Your Data, Your Story

This lesson zooms in on the consumer and how AI and algorithms personalize their digital experience. Students examine how data drives what they see online, helping them become more intentional and informed users of technology.

From targeted ads to recommended videos, much of what we see online is shaped by the data we share—often without realizing it. In this lesson, students investigate how companies collect, use, and sell personal data, and how AI systems depend on that data to function. By understanding how data drives digital decisions, students learn to think critically about privacy, consent, and control in their online lives.

Students use AI-driven apps daily, but may not realize how their behavior, preferences, and even personality traits are used to form a digital identity. Understanding this helps students critically evaluate how their data is used and what tradeoffs they’re making online.

AI doesn’t just shape individual experiences—it influences entire societies. From predicting disease outbreaks to supporting climate solutions, big data and AI are transforming how we address global challenges. By understanding how collective data contributes to these efforts, students can see themselves as part of a worldwide network of digital citizens who help (and sometimes unintentionally hinder) progress toward the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Throughout this module, students explored how AI and data shape personal identity, global systems, and digital culture. In this culminating lesson, students will synthesize what they’ve learned by creating a 3-panel storyboard that reveals the difference between how AI sees them and who they really are — and imagines how they can use AI for positive change in their communities and the world. This creative project helps students think critically about digital identity, bias, and empowerment through technology.