Blog Journal #5

From completing the Web Design assignment, I have gained countless new skills that I have not previously had to learn due to the fact that I have never had to make a website before. For example, I had to think about the order of the website pages and the information that I was sharing; it was important that the order everything was in made sense. When designing my website, I used CRAP to ensure that the website was visible and accessible. I intentionally made sure that there was dark text on light backgrounds and vice versa. One aspect of Weebly that I did not like was that I did not tell me if it was auto-saving my work. Along with that, it was slightly difficult for me to think of what information to include because I am clearly not a teacher currently, so I did not know exactly what parents would want to see. In my future career I will be able to use website design in the same way that I did for this asisgnment- it is a great way to have all of the information for the classroom in one place and be able to change information on a regularly basis or as I see fit. 

One creative way to use a QR code in a school setting could be for students to scan a QR code when they first walk in the doors of the school, then again when they get into the classroom. These scans can be connected to a software that alerts parents and teachers when and where the child has checked in. Using this is one extra way to ensure safety and peace of minds for parents that their child has made it into the school and their classroom, and it can help teachers know which students are present in school but not in their classroom. Along with this, teachers could use this check-in in their classroom as a form of attendance that way they do not need to take time out of their class period to take attendance. 

Case: AI-Driven Learning Platforms and Student Privacy

Background: A school district adopts a popular AI-driven learning platform that personalizes educational content for students. The platform promises to tailor lessons to each student’s learning style, identify areas for improvement, and provide real-time feedback. The data collected includes academic performance, engagement levels, response patterns, and, at times, behavioral indicators such as attentiveness and emotional responses through webcam and microphone monitoring.
Situation: While the platform is popular among teachers and administrators for boosting student performance and simplifying assessment, a group of parents and privacy advocates raises concerns. They argue that the data collected goes beyond academic metrics, potentially violating students’ privacy and creating long-term digital records of personal information that could be misused. Furthermore, the platform’s terms of service mention that anonymized data may be shared with third parties for “educational research,” but does not clearly define how the data will be anonymized or who the third parties are.

This case would definately be considered an ethical delima because of the fact that we do not know how much personal information is being used from this AI software and where the information is going. Furthermore, if this software was being used in homes, that could be considered an invasion of privcacy given that the AI might be able to listen or see what is going on in the room. I would address this by making this website optional to use and require parent or guardian conset in order for students to be allowed to participate. I think that this would be an ethical solution because it allows each family to make a decision that they feel is best for their childs education and saftey. 

Website Design