RPS highlights digital awareness and safety for students, teachers and parents

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — Richmond Public Schools (RPS) is highlighting the importance of online safety and care for technology for students following last week's Digital Citizenship Week.

Education Technology Integrator, Mercedes Buck, is teaching students at Blackwell Preschool, Blackwell Elementary and Richmond Technical Center about handling computers with care, being responsible online and finding credible sources.

“We're in a day and age where most of our students, by three years old or so, they've been exposed to technology,” Buck said. “We’re trying to expose them to what it was before technology and how much their lives are going to be impacted by all the changes coming to us.”

Buck is also one of three members for the district's new AI task force. Their goal is to teach educators how to effectively use the technology in and out of the classroom and how AI will bring about a lot of changes in their lives.

“We do newsletters, we do handouts, we do tech flex,” Buck said. “We are doing professional learning days during like our division-wide, constantly trying to train teachers and have them pass this information along to their students.”

Buck said she and others on the AI task force are currently writing guidelines on AI, digital safety and awareness. They expect to have a draft to the school board no later than December for consideration.