Digiware is an ongoing, collaborative research programme led by The University of Sheffield, to explore young people's knowledge of, and views on, the use of smart technologies in education and the school environment. You can learn more about our partners, collaborators and funders here

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Digital technologies collect and share data about people and the world around them. In some schools this is being used to automatically record attendance and monitor behaviour, create smart lesson plans, and connect families to schools and increase safety for students and staff. However, there are also potential ways that the technology could be used that may impact on privacy, human rights, autonomy, and emotional development for young people. It’s crucial we make sure that everyone involved understands how data is being collected and used, and what the results of that might be.

 

We mapped the global use of Internet of Things in education and see there is a clear gap concerning young people’s knowledge of, and opinions on the use of IoT in their school.

 

Methods

Co-production methods using creative activities can help empower people who may not normally have a voice, be heard. These methods help to address challenges often found in research with young people, namely imbalances or deficits of power, language, trust, and time. It fosters an inclusive non-hierarchical environment that allows all participants to be recognized as experts and produces results in the form of visible and tangible outputs owned by those who created them. This co-production aligns with the University of Sheffield ‘Made together’ programme.