This workshop seeks to sensitize participants on the need for discretion in online interactions. They will review four hypothetical scenarios and discuss what might be the best privacy solution for each one. This resource forms part of the “Cyber Heros” learning programme designed for 8 to 14 year olds.
General Objective
Preparation time for facilitator
Competence area
Time needed to complete activity (for learner)
Resource originally created in
Goals for students
- Study how to see privacy concerns from different peopleʼs points of view.
- Understand how different scenarios call for different levels of privacy
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Privacy scenarios: What should you do?
Scenario 1: A kid you know at school gets bitten by a weird insect that causes an ugly multicolored rash on her stomach. She doesnʼt want other people to know.
• Do other people have a right to know?
• Should you be the one to tell them?
Scenario 2: Someone writes in their personal journal. Another person copies what they wrote and posts it online.
• Was the other person wrong to post the journal entry?
• How would you feel if someone did this with something you intended to
keep private?
Scenario 3: Someone posts, “Have a good vacation,” on a friendʼs social media page.
• Had the friend announced publicly that they were going away? Did they want everybody to know?
• Are there more private ways to communicate this message – such as sending a direct message or text?
Scenario 4: You know a student made a fake social media account impersonating another student in a negative way and includes their personal information.
• Does the student have a right to know?
• Should someone tell a teacher or other trusted adult? How? What could happen if nobody does?
• It’s not obvious who made it, but you know who did it. Should you give this information to a trusted adult?
Activity
Weʼre going to review the four scenarios and talk about how each one might have a different privacy solution. We’ll split up into four groups, discuss one scenario each, and then come back for a class discussion about our findings.
Takeaway
Different situations call for different responses online and offline. It’s always important to respect other people’s privacy choices, even if they aren’t the choices you’d make yourself.