When Kids Can’t Consent: The Case Against Tech in the Classroom w/ Andrew Liddell
Notas do episódio
No tech that your kid uses in the classroom was designed for their benefit. Not the tablet, not the "learning app," not the AI chatbot helping with homework. It was designed to benefit the company that made it — and your kid's data, attention, privacy, and, most importantly, safety, are the price.
More like this: Meet the Mom Winning Against AI in Schools w/ Ifeoma Ozoma
This week, Andrew Liddell, co-founder of the EdTech Law Center, walks us through exactly how EdTech works, why it made its way into schools with so little oversight, who it actually serves, and the cases his firm has fought against the companies putting these devices into classrooms.
His firm has gone after student-data pipelines it flagged as hackable — and later watched get hacked — laws like FERPA and COPPA being twisted into loopholes that bypass parental consent entirely, and school-issued AI tools pulling kids into the same crises we’ve watched play out among adults.
What ties it together, Liddell says, is a business model that was never built with kids in mind, and a legal system that’s still trying to catch up.
Andrew’s looking for parents in California who are concerned about their kids’ usage of AI chatbots. If that’s you, get in touch here: https://chatgptlitigation.com/
Further reading & resources:
- EdTech Law Center
- Parents’ Consent at the Heart of Ed Tech Lawsuits — The 74
- Google's work in schools aims to create a 'pipeline of future users,' internal documents say — NBC News
- Children's Screen Time Action Network
- Mothers Against Media Addiction
- Phone Free Schools Movement
- Fair Play
- Schools Beyond Screens
Join The Maybe Collective to explore the politics of technology through fresh ideas that you won't hear anywhere else. Sign up for monthly insights, access to exclusive digital events, and real ways to get more involved on issues you care about.
Computer Says Maybe is produced by Kushal Dev, Marion Wellington, Van Newman, and Zoe Trout