Defining and Teaching AI Literacy in Schools
Exploring Definitions, Soft Power, and the Importance of AI Literacy for Teachers
The relevance of AI literacy within a school context is growing rapidly. In a recent LinkedIn poll I conducted, 87% of respondents agreed that schools should teach AI literacy, 2% disagreed, and 11% felt more detail was needed. The comments were equally enlightening, with suggestions that AI literacy should be compulsory and questions about what arguments could be made against teaching it.
Defining AI literacy is crucial because teaching it effectively is essential for gaining the most value and understanding from it. If it is not properly defined and taught, it could have social consequences: “In the near future, AI literacy or a lack of it and what facets of AI knowledge have been taught may turn out to be a critical social issue” (Rizvi, Wait, and Sentence, 2023). However, defining AI literacy remains the first challenge. As Philip Colligan, CEO of the Raspberry Pi Foundation, noted in a blog post: "The first problem is defining what AI literacy actually means" (October 2023).
So, what is AI literacy?
In this newsletter to subscribers, I analyse definitions from wider reading, their history, and the influence of soft power, and explore how we can arrive at a more comprehensive definition of the term AI literacy.
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