Digital Citizenship and Historical Thinking Skills Among Junior High School Students: Basis for Inclusive Social Science Instruction
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19710201Keywords:
play-based learning, foundational numeracy, guided play, elementary pupils, mathematics learningAbstract
Amid the growing influence of digital platforms on how young learners access, interpret, and share information, this investigation focused on digital citizenship and historical thinking skills among junior high school students at Dappat Integrated School in the City of Ilagan, Isabela, as a basis for inclusive social science instruction. It was anchored on the need to prepare learners who could participate responsibly in online spaces while critically analyzing historical sources, perspectives, and evidence. A quantitative descriptive-correlational design was employed. The respondent’s study was the total population of junior high school students. Data were gathered using a validated researcher-made questionnaire and were analyzed through frequency counts, percentages, weighted mean, standard deviation, and Pearson Product-Moment Correlation Coefficient. Results revealed that the respondents demonstrated a high level of digital citizenship and a high level of historical thinking skills. Respectful online participation emerged as the strongest dimension of digital citizenship, while critical evaluation of online information obtained the lowest rating. For historical thinking skills, interpretation and perspective-taking received the highest mean, whereas source analysis recorded the lowest. The correlation test showed a significant moderate positive relationship between digital citizenship and historical thinking skills, suggesting that learners who practiced more responsible and reflective digital behavior also tended to demonstrate stronger historical reasoning. The findings indicated that both competencies could be strengthened together through inclusive social science instruction. The study recommended scaffolded, evidence-based, and digitally responsive teaching strategies that would help diverse learners become responsible digital citizens and critical interpreters of historical information.
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