AI Literacy For Teachers & Students

Today is National AI Literacy Day! Founded in 2024, this day is all about focusing on the role that artificial intelligence plays in our lives and how we can prepare ourselves and our students for the continued increase in AI technology. You can learn more about National AI Literacy Day here.

There are still many people in the world - teachers, parents, students, etc. - who choose to shut out any information about AI. They don't want to use it; they don't want to talk about it; they want to pretend it doesn't exist. There is no doubt that AI can be problematic and even dangerous, but ignoring the problems will not make them go away. Instead, we need to learn as much as we can and we need to teach ourselves and our students how to live with it, use it appropriately, and hold others accountable for misusing it.

I have long believed that Digital Literacy should be a required course for students of all grade levels, but now? It is almost irresponsible if we are not actively teaching both students AND teachers every single year. So many things change with technology on a daily basis now. We need students and teachers to be aware of what it can do, how it can be misused, and how it can be used appropriately to help improve our work and our lives. I might not be able to change state educational or professional development requirements, but I can at least share PD opportunities and lesson plans and hope that teachers will recognize the importance of educating themselves and incorporating ideas and concepts into their existing curriculum.

I am going to share just a few of the resources that I think are most beneficial to high school students and teachers. You can find these and more at the National AI Literacy Day website or the Day of AI website. There are plenty of other places you can find PD opportunities and lesson plans that are relevant to you, but this is a solid place to start.

PD Opportunities (National AI Literacy Day)

• Google - Get Started with Google AI in K12 Education (2 hours, self-paced course)

• SchoolAI - AI Literacy Modules (3 hours, self-paced modules)

• NEA - Safe & Ethical Use of AI (5 hours, self-paced course)

• CodeHS - Developing AI Literacy (1 hour, video webinar)

Lesson Plans (Day of AI)

• AI, Effort, and Your Brain (1 class period)

• Work in the Age of AI (2 class periods)

• Truth, Tricks, and AI: Learning to Verify Information (1 class period)

• The Impact of AI on the Environment (2-3 class periods)

These are just a few of the thousands of free resources that are available from a variety of organizations. Explore on your own to find more or feel free to reach out if you need help finding something!