The Hindu (Kolkata)

Guardians of privacy

With the rising demand for data privacy lawyers, law schools need to build tailored courses and prepare their students.

- Nishchal Dwivedi The writer is Senior Director, Athena Education (Athena Knowledge Center). Avinash Dadhich Yashu Bansal FREEPIK

ow do birds find their way back to their nests? Can traffic patterns be mapped using mathematic­al equations? Why do some clouds appear black? Humans have always been driven by curiosity. The stalwarts in any field of study have always been the ones who marvel at phenomena — natural and manmade — asking questions and relentless­ly searching for answers. This allowed us to learn and evolve intellectu­ally. So how can we develop school curricula to support this insatiable spirit of inquisitiv­eness? This is where the role of research comes in.

HWhat is research?

Research is, by definition, a “creative and systematic investigat­ion” aimed at deriving new conclusion­s and establishi­ng truth. The process is a deeply transforma­tive journey that involves keen observatio­n of the world around and identifyin­g gaps in existing knowledge. Thus, by including a module or unit on scholarly academic research at the highschool level, teachers can introduce students to entirely new ways of structured thinking, ways to challenge prevailing norms and actually pursue answers to questions in a rigorous and systematic way, while also developing crucial life skills.

Students must begin by identifyin­g a research question, followed by gathering evidence and logical thinking, to arrive at conclusion­s. The evidence can be based on previous studies, observed phenomena or collection of quantitati­ve and qualitativ­e data that is studied by statistica­l analysis. Based on this analysis, they derive insights and conclusion­s that advance their understand­ing of their question.

Students can research any

With higher education becoming more competitiv­e each passing year, colleges seek students who demonstrat­e a love of learning, the ideals of free inquiry, and the commitment to follow through on a serious, longterm academic endeavour. By conducting research at a young age, students gain a strategic advantage relative to their peers. They display a depth of technical competence in their field as well as the capacity for interdisci­plinary innovation with the use of scientific tools. Universiti­es seek students who show distinctiv­e academic preparedne­ss; thus, a programme that instills these values among high schoolers will be beneficial and external validation through published research papers in highschool research journals and presentati­ons at conference­s will help them stand out.

By implementi­ng policies that mandates skill and valuebased programmes fuelled by research in all academic curricula, we can ensure a generation of leaders driven by scientific inquiry. s Digital India becomes a reality, our personal data are being processed every second for various uses by businesses and government­s. Consequent­ly, there are many efforts around regulating technology and its use. Thanks to the intensive use of personal data, India passed the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (DPDPA), leading to a rising demand for data pri

Avacy lawyers for efficient regulation, compliance, and litigation in this field, which will further help build interpreta­tion of the law and maintain its essence.

With the hope that regulation­s will bring more clarity to the vagueness of the law, businesses are currently working on understand­ing their own databases and preparing to adopt efficient data management practices. There is a growing requiremen­t for profession­als with both legal and technical skills to comply with the data protection laws. Businesses will also be required to fulfill very specific requiremen­ts under the new law, and this will require allembraci­ng privacy lawyers. The combinatio­n of legal and tech skills will allow lawyers to venture into new fields of work. To create privacy leaders of tomorrow, law schools need to build tailored courses and prepare their students. This can

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