Katie Smart

CSE 619
Final Paper
We live in a world that is going through a change, a technological
change. The minute you buy a new computer a couple months later
there is a newer, faster, computer out with more data storage and
security options (Strickland, 2009). It is becoming an everyday issue
for adults to be surrounded by constant change in technology, whether
it is change in data monitoring and storage, or security of our
information or who is tracking our data and possibly invading our
privacy. Adults are able to sort through all the information and sources
to form their own opinion and understand the importance of data,
privacy and security but we now live in a society where students,
starting as young as elementary, need to start being exposed to data,
security, and privacy. Teaching in a rural community where the school
district is making efforts to provide technology exposure to our
students, makes the need for teaching about data, security, and
privacy even more important. Throughout this paper, I will explore the
different ways we can teach young children about these topics and
what is important to teach and train them in as well as what is
important for teachers to know and understand.
If a study were to survey a select group of individuals and ask
them how much data they think is involved in teaching they would
probably not guess that much. In reality, data is predominant in
teaching. Data is not just the Common Core Standard of interpreting
and representing data that is required of students (Common core state,
2012), it is in how the teacher interprets and represents data as well.
Just like Mayer-Schonberger & Cukier (2013) state in Big Data, teachers
need to allow data to speak to them (pg. 19). Data tells teachers
things like who understands the standard/lesson, who might be
struggling that day, behavior that occurs regularly and so much more.
Facebook often dataifys relationships to find trends and personal
advertising (Mayer-Schonberger & Cukier, 2013, pg. 91), I dataify the
interactions I have with my students and their understandings each
day to find trends and helpful clues on how I should adjust my
teaching. Before reading Big Data and Mobile Wave, I saw data as test
scores and numbers. In reality data is in everything and with it I can
use it for my benefit. When I have a student acting out of the ordinary
I take that interaction into account and look at the implications of it.
As I roam the room while my students are doing math workstations, I
record who is meeting the Common Core Standard and who is not
meeting the standard. I look at who can complete the task at hand
and use that data for interventions, pull out practice or possible reteaching. Data can be mined to reveal valuable information and

understanding (Mayer-Schonberger & Cukier, 2013, pg. 124). That

understanding can affect both lessons and relationships. Teachers who
make constant effort to understand students and the data they collect
tend to create nurturing environments were deeper levels of
understandings can be obtained. Students then feel safe and excited
to learn because they are valued and understood.
Just like data is present in teaching, so is the need and desire for
privacy. This issue of privacy is a big one throughout our culture,
especially in this technology driven world. Teaching about privacy to
young children has to be taught in a way that is at their level of
understanding and is connecting it to real life situations that they face.
My students live in a world where social networking has become a big
part of their everyday lives. Using Facebook as an example of privacy
is an easy resource to use and one that they know well, whether it is
through their own use or their parents use. Most students may not
realize that Facebook keeps track of what you are doing in order to
personally advertise and format your page for your liking. (Saylor,
2012, pg. 134) Forming a lesson around interests and desires will be
one that could adapt to any age group. The goal of the lesson would
be to have them understand the link between their actions online could
affect what others may think about them. A major corporation could
look at what games you like and predict what other game you would
like or your Facebook friend could form an opinion about you based off
of what you post. Students learn best from real life connections.
Giving students examples of young adults not practicing privacy on the
Internet can really help them relate to the importance of privacy. A
recent study has shown that young adults do not care about sharing
their information online as much as older online users do (Graziano,
2013) which can lead to reckless sharing of information and
repercussions that involve a lack of privacy. Inherently, they should
want to be proud of what people perceive them as and understand that
privacy is limited online. ISTE Teacher Standard states that teachers
should promote and model digital etiquette and responsible social
interactions related to the use of technology and information (ISTE,
2008). Examples of good and bad opinions plus real life examples of
lack of privacy or excess privacy can easily be found and are important
for students to be exposed to. Both sides of privacy being good and
privacy being bad should be presented so students can form their own
opinions.
Not only is it important to teach our students about privacy but
also it is important to address privacy as an educator. Just like privacy
is sometimes watched or invaded through tracking of Facebook but
tracking is not always negative. Tracking is a major element of data
because we can analyze and understand the data we monitor.

