Here are engaging, discussion‑rich small‑group activities built specifically around the six fictional platforms you’re using. Each activity pushes students to think critically about design, ethics, audience, and the real‑world implications of social media.
🧩 1. Platform Pitch Challenge
What students do
Each group “becomes” one of the six platforms and prepares a 3–5 minute pitch to a hypothetical investor or school board.
Required elements
- What makes their platform unique
- Why their target users would join
- How their advertising model works
- Ethical risks and how they’d address them
Outcome
Students practice persuasive speaking while analyzing the platform’s strengths and weaknesses.
🕵️ 2. Privacy Spectrum Debate
What students do
Groups line up the six platforms from most ethical to most exploitative based on:
- Data collection
- Ad targeting
- User vulnerability
- Transparency
Then they defend their ranking to the class.
Outcome
Students explore privacy, surveillance capitalism, and digital ethics.
🎭 3. Role‑Play: A Day in the Life of a User
What students do
Each group chooses a fictional user (teen creator, gamer, teacher, influencer, etc.) and describes:
- How that user interacts with the platform
- What ads they see
- What benefits they get
- What risks they face
Outcome
Students examine how design choices affect different populations.
🛠️ 4. Feature Redesign Workshop
What students do
Groups pick one platform and redesign:
- One feature to make it more ethical, and
- One feature to make it more profitable, even if ethically questionable
They must explain the trade‑offs.
Outcome
Students learn how design decisions shape user experience and corporate behavior.
📊 5. Advertising Ethics Audit
What students do
Groups analyze their assigned platform’s ad model and create:
- A list of ethical concerns
- A list of benefits
- A proposed “ethical ad policy”
Outcome
Students practice evaluating real‑world business models through an ethical lens.
🧪 6. “What Could Go Wrong?” Scenario Building
What students do
Groups brainstorm three hypothetical crises their platform might face:
- Data breach
- Viral misinformation
- Harmful trend
- Exploitative ad scandal
Then they create a response plan.
Outcome
Students explore platform responsibility and crisis communication.
🎨 7. Create a User Onboarding Flow
What students do
Groups design a simple “first‑time user experience”:
- What questions the platform asks
- What data it collects
- What settings are default
- How ads are introduced
Outcome
Students see how onboarding shapes user trust and behavior.
🧠 8. Cross‑Platform Comparison Carousel
What students do
Set up stations around the room—one for each platform.
Groups rotate every few minutes and answer a new question at each station:
- Who benefits most from this platform?
- Who might be harmed?
- What’s the most appealing feature?
- What’s the biggest red flag?
Outcome
Students compare platforms quickly and collaboratively.
🗳️ 9. “If You Were the Regulator…” Policy Drafting
What students do
Groups act as a government agency writing three rules the platform must follow:
- Data rules
- Ad rules
- Safety rules
Then they justify why these rules matter.
Outcome
Students think about regulation, public interest, and corporate accountability.
🧵 10. Build a Cross‑Platform User Journey
What students do
Groups imagine a user who uses three of the platforms in one day.
They map:
- What each platform learns about them
- What ads they receive
- How their data might be combined
- What risks emerge
Outcome
Students explore how data ecosystems work across platforms.
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