New
New
Year 9

What is digital citizenship?

I can explain what digital citizenship and digital democracy mean.

New
New
Year 9

What is digital citizenship?

I can explain what digital citizenship and digital democracy mean.

These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.

Switch to our new teaching resources now - designed by teachers and leading subject experts, and tested in classrooms.

These resources were created for remote use during the pandemic and are not designed for classroom teaching.

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Digital citizenship means using technology safely, ethically and with respect for rights and responsibilities.
  2. Being an active digital citizen means engaging with public issues to make a positive difference.
  3. Digital democracy is using online tools to support key democratic functions like voting and participation.
  4. Digital technologies are making democracy more accessible, but challenges like security and access remain.

Keywords

  • Citizen / citizenship - a person who belongs to a country and has certain rights as they either live in the country, or were born in the country; it is also a legal status given to people

  • Democracy - a system of government in which citizens vote in regular, fair elections for representatives who then make laws and decisions on their behalf

  • Social media - websites and applications that enable users to create and share content or participate in social networking

Common misconception

Digital citizenship just means knowing how to use technology.

Digital citizenship includes understanding how to behave responsibly online, respect others, protect your privacy, think critically about information, and participate in digital spaces in ethical and constructive ways.


To help you plan your year 9 citizenship lesson on: What is digital citizenship?, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Encourage pupils to critically evaluate both the benefits and challenges of digital democracy, considering real-world examples like Estonia and the UK. This will help them understand how technology can impact democratic participation both positively and negatively.
Teacher tip

Equipment

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

Loading...

Prior knowledge starter quiz

Download quiz pdf

6 Questions

Q1.
Match each term to the correct definition.
Correct Answer:democracy,a system where people have the power to vote and make decisions

a system where people have the power to vote and make decisions

Correct Answer:government,the group in charge of running the country

the group in charge of running the country

Correct Answer:Parliament,the place where laws are made, including both houses

the place where laws are made, including both houses

Correct Answer:monarch,a king or queen who acts as the Head of State

a king or queen who acts as the Head of State

Q2.
Who can vote in a UK general election?
anyone over 16
Correct answer: British citizens aged 18 or over
only Members of Parliament
only people who own property
Q3.
In a democracy, people have the right to for their leaders.
Correct Answer: vote, elect, choose
Q4.
Which of the following are not part of Parliament?
House of Commons
House of Lords
Correct answer: the police force
Q5.
Which one of these statements is true about the monarchy in the UK?
The monarch decides new laws.
The monarch can be voted out.
Correct answer: The monarch’s role is mostly ceremonial.
The monarch is in charge of Parliament.
Q6.
Voting in elections is both a right and a for UK citizens.
Correct Answer: responsibility, duty, task

Assessment exit quiz

Download quiz pdf

6 Questions

Q1.
Match each term to its correct definition.
Correct Answer:digital citizenship,making critical use of information technology responsibly

making critical use of information technology responsibly

Correct Answer:digital democracy,using technology to support political participation

using technology to support political participation

Correct Answer:social media,websites & applications that enable users to create and share content

websites & applications that enable users to create and share content

Q2.
Complete this sentence: Being an digital citizen means engaging with public issues to make a positive difference.
Correct Answer: active
Q3.
Which of these is an example of digital democracy?
watching a TV show online
Correct answer: voting in an online poll about a local issue
playing a video game with friends
sending a private message to a friend
Q4.
Technology is changing democracy by making it easier for people to in decision-making.
Correct Answer: participate, be involved, engage
Q5.
How are digital technologies affecting democracy?
Correct answer: They make democracy more accessible, but security and access can be problems.
Digital technologies make it impossible to participate in democracy.
Digital technologies solve all challenges in democratic systems.
Q6.
Which of the following best describes digital citizenship?
being able to use a computer and browse the internet
knowing how to download apps and play games online
Correct answer: using technology responsibly, ethically and respectfully in online communities
learning how to fix technical problems on a digital device