Who's who

Are identity cards a threat to personal freedom, or the answer to fraud, benefit abuse and terrorism? Lyndsey Turner on a topical issue for classroom debate

Today's 14-year-old, applying for his or her first adult passport in 2007, will have to provide more than name and nationality: a digital photo, thumb print and retinal scan will form part of the government's new super-passport, an ID card for the 21st century.

In the wake of recent reports that every second £800 is stolen from credit cards in the UK by fraudsters buying goods over the phone and online, it seems that technology, far from making our lives easier, has given rise to a new set of social concerns.

We may be able to access our bank accounts electronically and receive speeding fines without any human intervention, but for every time-saving innovation that our card-culture has made possible, a new fear is born.

While we might study science fiction in the classroom, we are in danger of encouraging our students to ignore the fact that our citizenship is becoming bound up with our ability to authenticate our identity to a computer.

One of the most difficult aspects to grasp about the proposed scheme is its precise purpose. Depending on who's talking, ID cards are the solution to either credit card fraud, the abuse of the benefit system, the pernicious spread of health tourism or the threat of terrorism.

The rhetoric of the entitlement card is a fascinating mix of Brave New World and the old liberal agenda: our biometric imprints will, we are assured, guarantee that the socially vulnerable are able to receive state aid with the minimum of delay, and that asylum seekers are housed and fed whilst illegal immigrants are denied access to the welfare state and deported.

As a focus for classroom study, the debate over ID cards provides an opportunity to discuss the mechanics of democratic society, particularly the clash between the rights of the citizen and the responsibilities of the government. A lesson on identity cards is, however, as much an investigation into the potential applications of new technology as an exercise in the morality of the private. Before our students begin to accept ID cards as a fact of British life, we need to ensure they possess the knowledge and understanding necessary to protect their identities from abuses on every scale.

Identity and entitlement

Begin by exploring the difference between personal and public identities: ask students to create a collage, part of which should take into account their personal identity (beliefs, hobbies, outlook, fashion, musical preferences and so on). The other section should respond to their official public identity, perhaps including a fingerprint, date of birth and the numbers and codes by which they are identified by different institutions and authorities. Discuss with the class the information about themselves that can be represented by an ID card, and that which remains private.

Although most students will be aware that benefits and public services exist, they will need to investigate what "entitlement" means in this context. Draw up a timeline of the span of a person's life, adding information about the services and payments an individual is entitled to at different stages of their development (national insurance cards, the state pension, unemploy ment benefit, bank accounts, and so on).

The abuse of power

Many European countries where the carrying of ID cards is standard practice have reported that the system has become open to abuse by the police, particularly in the repression of minority groups. According to French anti-racism campaigners, young people of Algerian or Moroccan descent are asked to produce their papers around 40 times a week. Examine the minority groups under threat from similar treatment in the UK.

Although there is currently no suggestion that the police will be given the power to stop individuals and demand proof of their identity, discuss the changes in national circumstances (war, the threat of terrorism, a new crime wave) that might make identity cards an important part of the government's strategy for national defence.

The government's consultation paper on ID cards makes it clear that the new scheme has a role to play in disrupting the use of false and multiple identities used by terrorists and criminals. Structure a debate around the issue of the effectiveness of ID cards in combating the proliferation of illegal organisations in the UK.

Science and science fiction

Many critics share a concern about the sophistication of the proposed scheme. Some fear that personal data might one day be consolidated into a huge Europe-wide database, while others argue that comparisons to a Big Brother state are a product of libertarian hysteria. Encourage students to draw up a table separating the facts of the government's proposals from the nightmarish ramifications of the scheme suggested in the press. Draw up proposals for an identity watchdog that would oversee official access to private information.

The depiction of identities being changed in film is another way into the debate: play clips from Total Recall, The Net, The Talented Mr Ripley, or Enemy of the State and challenge students to come up with a storyboard for a short film that examines the issue of identity in an increasingly technology-driven society.

Ask students to investigate the science of identity, looking at the technology involved in mass fingerprinting and the development of the retinal scan as a unique biological identifier. Construct a timeline of scientific advances made in the field. Invite students to respond to public anxiety over identity tagging with a piece of science-fiction writing.