Surveillance capitalism in schools: the hidden harms

Nottingham, Emma C, Stockman, Caroline, Wilde, Adriana Gabriela and Burke, Maria (2022) Surveillance capitalism in schools: the hidden harms. British and Irish Law Education and Technology Association (BILETA) 37th ANNUAL CONFERENCE, University of Exeter, Exeter, United Kingdom. 12 - 14 Apr 2022. p. 28 .

Abstract

Engaging with any internet-enabled service or platform will always incur some form of data collection. The technologies used in schools for teaching and learning often do incur data exchange, with varying degrees of transparency and lawfulness. Many children are subjected to potentially unlawful and unethical data profiling via their education. Although the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) provides a framework of regulations and rights to protect users, the legal process is unwieldy to apply due to tensions in balancing the rights of the child learner with the public need to ensure that all children are provided with an education. The digital learning context presents an array of logistical issues for schools and highlights a genuine need to make data processing fair and ethical for all children. This paper explores the legal and ethical implications of the use of digital technologies in the schooling environment, which has become increasingly important since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. It includes reflections on discussions from a BILETA- funded seminar (in March 2022) with key stakeholders from different areas of law, policy and practice. This paper recommends that changes in digital schooling practices are needed so that children have realistically possible ways of enforcing their data protection rights as well as a clarified and uniformed approach to support schools.

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Contributors

Author: Adriana Gabriela Wilde

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