The Global Campus of Human Rights is pleased to announce the MOOC on Children’s Rights and Technology in the Digital Age.

This MOOC will take a deep dive into just how often children are exposed to these futuristic, and sometimes problematic, technological developments and investigate what that means for a vulnerable group that may not fully understand the implications – be they positive or negative – or meaning of consent.

The course encompasses a 5-week period. Participants are expected to engage in approximately 30 hours of active learning through readings, videos, webinars, discussions, and quizzes. Case studies and examples from different areas of the world and on different themes will be used to identify cross-regional and cross-cutting issues and enable a global and multidimensional understanding of the topic.

Modules

The course is articulated in five modules:

• Module 1 introduces the main concepts the MOOC will address. Starting with an overview of children’s rights, it then moves to explain the key technologies of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and biometrics as focal points in the MOOC’s discussion of children’s rights and new technologies. It will explore how these technologies impact children in unprecedented ways.
• Module 2 focuses on children’s right to privacy and data protection, examining the legal instruments and international recommendations that exist in this regard. It will then provide examples of how technologies interfere with children’s rights to privacy and data protection in areas such as facial recognition, biometric data collection and advertising.
• Module 3 delves into the linkages between early-childhood development and new technologies and examines the right to play in the digital age. In addition to providing insights into the legal instruments and recommendations in this field, it will include a case study on smart toys research.
• Module 4 explores what the right to education means in the digital era. A legal overview will be provided before examining examples of AI and facial recognition in the classroom in addition to positive examples of educational technology and discussing how these technologies fit into preparing children for the future workplace.
• Module 5 investigates positive and negative developments in the field of new technologies and children’s right to health and safety, with particular focus on digital health and child online exploitation.

Outcomes

Upon completion of this course participants will have gained:

• Knowledge about the developing international standards for the protection of the human rights of children in the context of AI & biometrics--concerning privacy, education, surveillance and more
• Awareness of the latest research concerning how technology is impacting childhood development and what questions are still unanswered
• Information on modern contextual situations, examples, and case studies from different regions of the world
• Understanding of challenges and limitations in the current environment as it relates to research, regulation, and technological development with a human rights approach
• The ability to identify some legal, political and social strategies to safeguard the human rights of children in relation to data protection and mindful technological integration
• Knowledge of recommendations for families, businesses and governments to bring about change and improvements both at home and in society at large

Eligibility Criteria

Global Campus of Human Rights designed this course for participants (students, researchers, educators, children, parents, concerned citizens, politicians, media professionals, tech developers/experts/companies, and governmental/inter-governmental/non-governmental actors) around the world who are actively interested and engaged in children’s rights and how they are considered in relation to technologies that already permeate society, but also those technologies that are in development and how they may impact this particular age group.

For more information, visit Global Campus of Human Rights.