For Engineering and Science
Author’s Commentary and Notes for Instructors (Facial Recognition on Campus)
Commentary On
Role-play Instructions
1. Each student is assigned a role a week before the discussion.
2. Student assigned to the role of Trisha Brown serves as the moderator and leads the conversation based on the script below.
3. The script provided below is there to guide the discussion, but you should leave room for the conversation to flow naturally and allow everyone to contribute.
Script for the Role-play
1. What role are you playing in the role-play group discussion? Please state the name, title, and describe the role in your own words (couple of sentences).
[to be answered by each group members individually and in a sequence]
2. From the perspective of your role, what is your recommendation for Trisha regarding the use of FRT?
[to be answered by each group members individually and in a sequence]
3. From the perspective of your role, are there alternative solutions you would like to present to Trisha? Why do you think the approach you suggest is good and what are the main barriers to this approach?
[to be answered by each group members individually and in a sequence]
4. What is your overall group recommendation to Trisha?
[open discussion, anyone can chime in]
One way to ensure students are prepared for the discussion is to assign a few questions from the script as a pre-discussion assignment (short answers). Similarly, to ensure students reflect on the discussion, they can be assigned the last question from the script as a post-discussion exercise. They can also be asked specifically about ethical concepts or concerns related to FRT that have been introduced through the readings.
Extra Assignment - Concept Mapping
Draw a concept map to depict your group's decision. It should include different aspects of technology, applications, stakeholders, and/or other aspects that you considered in your discussion. The map should have between 10-12 concepts or items and should convey how they are related. You can use any medium to create and upload it, ideally as a jpeg. You can take a screenshot or even draw on paper and take a picture and upload it.
Resources to help with concept maps
https://learningcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/using-concept-maps/ (see Example 3)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concept_map
FRT Code of Ethics, Frameworks and Guidelines
• Ethical Framework for FRT Submitted by the ACLU to the NTIA Multistakeholder Process on Facial Recognition Technology: https://www.ntia.doc.gov/files/ntia/publications/aclu_an_ethical_framework_for_face_recognition.pdf
• A. K. Roundtree, "Facial Recognition Technology Codes of Ethics: Content Analysis and Review," 2022 IEEE International Professional Communication Conference (ProComm), Limerick, Ireland, 2022, pp. 211-220, doi: 10.1109/ProComm53155.2022.00045. https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9881633
• Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) report on “Facial Recognition Technology: Responsible Use Principles and the Legislative Landscape”: https://www.csis.org/analysis/facial-recognition-technology-responsible-use-principles-and-legislative-landscape
Background Readings, Videos, and Other Resources
• Wicker, S. & Ghosh, D. (2020). Reading in the Panopticon: Your Kindle May Be Spying on You, But You Can't Be Sure. Communications of the ACM, Vol. 63 No. 5, Pages 68-73.
• Lanchester, J. (2017). You are the product. London Review of Books. Vol. 39, No. 6.
• ACLU Resource Page on FRT: https://www.aclu.org/issues/privacy-technology/surveillance-technologies/face-recognition-technology
• Kate Crockford – What you need to know about face surveillance (2019): https://www.ted.com/talks/kade_crockford_what_you_need_to_know_about_face_surveillance?language=en
• Alessandro Acquisti – What will a future without secrets look like? (2013): https://www.ted.com/talks/alessandro_acquisti_what_will_a_future_without_secrets_look_like
• Glenn Greenwald – Why privacy matters (2014): https://www.ted.com/talks/glenn_greenwald_why_privacy_matters
• UK Government's Center for Data Ethics and Innovation's Independent report "Snapshot Paper - Facial Recognition Technology" May 2020
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cdei-publishes-briefing-paper-on-facial-recognition-technology/snapshot-paper-facial-recognition-technology
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/905267/Facial_Recognition_Technology_Snapshot_UPDATED.pdf
Authorship and Project Information and Acknowledgements
The scenarios and roles were conceptualized and written by Aditya Johri. Feedback was provided by Ashish Hingle, Huzefa Rangwala, and Alex Monea, who also collaborated on initial implementation and empirical research. This work is partly supported by U.S. National Science Foundation Awards# 1937950, 2335636, 1954556; USDA/NIFA Award# 2021-67021-35329. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the funding agencies. The research study associated with the project was approved by the Institutional Review Board at George Mason University.
