This award is being used to convene a three-day workshop on the ethics of geospatial privacy, bringing together experts from the fields of geography, information technology, law, anthropology, sociology, economics, and philosophy. The primary focus of this workshop is to develop a curriculum framework for addressing the ethical issues associated with geocoded data. The workshop is identifying current and novel methods for teaching information ethics and assembling relevant resources from an array of disciplines that could have relevant applications. The goal of this workshop is to create a broad curriculum for legal, social, and ethical implications for creators and users of geocoded data, to identify foundational literature upon which the curriculum would be built, and to create and/or identify relevant instructional tools and teaching resources that would be incorporated into the curriculum.
The major goal of this project was to conduct a three-day workshop as a preliminary step towards creating a curriculum that addresses the ongoing ethical challenges posed by geocoded data. By bringing together experts from the fields of geography, information technology, law, anthropology, sociology, economics, human subjects review, and philosophy we sought to develop a framework for development of this curriculum. The workshop goals were to: (1) address current methods and novel techniques for teaching information ethics, and (2) assemble current literature and other instructional resources on privacy, ethics, and risk in the context of geocoded data from the fields of geography, information technology, law, anthropology, sociology, economics, human subjects review, and philosophy. Our primary outcome from this workshop were as follows: 1. Identification of Target Audiences for the Curriculum and Pedagogical Goals for those Audiences: There was a consensus among workshop participants that the greatest impact could be made with a flexible, modular curriculum aimed at instructors and trainers who may be interested in introducing their students to the ethical, social and legal implications of LD. The goal is to provide instructors in diverse educational contexts with the resources they need to incorporate coverage of these issues within their existing courses. In particular we identified the primary audiences as: Instructors who provide professional training, certification or continuing education to working LD professionals; Instructors in higher education (especially graduate programs) who teach in fields that implicate LD concerns, and c. University Institutional Review Board (IRB) and Responsibility Center Management (RCM) programs 2. Creation of Pedagogical Structure for the Curriculum: The following structure was developed and explored The first part of the curriculum will introduce a core set of issues, concepts and educational tools for teaching this general content area, followed by a second, modular component which allows instructors to select one or more units focused on distinct types of LD activity (for example, collecting, storing, sharing, or mapping LD). The selection of units will be at the instructor’s discretion, enabling her or him to match curricular foci, breadth, depth and duration to the relevant student audience and their domains of activity and concern. The backbone of the modular curriculum will be a series of case studies by which students may develop the skills of identifying, working through, and attempting to resolve ethical and privacy conundrums arising from LD. All materials are to be offered in a "kit" form, with instructors able to choose among modular components. 3. Identification of Potential Avenues for Dissemination of the Curriculum: The following avenues for dissemination were identified and explored – Identification and direct solicitation of educators in relevant higher education contexts; Contacting professional and accreditation organizations to offer curriculum to instructors in continuing education programs; Identifying paid continuing education instructional opportunities and sharing same with higher education instructors; Direct solicitation of education and ethics programs at organizations employing LD professionals; Direct solicitation of IRB’s and RCM programs; Presenting curriculum at academic and professional association conferences; The creation of a Hub Architecture based, Internet portal for all curricular materials, including an automated component encouraging user contributions and updates. The potential development of smartphone based Apps for both disseminating the curriculum, and enabling student projects and case study work. 4. Begin to Identify Pedagogical Materials: A preliminary list of resources, best practices, industry standards, academic standards, and legal standards was compiled for potential inclusion in the ultimate curriculum In particular, the workshop participants crafted an overall structure for the curriculum: Part 1: The Pedagogical Core. The first part of the curriculum will introduce a core set of issues, concepts and concerns: i. What are LD? Where are LD? Who collects, stores, shares and uses LD? ii. Why is there a need to study the ethical, social and legal implications of LD? Who should be educated about them? iii. Core Ethical, Legal and Technical Concepts: (Privacy, Ethics, Harm, Risk, Duty, Consent, Stakeholders, Professionalism, LD, GIS, etc.) iv. A Brief Introduction to Practical Ethics: Ethical Decision-Making Tools and Best Practices, Judgment and Practical Wisdom v. Teaching Practical Ethics: How to use Case Studies and Discussions; Assignment and Grading Techniques vi. Glossary and Index Part II. Practical Dimensions of LD. This second portion of the curriculum allows instructors to choose materials from the following units: i. Responsible Collection of LD ii. Responsible Storage of LD iii. Responsible Sharing of LD iv. Responsible Integration of LD v. Ethics and Mapping vi. Responsible Use and Analysis of LD vii. Responsible Design and Development of LD Tools. Each Unit in Part II will contain the following pedagogical content; (*basic content for parts i-iii of each Unit was drafted at the workshop): i. Core concepts and concerns ii. Potential ethical harms and risks to privacy iii. Best practices and codified standards iv. Case studies v. Key readings, multimedia resources, links and other tools
