Week 1

The Ethics of Technology and Social Innovations

In the scenes below, Mr. Carpenter is presenting the theme to the students and going over what to expect for the next three weeks. Over the course of J-Term the tenth grade students will learn about the growing fields related to technology and innovation, and explore new ethical dilemmas arising out of this field. They will then work to frame questions we need to ask about all new technologies and how they’re used to address real world issues. In small groups, they will create their own films that address these topics. They will have the opportunity to present these films in the tenth grade film festival during the J-Term showcase at the end of the month. 

Seminar Sessions

During the first week of J-term, students attended various seminars relating to the ethics of technology and social innovations. Please see below for a description of each seminar the students attended:

AI: Can we? Will we? Should we???

In this seminar, we will discuss how human brains create “intelligence” and the science behind machines like Chat GPT that you might call intelligent.  These systems are increasing in complexity exponentially. Will they ever be able to reach true human-like intelligence?  What questions should we be asking before we get to that point?

We don’t drown the same way: Climate, Technology, Justice, and Equity 

Looking at different ways that technology has been employed to create a better living situation for people and how this can not be equitably applied for all groups of people. 

Ethics of Film: How do innovations in film technology raise ethical concerns around consent, visibility, and authenticity?

Throughout film history, technological innovations have made films increasingly realistic, immersive, and addictive. Innovations in cellphone technology professionalized the cameras we carry in our pockets everyday. How do these innovations change the ethical landscape of film? What ethical responsibilities should directors and creators uphold? When we make the choice to film something, what are the ethical questions we should consider?

Can AI Make Art? Homework?

In this seminar, we will explore the productive capabilities of AI. Even if AI can make pictures, can it make art? Even if it can write essays, can it do your homework for you? We will need to know what current AI technology is capable of and what it means to produce a creative piece of work.

The Ethical Murky Marriage of Technology and Beauty

In an ever-changing world, links between the digital and real worlds, eccentricity and naturality, self-identity and others, are countless. The future of beauty is shaped by the consumers themselves and by the increase of digital experiences that are more authentic and community focused. In this seminar, we will be exploring the beauty industry’s well-meaning efforts to promote diversity and inclusivity, while also examining every step as it moves forward or risks exacerbating problems around perceived ideals in beauty.   

Artificial Intelligence and Creative Writing

We’re going to use a few different AIs to play around with different literary forms–sonnets, short stories, and dialogues. We’ll also generate some of these forms ourselves–by which I mean from our own seemingly human brains. How will these different forms change as we subject them to AI and then to our “authentic” (whatever that might mean)  intelligences? We’ll generate a lot of creative writing and ask some murky questions along the way. How can we collaborate with technology to produce new, strange writing? 

Tech for Inclusion

What does it mean to be someone with “no chance”, and how can we claim inclusivity if we don’t include everyone? This seminar will explore how technology has considerable but largely unused potential to support the inclusion of disabled people and other marginalized groups in mainstream and essential institutions like a school.

The Ethics of Medical Experimentation and Scientific Innovation

Humans have been able to make remarkable progress in the field of medical innovation, improving health and wellbeing around the world. However, there are many ethical questions to consider when trying to advance the field of medicine. In this seminar, we will discuss the topics of consent, ownership, and autonomy as they relate to medical experimentation and discovery.

23 and Me: The Ethical Intersections of GATTACA and Henrietta Lacks

Who owns the rights to your genetic information, and what are they allowed to do with it? How do personalized genetics kits change the landscape of patient privacy, insurance laws, and individual rights?

Field Trip to the Museum of the Moving Image 

On Friday, January 13, the tenth grade co.lab students attended the Museum of the Moving Image. They took a guided behind the scenes film tour that included the history of filmmaking and all the different steps involved in making a film: pre-production, production, and post-production. This is very beneficial to the students as it will help them in the process of creating their own films. 

Week 2

Guest Speaker: Dr. Mark Diaz

On Wednesday, January 18th, the ninth and tenth grade co.lab students were visited by Dr. Mark Diaz. Mark spoke to the students about the ethics of technology and how to use AI responsibly. Students participated in a breakout exercise surrounding the topic following the conversation. 