Tracking data helps with behavior, test scores, etc. As an active

teacher I am tracking and monitoring data constantly. Each lesson I
teach, I have a learning target based off of the Common Core State
Standards that I am able to use as an assessment starting point. The
learning target is the goal students must meet and whether they meet
it or not is what I track. That data then can indicate who needs
intervention, redirection or enrichment leading up to the units test.
Scores on tests can be analyzed to see trouble areas and reported to
specialists or parents to help understand and improve academics or
behavior.
Security in the educational world doesnt just stop at how we
teach about security but how we use security as well. Privacy and data
are intertwined with security in that case. How we use data in
teaching and the security precautions put in place to provide privacy
are equally as important as teaching about the topics. I am constantly
observing and recording data within my classroom and in the school. I
use GoogleDocs as a data tool to record, analyze patterns, and share
my findings with my colleagues. If the viewing security precaution of
GoogleDocs were not active or reliable, users of Google would not feel
like their documents are safe, secure, or even valued important. If
those precautions did not work in the educational world then anyone
could view private and specific student data. Privacy of student
records and student data as well as all of Facebooks tracking is
provided by security. If security is weak and not set up properly,
valuable information can be leaked and that sense of privacy and
security goes away. Recently, the popular app called Snapchatt, had
their security system breached and private information of millions of
users was leaked. Their security system was not as secure as they
promised and their users lost that sense of privacy and security
(Perlroth & Wortham, 2014). Security breaches arise like WikiLeaks
and whistleblowers where government secrets are made known to the
public and free speech is brought into question (Assange, Appelbaum,
Muller-Maguhn & Zimmermann, 2012). If situations like WikiLeaks
happened to all the data we track and store on our students, parents
would question the data being stored on their child and is their childs
information safe. Security and privacy are a vital thing in teaching and
needs to be practiced safely and ethically.
The Information Society for Technology in Education has
produced standards for both teachers and students on what is
expected of them in this digital age. ISTE Standard 5 states that
Students understand human, cultural, and societal issues related to
technology and practice legal and ethical behavior (ISTE, 2007). The
topic of security is a touchy and controversial subject. There is debate

on whether Snowdens actions were legal or heroically illegal. Teaching

security to young students has to center on ethical behavior, just like
the ISTE standard stated. One of the Oregon State Standards requires
students to understand and apply knowledge about governmental and
political systems, and the rights and responsibilities of citizens
("Oregon state standards," 2011). That standard focuses on looking at
multiple points of view, how individuals, groups and communities
manage conflict and promote justice as well as identifying appropriate
and inappropriate use of power and the consequences. Using both
standards, teachers could create lessons centering on decision-making
and what the students would choose if they wanted to do the right
thing or the wrong thing. Spurring conversation about this sensitive
topic is where the best teaching moments can happen.
Exposing and giving students the opportunity to make their own
opinions and decisions is where teaching about security, privacy, and
data should start. Before this class and reading these texts, I was
nave to most of the controversies at hand because it was never a topic
of discussion. Since our world is changing, it is now even more
important that these discussions happen. It is vital that students and
teachers understand that security, privacy, and data are linked. Data
is used immensely in the educational world and privacy protects that
data through security measures.
Reference:
Assange, J., Appelbaum, J., Muller-Maguhn, A., & Zimmermann, J.
(2012). Cypherpunks: Freedom and the future of the internet. OR
Books.
Common core state standards initiative. (2012). Retrieved from
http://www.corestandards.org/Math/Content/2/MD
Graziano, D. (2013). Study shows major generational divide on online
privacy attitudes. BGR media, Retrieved from
http://bgr.com/2013/04/25/online-piracy-study-young-adults465164/
International society for technology in education standards teachers.
(2008). Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/docs/pdfs/2014_ISTE_Standards-T_PDF.pdf

International society for technology in education standards students.

(2007). Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/docs/pdfs/2014_ISTE_Standards-S_PDF.pdf
Mayer-Schonberger, V., & Cukier, K. (2013). Big data: A revolution that
will transform how we live, work, and think. New York: Houghton
Mifflin Harcourt.
Oregon state standards social sciences. (2011). Retrieved from
http://www.ode.state.or.us/teachlearn/real/standards/sbd.aspx
Perlroth, N., & Wortham, J. (2014, January 2). Snapchat breach exposes
weak security. New York Times. Retrieved from
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/01/02/snapchat-breachexposes-weak-security/
Saylor, M. (2012). The mobile wave. New York: Vanguard Press.
Strickland, Jonathan. "How Moores Law Works" 26 February 2009.
HowStuffWorks.com.
<http://computer.howstuffworks.com/moores-law.htm> 09 March
2014.