My Digital Tattoo: What the Internet Says About “Elizabeth Martinez”

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My Digital Tattoo: What the Internet Says About “Elizabeth Martinez”

Introduction

After watching the Digital Tattoos and Data Mine screencasts, I audited my own online presence. The idea of a “digital tattoo” felt very real: what shows up about me is part of what I post, part of what others post, and part of what aggregators decide to surface. Below, I document my process, what I found, and its implications for students and educators.

Process: Browsers + Sites

Browsers used: Google Chrome and DuckDuckGo (for comparison of algorithms and tracking).
Sites searched

  1. Google Search, 

  2. Bing 

  3. DuckDuckGo

  4. Inter-American Magnet School (IAMS) site

  5. Facebook “People” search, 

  6. Instagram

  7. IMSA Digital Commons (research portal)

  8. LinkedIn directory pages

  9. General web (school/edu pages).


Imaged Sourced: by Author from a Google search


 


Image Sourced by: Inter American Magnet School Website

 

Imaged Sourced by: Facebook people search 

Findings (What surfaced—and what likely isn’t me)

Strong matches (clearly me)

  • Inter American Magnet School IAMS teacher page (official school domain). It lists Mrs. Elizabeth Martinez, 4th-grade teacher, Room 203, with a welcome message in both English and Spanish, as well as school contact information. This is the most authoritative confirmation of my current role and affiliation. 

  • Inter American Magnet School IAMS “All About Me” subpage shows the same identity and grade-level context across SY24–25 and SY25–26. This continuity strengthens authenticity. 

Likely not me / name collisions (same name, different people)

  • IMSA (Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy) Digital Commons entries for “Elizabeth (Liz) Martinez” are connected to science education and curriculum management at IMSA (Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy). Same field (education), but not my role/school. Practical illustration of name collision in professional contexts. 

  • Facebook “People named Elizabeth Martinez” returns multiple Chicago-area results—without unique identifiers, this is easy to misattribute. (Good example to show students how ambiguous people-search can be.)

  • Instagram shows accounts with my name and references to Chicago; however, without cross-links to my school pages, these are not confirmable as me. Another teachable moment on verification. 

  • LinkedIn directory pages show many “Elizabeth Martinez” profiles in the Chicago area across different professions (special education, consulting, banking). Again, these are others, not me. 

Search-engine differences (Chrome/Google vs. DuckDuckGo)

  • Chrome/Google prioritized high-authority domains and local relevance; my IAMS page ranked high.

  • DuckDuckGo returned fewer personalized results and surfaced more directory/aggregate pages (e.g., LinkedIn “people” listings, Facebook people pages) before niche matches—an example of reduced tracking affecting ranking order.

Interpretation: What concerned me, what felt fine, and why

Content/Relief: I’m pleased that my official school page is prominent, as it effectively represents my professional identity and bilingual classroom.

Concern: The sheer number of name collisions means a stranger could easily mistake someone else for me—especially on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn directories. This is reputationally risky and highlights why cross-verification (school domain, district directory) matters.

Confusion potential: Academic/educator results for another Elizabeth (Liz) Martinez from IMSA appear scholarly and education-related, which might resemble me at first glance, but isn’t. That ambiguity is instructive for students researching sources (authority ≠ identity).

Takeaways for Digital Citizenship (Why this belongs in school)

Yes—this is absolutely a skill we should teach explicitly, starting in upper elementary (Gr. 4–5) and revisiting it through middle school.
Who’s responsible? A shared lift among classroom teachers, school librarians, counselors, and families.

Practical classroom moves:

  • Run a guided data mine with safety norms (search for a teacher-provided sample name first).

  • Teach verification: prioritize official domains (.edu/.gov/school sites) and look for cross-links (district page ↔ classroom site).

  • Discuss privacy/consent: how directory sites aggregate info and why to be cautious with personal posts.

  • Model how to curate a positive footprint (class blogs, portfolios, service projects, professional bios).

  • Address misattribution: what to do if a search result misidentifies you and how to request takedowns/updates.

Conclusion

My data mine confirmed that my official school identity is visible and strong, but it also revealed how easily a common name can be misattributed or fragmented. The exercise reinforced for me—and for students—that a digital tattoo is built from what we control, what others post, and what algorithms surface. Teaching young people to verify, contextualize, and curate their presence is no longer optional; it’s core to modern literacy.

Comments

  1. NMZumpanoOctober 10, 2025 at 6:36 AM

    Your search query was very specific in including CPS, Chicago, and IAMS. Did you search only your name and/or usernames without CPS, Chicago, and IAMS?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Kathleen MitchellOctober 11, 2025 at 2:44 PM

    Hi Elizabeth! Interesting post. I appreciate how much you conclude that digital literacy is so important to teach to young children, but I also think it needs to be taught to other generations too. Recently, a teacher aide came into the library and, in small talk with another library aide, said some really ignorant statements about immigrants. Not only did we make sure to tell her about media bias and information literacy, but we should remind everyone that online ignorance (posts, comments, likes, etc.) are not easily erased with a change of opinions. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete

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