Lessons in artificial intelligence literacy shouldn鈥檛 be confined to just high school computer science classes. They should be spread across all content areas and grade levels, a panel of educators and experts said during an Education Week webinar earlier this month.
鈥淲e absolutely do think that this needs to be embedded throughout the curriculum,鈥� said Pati Ruiz, the senior director of edtech and emerging technologies for Digital Promise, a nonprofit organization that works on equity and technology issues in schools.
Teachers don鈥檛 necessarily need to use AI-powered tools鈥攐r any kind of digital devices鈥攖o help students better understand how AI works, she added.
69传媒 can 鈥渁pproach AI literacy practices in a way that makes sense for younger students,鈥� Ruiz said. 鈥淢any, many examples include not using any technology at all, but building off of the computational thinking skills that we鈥檝e already been teaching students for a while.鈥�
For instance, students can learn about data collection and analysis, or delve into data privacy and ownership, without using a device, Ruiz explained.
What鈥檚 more, because generative AI tools so often spit out false information, students must also understand how to scrutinize the responses they receive鈥攁nd how to spot 鈥渄eepfake鈥� videos and photos and other misinformation created or amplified by AI, added Kip Glazer, the principal of Mountain View High School in California, who also was a featured guest for the webinar.
69传媒 need 鈥渃ritical thinking skills to be able to evaluate information,鈥� Glazer said. That needs to happen across a range of 鈥渄ifferent contexts so that our students can truly understand [whether] what AI is generating is correct or incorrect.鈥�
Teaching students how to compare real images with fake ones
Districts that are still puzzling through how鈥攁nd whether鈥攖hey want students using generative AI tools like ChatGPT at school can still teach AI literacy, said Vera Cubero, a digital teaching and learning consultant for the North Carolina Department of Education.
For instance, students can start comparing real images to fake ones generated by AI at an early age, she said.
By middle school, they can start using free, educational versions of design tools like Canva and Adobe Express to 鈥渁ctually create images and manipulate them with AI,鈥� she said. Through that experience, 鈥渢hey鈥檒l begin to internalize a lot more how easily [that] can be done and how believable the results can be.鈥�
And by high school, students are ready to talk about how 鈥淎I is being used by bad actors, like the deepfake videos of Taylor Swift,鈥� Cubero said. 鈥淚 think our high school students are talking about them already whether we鈥檙e talking about them in school or not.鈥�
None of those activities require districts to give students access to ChatGPT at school, Cubero emphasized. Experts recommend students can learn the most about AI tools if they use them with teachers鈥� guidance, but not all districts are comfortable with that at this point.
鈥�69传媒 can and should be learning about AI, even if they鈥檙e not ready, or you鈥檙e not ready, for them to learn with AI,鈥� she said.
To view the full webinar, register here.