Mark is a research scientist in the Research Center for Responsible AI and Human-Centered Technology (RAI-HCT) at Google. He completed his Ph.D. in Technology & Social Behavior, a joint program in Computer Science and Communication at Northwestern University. His primary research probes the origins of social bias in data sets and its influence on algorithmic performance. Most recently, he has explored data annotation and the relationship between annotator positionality and the data annotators produce in subjective tasks, such as hate speech annotation. He also explores approaches to involving members of underrepresented groups in the development and evaluation of data-driven systems. Before beginning his doctoral work, he worked in industry developing virtual reality mobile applications and worked as a research assistant and programmer studying social identity in the Virtual Human Interaction Lab at Stanford University. 

Outside of academic conferences and publications, Mark has been invited to discuss AI and social bias for events and publications hosted by New York University, Stanford, Northwestern University, American University, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Morning Brew, and the AARP.

Film Project

Over the course of the week, the students have continued to work on creating their films. These films will address real world issues surrounding the ethics of technological and social innovations. Next Thursday, the students will view all of the films and vote on the best ones to feature in the J-Term showcase. 

Some of the topics the films explore include:

• Futurology

• Creative AI and Art

• AI in Society

• Social Media 

• Laws/Privacy/Social Media 

• Human Engineering 

• Inclusive Tech 

• Nature/Climate

• Beauty/Fashion

• Science/Medicine 

In the scenes below, you can view a sneak peak of Nathaniel Sullivan's original premiere performance of "Davusborus." 

Week 3

Artist Statements

This week, the students have mainly focused of continuing to finalize their final film projects. This includes production and post-production work. Students were also tasked with creating an artist statement about the film:

It’s now time to begin exploring and testifying to the “Why?” of your work. This will serve you to continue to push your artifact making as well has help you begin to clarify and connect to your intentions. Your Artist Statement can be a 5 paragraph essay, a 3 paragraph essay, a 2 paragraph essay, or a single paragraph of between 250-500 words. Your Artist Statement can be considered a piece of Reflective Writing. Remember, we’re always working to keep a solid footing in authenticity and selfhood.

What an Artist Statement Can Be: 

You may wish to follow the general Artist Statement outline below, but feel free to deviate and make your artist statement connected to your authentic voice, work, and experience.

Sample Artist Statement Outline:

Paragraph 1 can be a general introduction to your work and this specific project.

• It should open with the work’s basic ideas in an overview of two or three sentences or a short paragraph.

Paragraph 2, 3, and 4 can go into detail about how these issues or ideas are presented in the work and can include some of the following points:

• Why you have created the work.

• Your overall vision.

• How your musical artifact relates to your anchor text (13 Ways…).

• Sources and inspiration for your work.

• How a certain technique, material choice, sound, etc.. is important to the work.

Paragraph 5 can return the reader to the most important points in the statement and move the reader to a space of deeper insight into the work’s purpose.

What an Artist’s Statement is NOT:

1. Grandiose and empty expressions and clichés about your work and views.

2. Long explanations.

3. Discourses on the materials and techniques you have employed.

4. Poems.

5. Anecdotes about an important event in your life, your childhood, or your family unless it is relevant to your work.

How Should I Write It? 

Ask yourself and address the following:

•  “What are you trying to say in the work?” 

• “What influences my work?” 

• “How do my methods of working (techniques, style, formal decisions) support the content of my work?”

• “What are specific examples of this in my work” 

• “Does this statement conjure up any images?”

Additional Notes: 

1. Be honest.

2. Avoid repetition of phrases and words.

3. Vary sentence structure and length. 

4. Organization of detail is important.

5. Refer to yourself in the first person.

6. Make it clear and direct, concise and to the point.

Film Screening

On Thursday, January 26, the tenth grade Co.Lab students had a film screening to view all of the projects that they have been working on for the past couple of weeks. These films address real world issues surrounding the ethics of technological and social innovations. The students voted on the best ones to feature in the J-Term showcase. 

Parent Showcase - Film Festival 

The Awards Ceremony

To close out their J-Term experience, the tenth graders had an awards ceremony to celebrate all of the hard work on the films they created.