GUARD Focused Lab · Student Card
Privacy Choice Lab
Share the minimum, with permission and purpose.
GUARD focus: R · 10–12 minutes · Classes 8–10
Situation
Students are creating a class exhibition poster with an AI design tool. The tool invites them to upload photographs, notes and location details to personalise the result. The group is working on a shared school computer.
Learning objective
Apply purpose, permission, minimisation and device-safety checks before entering information into an AI system.
1. Classify the information
Classify each item for this task. Assume the tool's retention and training practices have not yet been checked.
Categories: Generally safe for this purpose, Permission or school check required, Unsafe or high risk to enter
The public URL of a museum page used as a design reference.The page is public and contains no student information.
A class photograph showing identifiable students.Several students have not agreed to upload their image to an external tool.
A student's live home location so the design can show a nearby landmark.The exact location is unnecessary for the poster.
A classmate's health condition mentioned in project notes.The information belongs to another student and is not needed for the design.
A teacher-provided anonymous list of colour preferences with no names or identifiers.The list was prepared for this activity and checked for re-identification risk.
A spreadsheet containing student names, marks and attendance.The poster does not require school records.
Reasoning:
2. Respond to the photo request
The tool produces better layouts if a class photograph is uploaded. What should the group do?
Evidence- The poster can be created with icons or a staged image instead.
- Not every student has consented.
- The tool's retention and training settings are unclear.
- Upload it because the project is educational and the image already exists.
- Use a lower-risk alternative; upload only if the school approves, the tool is appropriate and every affected person has the required consent.
- Crop one student out and upload the rest without asking because fewer people are visible.
Reasoning:
3. Apply the privacy checklist
Select the checks the group should complete before entering any non-public information.
- □ Confirm the information is necessary for a clear learning purpose.
- □ Check permission, consent and school rules for information about other people.
- □ Use the least detailed or least identifiable information that will work.
- □ Check storage, retention, training and deletion practices where relevant.
- □ Sign out and avoid saving sensitive information on the shared device.
- □ Assume anything found online is automatically safe to upload anywhere.
Reasoning:
4. Make the final decision
Which decision best fits the project?
- Proceed using public references and anonymous teacher-prepared material; ask the teacher before any personal-data upload.
- Avoid every digital tool because privacy can never be managed.
- Upload all available material, then delete the final poster after submission.
Reasoning:
Final reflection
What evidence or stakeholder consideration most affected your decision?