Citizenship Reloaded: digital citizenship (and tools) for a new European citizenship

While we see an increasing presence of people (not only youngsters) in digital contexts, and more and more studies describe on-line virtual spaces as something which is part of the everyday life experience and not something separated from It, many people still lack the basic skills for being a proper citizen of this new space.

This also applies to youngsters, which are often attracted by online relationships / interactions through digital media, and are very much involved in using them extensively, but who often show with their behaviour that they are not aware of many of the possible risks, and in general of the complexity of this new part of human life experience.

In this perspective there isn’t any meaning to the definition “digital natives”: we should better talk about digital consumers, who are in bad need of defining their citizenship rights (and duties) in this part of their life too.

For the above reasons this training course aims at with the following objectives:

- to develop specific knowledge, skills and attitudes of youth workers and trainers related to the digital environments, such as: media awareness, digital literacy, knowledge of online communities and cultures, digital communication;

- to understand online communities, their cultures, dynamics and values, and how they can be a challenge or an asset for youth work - aiming at contrasting online hate, bullying and the spread of violent ideas that undermine the democratic process;

- to improve the understanding of the online environments that play a major role in youth socialization (videogames, creative platforms, news sources, mainstream media…) - and explore their potential benefits if used properly and in a youth work context;

- to get familiar with online communication, its most widely used tools, and how to use them for educational purposes; 

- to explore approaches, tools and methods for youth work and education useful to build effective counter-narratives (as opposed to anti-narratives) and contrast toxic and hate communication.

The Training Course will include a mix of activities such as keynote speeches, visit to local realities, short theoretical inputs, applied practical workshops to learn tools and develop skills, and space for networking and sharing of practices.  

Target Groups:

- youth workers, preferably active with youth 13-16 (or younger) years old 

- educators and teachers working with early and mid teens (age 13-16) 

- active members of parents’ associations or organizations

- local policy makers involved in youth or educational contexts

- representatives of law enforcement agencies actively involved in the course topics, such as police

A small delegation of the participants selected will be invited to take part to the International Game Lab which will take place in Rome from the 17th to the 19th of April 2020, according to the availabilities  of the organisers and the participants.