Beyond Compliance: Students and FERPA in the Age of Big Data
Abstract
Privacy is governed by an array of laws in the United States, and this paper examines one facet of privacy regulation: the privacy of students’ academic records. The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) protects the privacy of these records, but how do students understand their rights under FERPA, especially with the development of big-data and learning-analytics technologies that demand unprecedented sharing of student data? This paper begins to answer that question by examining existing literature on privacy in general and with regards to FERPA specifically. It suggests that FERPA places most of the power in controlling student data in the hands of educational institutions but is ultimately unable to address many legal and ethical concerns around current uses of student data. FERPA’s ineffectiveness makes it imperative that students understand their rights and are able to protect their own privacy, yet many students are probably not fully aware of their rights and privileges under FERPA. However, further empirical research is needed to explore exactly how students understand their FERPA rights and the implications of student perceptions of academic privacy.
References
Arnold, Kimberly E. and Niall Sclater. 2017. "Student Perceptions of Their Privacy in Learning Analytics Applications." Proceedings of International Learning Analytics and Knowledge Conference. doi: 10.1145/3027385.3027392.
Bryce, Jo and James Fraser. 2014. “The Role of Disclosure of Personal Information in the Evaluation and Trust in Young Peoples’ Online Interactions.” Computers in Human Behavior 30 (2014): 299-306.
Daggett, Lynn M. 2008. "FERPA in the Twenty-First Century: Failure to Effectively Regulate Privacy for All Students." Catholic University Law Review 58 (59): 59-114.
Dawson, Shane. 2006. "The Impact of Institutional Surveillance Technologies on Student Behavior." Surveillance and Society 4 (1/2): 69-84.
Dowding, Martin R. 2011. “Interpreting Privacy on Campus: The Freedom of Information and Personal Privacy and Ontario Universities.” Canadian Journal of Communication 36: 11-30.
Elliot, Teressa L., Darius Fatemi, and Sonia Wasan. 2014. “Student Privacy Rights—History, Owasso, and FERPA.” Journal of Higher Education Theory and Practice 14 (4): 34-47.
Executive Office of the President. 2014. Big Data: Seizing Opportunities, Preserving Values. Washington, DC: The White House. Accessed June 29, 2017. https://bigdatawg.nist.gov/pdf/big_data_privacy_report_may_1_2014.pdf.
“FERPA General Guidance for Students.” 2015. U.S. Department of Education. Last modified June 26. http://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/ferpa/students.html.
Gonzaga University v. Doe. 536 U.S. 273 (2002).
“Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act.” 2015. Federal Trade Commission. Last modified September 4. https://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/business-center/privacy-and-security/gramm-leach-bliley-act.
Griswold v. Connecticut. 381 U.S. 479 (1965).
Hargittai, Eszter and Alice Marwick. 2016. “’What Can I Really Do?’ Explaining the Privacy Paradox with Online Apathy.” International Journal of Communication 10: 3737-3757.
Humphries, Stephanie. 2008. "Institutes of Higher Education, Safety Swords, and Privacy Shields: Reconciling FERPA and the Common Law." Journal of College and University Law 35 (1): 145-216.
Ifenthaler, Dirk and Clara Schumacher. 2016. "Student Perceptions of Privacy Principles for Learning Analytics." Educational Technology Research and Development 64 (5): 923-938. doi: 10.1007/s11423-016-9477-y.
Johns, Steven and Karen Lawson. 2005. “University Undergraduate Students and Library-Related Privacy Issues.” Library and Information Science Research 27 (4): 485-495. doi: 10.1016/j.lisr.2005.08.006.
Khatcheressian, Laura. 2003. "FERPA and the Immigration and Naturalization Service: A Guide for University Counsel on Federal Rules for Collecting, Maintaining, and Releasing Information about Foreign Students." Journal of College and University Law 29 (2): 457-484.
Langenderfer, Jeff and Miyazaki, Anthony D. 2009. “Privacy in the Information Economy.” The Journal of Consumer Affairs 43 (3): 380-388. doi: 10.1111/j.1745-6606.2009.01152.x.
Larose, Robert and Nora J. Rifon. 2007. “Promoting i-Safety: Effects of Privacy Warnings and Seals on Risk Assessment and Online Privacy Behavior.” The Journal of Consumer Affairs 41 (1): 127-149. doi: 10.1111/j.1745-6606.2006.00071.x.
