AI has been a topic of discussion for years, but increasingly, I\u2019m hearing school librarians and librarians working with children and teens who are interested in ways we can educate users about how to use AI tools safely and ethically.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
There\u2019s no possibility of opting out of AI anymore if we\u2019re online. Just by being online children and teens are exposed to AI. So, what can librarians do and what is our role in the evolving landscape of AI education? 7 in 10 teens in high school say they\u2019ve used at least on type of generative AI according to a Common Sense Media report published in 2024<\/a>, and 6 out of teen surveys also reported either that their school has no rules for how generative AI can be used or that they’re not sure if there are rules.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As always, librarians can and should encourage critical thinking and creative thinking, and promote AI literacy. During a panel titled Ethical AI in Libraries: A Critical Look at the Promise and Potential<\/strong>, panelists emphasized the need for librarians to incorporate AI learning into media literacy education. At a minimum, we should be teaching students to read the terms and services. We can also teach students and library users to think critically about what a service offers (for example, students should understand that \u201copen\u201d in a company name doesn\u2019t necessarily mean it is free and open source), and how the AI tool was trained (we actually have no way of knowing what data was used to train most LLMs).<\/p>\n\n\n\n While many librarians would like to opt out of AI, our users may suffer without opportunities for education, so the panelists strongly encouraged library workers and educators to incorporate AI literacy education into what we do. One venue to explore for libraries with smaller teams and budgets might be to look into partnering with a nearby university.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As librarians work with AI tools, and consider purchases for their libraries, we should all ask the tough questions about data use. Libraries have incredible collective capacity for influence. <\/p>\n\n\n\n I know that I will be continuing to explore what AI education I can include in my media literacy programs, and I look forward to hearing more about what librarians are doing to educate users.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Originally from Salinas, California, Celeste Rhoads<\/strong> (she, her, hers) lives in Paris, France where she manages the operations and collections for children and young adults at the American Library in Paris<\/a>. She is dedicated to fostering a lifelong love of reading and learning in children and teens and enjoys connecting people of all ages with great reads\u2014especially contemporary titles. Celeste has a master\u2019s degree in Library Science from Rutgers University and is currently serving on YALSA\u2019s Morris Award Committee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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