What data is collected when you use TikTok or other social media? Should you care? In this Spring Break camp, you’ll learn by turning the tables - unravel “the algorithm”, create your own targeted ads, look behind the scenes of data collection, and more.
When?
ONLINE: M-F, March 20-24, 2023, 10:00am-1:30pm (5 days).
Who?
This virtual camp is for students aged 11-15 years.
Cost:
The camp fee is $199 (including taxes).
If the fee is a barrier to your participation, a limited number of bursaries are available for eligible families - please email camps@visst.ca to inquire.
Where?
ONLINE - Link will be provided by email.
Why should you attend?
Join an eye-opening experience looking at how your daily activities are tracked and monetized - you may never think of social media the same way again.
Gain experience in areas you won’t find in school, including advertising, economics, and data privacy.
Peek into the “real world” of money and technology in a small-class setting.
Earn a certificate of completion from the Vancouver Independent School for Science and Technology.
What will you learn?
Is This An Ad?: These days, on platforms like TikTok and Instagram, it can be hard to tell the difference between “content” and “advertising”. We’ll explore this blurred line and try to spot some hidden ads on our TikTok feeds.
Targeted Advertising: When you and I open TikTok or search on Google, we see different things. Is this a convenience or a concern? And, how do these platforms know what to show us? We’ll explore algorithms, the “FYP”, and risks of targeted advertising. Then, we’ll buy some advertising ourselves to experience targeting from the other side!
Economics of Surveillance: Did you know that each of us has a customer lifetime value? You might be worth $2,000 to TikTok and I might be worth $1,000, who knows! We’ll see if we can calculate how much a customer is worth to a social media platform. And we’ll consider, if you’re worth $2,000 to TikTok, how they might spend $1,000 to keep you using the platform?
Tracking Tools: When you visit a website with your computer or phone, how much does the site know about you? What if you’re logged in? What about cookies? We’ll pull back the curtain and see firsthand what sorts of information we can collect about our visitors.. Then we’ll visit our favourite websites and investigate what information they are passing on to advertisers.
Terms and Conditions Apply: Have you actually read TikTok’s Privacy Policy or Terms of Service? Let’s face it, most of us press “I Agree” multiple times a month without reading the details. And who can blame us - TikTok’s Terms of Service is about 30,000 words, or more than 50 pages long! We’ll discuss the roles of these documents and how to approach them, and then we’ll tie everything we’ve learned together to wrap up the course.
Camp Leader
Shira Rubin (She/Her)
Shira is an 11th-grade student at University Hill Secondary School, who is passionate about engineering and technology. She co-instructed TikTok camp last year and she teaches STEM-related topics to younger kids in her local elementary school. Shira also founded The Lovelace Society club (named after Ada Lovelace) at her high school to share her excitement for STEM and provide girls at her school with opportunities to learn more about STEM. An active member of her community, Shira is part of the Vancouver Point Grey Youth Council and cares about making sure that policy in BC is accessible to youth. She's looking forward to run the Deconstructing TikTok camp this year!
Testimonials
“I liked how we went in depth into the inner workings of Tiktok, I enjoyed how fun it was to do all the activities and socialize with other camp members”
——- Deconstruction TikTok 2022 camp participant
“I learned a lot. This program really helped me understand socials media platforms. I realized that not only students, but everyone should learn about this because we are in the technology age and we should learn how to protect ourselves from hackers. Otherwise, we will lose our identity.”
——- Deconstruction TikTok 2022 camp participant
“This was probably my favourite camp I've ever been to and it gives you knowledge that you will use throughout your life.”
——- Deconstructing TikTok 2021 camp participant