Common Sense Education, the national nonprofit organization dedicated to helping kids and families thrive in a world of media and technology, has recognized Darlington School as a Common Sense School.
"Our technology integration program was established for our students based on a simple purpose: learning the skills necessary for safe and responsible digital creation and communication," said Stefan Eady, assistant head of school for academic affairs. "This endorsement from Common Sense Media of our commitment to responsible use is a great affirmation for our families and faculty."
Darlington has demonstrated its commitment to taking a whole-community approach to preparing its students to think critically and use technology responsibly to learn, create, and participate, while preparing them for the perils that exist in the online realm, such as plagiarism, loss of privacy, and cyberbullying. With the right support, students can take ownership of their digital lives, engage with real issues, and change their communities for the better. The recognition acknowledges Darlington's commitment to creating a culture of digital citizenship.
"We applaud the faculty and staff of Darlington School for embracing digital citizenship as an important part of their students' education," said Kelly Mendoza, vice president of education programs at Common Sense Education. "Darlington deserves high praise for giving its students the foundational skills they need to compete and succeed in the 21st-century workplace and participate ethically in society at large."
Darlington has been using Common Sense Education's innovative and research-based digital citizenship resources, which were created in collaboration with researchers from Project Zero, led by Howard Gardner at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and are grounded in the real issues students and teachers face. To reach every student, lessons are delivered in each classroom from pre-k to 5th grade covering different topics each month. The curriculum is covered in the advisory program for grades 6th through 12th. In addition, materials and activities are sent home to parents and families to extend the topic outside of the classroom.
"We're honored to be recognized as a Common Sense School," said Beth Wardlaw, technology integration coordinator. "By preparing our students to use technology safely and responsibly, we are providing them an opportunity to build lifelong habits to help them succeed in a tech-driven world. This process has taken mold over the past three years, as we continue to build and strengthen our program."
For more information about Darlington School, go to www.darlingtonschool.org. To learn more about the criteria Darlington met to become recognized as a Common Sense School, visit https://www.commonsense.org/education/recognition-schools.
