📖 Unit Overview
This 8-10 week unit examines the ethical, social, and cultural implications of digital technologies and artificial intelligence. Students explore how emerging technologies impact Indigenous communities, develop critical frameworks for evaluating technological systems, and envision digital futures grounded in tikanga Māori.
Rather than accepting technology as neutral, students analyze power structures embedded in digital systems and develop skills to advocate for ethical, culturally-responsive technological development.
📋 NZC Curriculum Alignment
This unit addresses achievement objectives across multiple learning areas of the New Zealand Curriculum.
Digital Technologies / Hangarau Matihiko
Understand how to design, develop, and evaluate digital systems that address authentic purposes.
Understand how digital systems are designed, developed, tested, implemented, and evaluated.
Science / Pūtaiao
Appreciate that scientific knowledge and theory develop as new evidence becomes available and as existing evidence is viewed in new ways.
Social Studies / Tikanga-ā-Iwi
Understand how technological developments impact on society and the environment.
Key Competencies / Ngā Pūkenga Matua
🤔 Thinking
Students develop critical evaluation frameworks for assessing technological systems and their societal impacts.
🤝 Relating to Others
Understanding how technology mediates relationships and shapes community connections in digital spaces.
🌱 Participating & Contributing
Advocating for ethical technology development and participating in digital sovereignty movements.
🔍 Managing Self
Developing healthy relationships with technology and making informed choices about digital tool use.
🎓 Pedagogical Approach
Critical Technology Studies
This unit rejects technological determinism, instead positioning technology as shaped by social, cultural, and economic forces. Students learn to ask who benefits and who is harmed by specific technological developments.
Indigenous Data Sovereignty
Grounded in principles of data sovereignty, students explore how Māori communities can exercise control over data about their people, lands, and knowledge systems in digital contexts.
Hands-On Exploration
Students directly engage with AI tools, prompt engineering, and digital systems to develop practical literacy alongside critical analysis skills.
✅ Assessment Overview
Formative Assessment
- AI bias identification exercises
- Technology evaluation frameworks
- Peer review of digital ethics analyses
Summative Assessment
- Critical Analysis: Students evaluate a digital system (app, AI tool, platform) for bias, power dynamics, and cultural responsiveness
- Design Proposal: Create specifications for a culturally-responsive digital tool that addresses a community need
- Policy Brief: Develop recommendations for ethical AI/technology governance in Aotearoa