund and how it impacts my exposure on the algorithm. 

 

My use of LinkedIn during this module encouraged me to be mindful about how I represent myself on social media in a professional sense. I found some aspects of creating my profile quite challenging. As I don’t have enough experience yet with work culture, interviews, etc. I wasn’t certain what is deemed appropriate to put on my profile and what isn’t. For example, deciding on a profile picture was challenging as I had to consider factors such as camera quality, background and clothing. Looking at the profiles of my peers/friends helped to grasp a better idea of what is relevant to post on a LinkedIn profile. From this activity, I learned that what I post is never truly private and it cannot be guaranteed that what you post may be seen by a potential employer (Sanders, 2011).

 

E-tutorials allowed me to understand the technicalities of collecting data and the specific ways in which companies collect my data, how I may subconsciously provide data and how it can be presented through mediums such as infographics. One aspect of the quiz that I found challenging was when we had to click an area of the screen for social analytics. One question showed the Twitter interface, which I am not personally familiar with. I went back over the quiz slides and read through past attempts to rectify my mistakes. Gaining a better understanding of this technology has since informed my choices about how I interact with social media and my digital strategy.

 

Creating the privacy policy forced me to reflect on my rights as a social media user, or lack thereof (Hetler, 2023). Creating my own policy gave me time to reflect and evaluate my needs as an internet user. This activity also enabled me to consider the potentially damaging aspects of apps like Tiktok and the negative affects they have on individual users and internet consumption (Stegner, 2023). Reading Anderson’s article motivated me to be more vigilant about informing myself on a platform’s terms of use before signing up. 

 

Creating my infographic allowed me to formulate specific steps I can use going forward with my personal digital strategy. I was able to apply the knowledge I had gathered from undergoing the prior activities to create these steps, for example, my use of LinkedIn led to the decision to be mindful of how I express myself on social media sites. Creating my infographic allowed me to express myself creatively and this display of information is something I can refer back to going forward as a digital citizen (Mossberger et al., 2007).

 

Undergoing peer reviews was hugely beneficial for refining my digital strategy. Reading my peers’ reflections gave me insight into alternative experiences with social media. The main critique I received was that my reflection was too short and I adjusted my word count accordingly. One of my peers encouraged me to provide my detail about my personal opinions which I took into consideration as well.

 

In conclusion, the knowledge I have acquired during this module helped me come more informed about my rights as social media user and how I am perceived on these platforms. Carrying out these tasks has helped me devise a digital strategy that supports my needs as an internet consumer and the needs of those around me. Going forward, my strategy is to maintain a good image on my profiles. I intend to keep all of my profiles private and not post anything that I would feel uncomfortable allowing an employer to view. If I come across harmful content on social media, I will report it and lastly, I will inform myself on the terms and conditions of my most commonly used apps such as Tiktok and Instagram. Additionally, I will eep up to date on any changes in these policies and any news associated with these sites. I believe that all of these steps I have listed will help me manage my digital presence and preserve my best interests on the internet.

Bibliography:
Like me: Generation Z and the use of social media for personal branding. Management Dynamics in the Knowledge Economy, 7(2), 257-268.

Sanders, S. D. (2011). Privacy is dead: The birth of social media background checks. SUL Rev., 39, 243.

Mossberger, K., Tolbert, C. J., & McNeal, R. S. (2007). Digital citizenship: The Internet, society, and participation. MIt Press.

Hetler, A. (2023) ‘6 common social media privacy issues’ WhatIs.com. Available at: https://www.techtarget.com/whatis/feature/6-common-social-media-privacy-issues

Stenberg, B. (2017) ‘7 Negative Effects of Social Media on People and Users’ Make Use Of. Available at: https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/negative-effects-social-media/

Hovey, T. (2021) ‘How do you define “digital strategy”?’ Medium. Available at: https://medium.com/@tomhovey/how-do-you-define-digital-strategy-2abf97b36367#:~:text=A%20digital%20strategy%20is%20a,make%20life%20better%20for%20people.