Personal and Professional Digital Identity:  

Your digital identity is reflected in your online presence. It is shaped by what you post, share, and engage with (University of Derby, 2016), and people often have separate personal and professional identities online. Your online presence can be viewed through the Visitor’s and Resident’s Model (jiscnetskills, 2014) which explains the two ends of the spectrum of online activity. The visitor end leaves no trace of our identity, Google searches for example, while the residence side leaves traces of our identity online with platforms like our social media accounts. Intersecting vertically with the visitor and resident spectrum is a personal and institutional spectrum, one side being personal activity, and the other, work or professional-related activity (jiscnetskills, 2014). While using various online platforms, everyone who uses the internet falls into different areas on this spectrum.  

Even if students don’t have a personal digital identity, many still use digital platforms to develop their professional digital identity and network. Classrooms use Google Classroom, allowing students to work together to post and collaborate on subjects that they learn in school. Even using the Google search engine for research helps students find professional information networks online. These would be more visitor-based activities on the spectrum. Students also use applications like WordPress or blogs to display their work in digital portfolios. This would be a more resident-based way of creating a professional identity.  

Students who want to consider expanding their professional networks might take an even more residential approach by posting and sharing about topics they are interested in, or learning about, on forums or blogs, or even make videos or blog posts of their own. They could even expand their professional network by starting social media accounts like Instagram, YouTube, or TikTok that focus on their interests or subjects they are learning about.  

When we take a more residential approach to creating a professional learning network, it is vital to be extremely careful about privacy and security. You must be wary of the information you are posting online, who you are talking to, and what you say online. The fear of others finding important information and data about you can definitely be a limitation to creating a personal learning network because not everything online is as it seems. However, the added emphasis on data privacy and security in recent years has made it easier and safer for people to seek out, join, and be part of professional learning networks without fear of their data being stolen.   

As a teacher teaching on call, I have created a professional learning network, receiving great ideas and inspiration by following other teachers on Instagram and TikTok. In addition, I have teacher friends who I communicate with over text messages, emails, and video chats. When I communicate personally with my teacher friends, I take a more residential approach toward my digital identity, but when I follow teachers on social media, I take more of a visitor approach. If I wanted to create a more significant digital identity, I could do that by messaging with the teachers I follow on social media, commenting on their posts, or I could create my own posts showing my teaching ideas.   

If I was to apply for a job right now and was assessed on my social media presence via my digital identity, I don’t know how much information they would find. All of my social media accounts are private, and I don’t post about anything to do with my job on social media. I don’t believe there is anything they would find that would cause them not to hire me. Other than a WordPress blog with a small amount of my schoolwork and projects posted, I have not created a large professional digital identity either. Most of my participation in professional learning networks lean towards the visitor side of the spectrum.   

References: 

Jiscnetskills. (2014). Visitors and Residents. [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPOG3iThmRI 

University of Derby. (2016). Eric Stoller – What is Digital Identity? [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0RryRbJza0.