Teaching Big Data Awareness: Big Data Girl
Recently I had the good fortune of speaking with Fred Wordie and Santiago Taberna, author and illustrator of Big Data Girl, a beautifully designed picture book about big data for kids and adults.
The book has a wonderful way of simplifying big data concepts to make them more accessible to non-technical readers. Through storytelling, it explains how personal data is gathered and used in ways that can both help and hurt us. The book is neat because it takes the reader through everyday scenarios such as playing music, shopping online and interacting with digital recommendations and it overlays those experiences with a visualized data flow and playful narrative around how the data may be helping or hurting an individual.
Classroom Big Data Girl Reading
In connecting with Fred and Santiago, I was fortunate to organize a classroom reading with them. A great friend of mine, Katherine Lafranier (who I’ve done previous STEAM projects with) teaches at Forest Hill Junior and Senior Public School and she was very excited to introduce this book to her grade 6/7 classroom.
Fred and Santiago were awesome to work with. They read the book to the class and then we all engaged in an exciting discussion around personal data collection, uses and privacy options. Fred and Santiago put together an excellent worksheet for the class and I put together a discussion guide which I’ve shared below.
The classroom reading was engaging and I was delighted to see how much the content resonated with the students. I think it’s that its a great idea for kids to develop an understanding about personal data as early as possible!
Screenshot of class reading with Katherine Lafranier at Forest Hill Junior and Senior Public School
Classroom Big Data Discussion Guide
Along with the workbook provided by Fred and Santiago, we used the questions below to frame some of the discussion.
Which of your applications do you think collect data about you?
Examples: Facebook, Fitbit, iPad games, Online Shopping, Search Engines etc
Can you provide an example of how this data collection may benefit you?
Examples: Suggest groups/friends you might like, Suggest purchases you might enjoy, etc.
Can you provide an example of how this data collection may be used in a way that you don’t like?
Examples: Using your searches to ad target you, Sharing your search or shopping history with other applications.
How can you see the data these applications have collected about you?
Examples: See an overview of your Google data.
What control do you have over the data that is being collected? Are there any actions you can take to limit data collection?
Examples: Modify your Facebook privacy settings.
Thank You For Reading About Big Data Education
Thanks for reading about the Big Data Girl book and classroom reading. I highly recommend checking out their book and using it as a way to discuss big data concepts and impacts with others. You can download a digital copy of the book for a donation, or purchase a physical copy. Please reach out to Fred and Santiago as well if you have questions or are interested in your own reading!