Madden, Mary, Lee Rainie, Kathryn Zickuhr, Maeve Duggan, and Aaron Smith. 2014. “Public Perceptions of Privacy and Security in a Post-Snowden Era.” Pew Research Center. http://www.pewinternet.org/2014/11/12/public-privacy-perceptions/.
Milne, George R. and Mary J. Culnan. 2004. “Strategies for Reducing Online Privacy Risks: Why Consumers Read (or Don't Read) Online Privacy Notices.” Journal of Interactive Marketing 18 (3): 15-29. https://doi.org/10.1002/dir.20009.
O'Donnell, Margaret L. 2003. "FERPA: Only a Piece of the Privacy Puzzle." Journal of College and University Law 29 (3): 679-718.
Pardo, Abelardo and George Siemens. 2014. "Ethical and Privacy Principles for Learning Analytics." British Journal of Educational Technology 45 (3): 438-450. doi: 10.1111/bjet.12152.
Prinsloo, Paul and Sharon Slade. 2015. "Student Privacy Self-Management: Implications for Learning Analytics." Proceedings of the Fifth International Conference on Learning Analytics and Knowledge: 83-92. doi: 10.1145/2723576.2723585.
Proctor, Robert W., M. Athar Ali, and Kim-Phuong L. Vu. 2008. “Examining Usability of Web Privacy Policies.” International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction 24 (3): 307-328. doi: 10.1080/10447310801937999.
Rainie, Lee and Janna Anderson. 2014. “The Future of Privacy, Elaborations: More Expert Responses.” Pew Research Center. http://www.pewinternet.org/2014/12/18/elaborations-more-expert-responses-4/.
Rotenberg, Marc and Khaliah Barnes. 2013. “Amassing Student Data and Dissipating Privacy Rights.” Educause Review 48 (1): 56-57.
Rubel, Alan and Kyle M. L. Jones. 2016. "Student Privacy in Learning Analytics: An Information Ethics Perspective." The Information Society 32 (2): 143-159. doi: 10.1080/01972243.2016.1130502.
Sclater, Niall, Alice Peasgood, and Joel Mullan. 2016. Learning Analytics in Higher Education. Bristol, UK: Jisc, 2016. https://www.jisc.ac.uk/reports/learning-analytics-in-higher-education.
Slade, Sharon and Paul Prinsloo. 2013. "Learning Analytics: Ethical Issues and Dilemmas." American Behavioral Scientist 57 (10): 1510-1529. doi: 10.1177/0002764213479366.
Slade, Sharon and Paul Prinsloo. 2015. "Student Perspectives on the Use of their Data: Between Intrusion, Surveillance and Care." European Journal of Open, Distance and E-Learning Best of EDEN RW8: 16-28. http://www.eurodl.org/index.php?p=special&sp=articles&inum=6&abstract=672&article=679.
Sidbury, Benjamin F. 2003. "Gonzaga University v. Doe and Its Implications: No Right to Enforce Student Privacy Rights Under FERPA." Journal of College and University Law 29 (3): 655-678.
Soffer, Tal and Anat Cohen. 2014. “Privacy Perceptions of Adolescents in a Digital World.” Bulletin of Science, Technology, and Society 34 (5-6): 145-158. doi: 10.1177/0270467615578408.
Tene, Omar and Jules Polonetsky. 2013. "Big Data for All: Privacy and User Control in the Age of Analytics." Northwestern Journal of Technology and Intellectual Property 11 (5): 239-274.
Warren, Samuel D. and Brandeis, Louis D. 1890. “The Right to Privacy.” Harvard Law Review 4 (5): 193-220.
Wasson, Jennifer C. 2003. "FERPA in the Age of Computer Logging: School Discretion at the Cost of Student Privacy?" North Carolina Law Review 81: 1348-1374.
Youn, Seounmi. 2005. “Teenagers’ Perceptions of Online Privacy and Coping Behaviors: A Risk-Benefit Appraisal Approach.” Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media 49 (1): 86-110. doi: 10.1207/s15506878jobem4901_6.
Young, Elise. 2015. "Educational Privacy in the Online Classroom: FERPA, MOOCs, and the Big Data Conundrum." Harvard Journal of Law and Technology 28 (2): 549-592.
Zeide, Elana. 2016. "Student Privacy Principles for the Age of Big Data: Moving Beyond FERPA and FIPPS." Drexel Law Review 8 (339): 338-394.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5860/jifp.v2i2.6253
Refbacks
- There are currently no refbacks.
© 2024 OIF