Verizon
By Meg St-Esprit
At a glance
- AI chatbots are already built into apps kids use, making it important for parents to talk early about what they are, and what they’re not.
- AI isn’t always accurate or reliable, and kids need to learn to question answers, check sources and avoid using chatbots to do their thinking or schoolwork.
- The goal isn’t to avoid AI—it’s to guide how kids use it, using low-stakes questions, games and conversations to build critical thinking.
Any child with access to social media has likely experienced an artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot. Some well-known examples: Meta has an AI assistant that will show you how to change a tire or help you lose weight. Snapchat’s My AI buddy will explain a science topic in a simple way, or toss out some birthday gift ideas for a friend.
For most families, the first interactions with these AI chatbots in social media are pretty harmless—like asking a chatbot to write silly song lyrics. Children quickly realize, though, that they can use these chats to ask questions they’re too embarrassed to ask adults about, like depression. Or they might simply ask an AI chatbot to do their homework.
“The temptation to use artificial intelligence to do schoolwork is strong,” says Lynn Rogoff, an adjunct associate professor at the New York Institute of Technology who designs chatbots for educational purposes. Her AI chatbot characters are designed to give students factually accurate information about historical events—something she says is a positive use of AI for students. But she’s also aware that they struggle with drawing the line on how to use AI.
“You have to persuade them that it’s in their best interests to gain critical literacy skills rather than let AI do their work,” she says.
Is it time to have the AI chatbot discussion with your kids? If so, these questions can help you get the conversation started.
1. What is an AI chatbot?
Whether it’s a stand-alone app or a feature incorporated into social media, AI chatbots might seem like a digital buddy, but they’re not real people. Instead, they’re designed to answer questions and sound conversational. They can even crack a joke or two—but they don’t think or feel like a human does.
2. Is AI accurate?
AI chatbots can give incorrect information. Asking a question about an upcoming event could generate a suggestion related to something that happened in the past.
“[AI chatbots] may be pretty good at seeming real,” says Jessica Ghilani, Ph.D., associate professor of communication at the University of Pittsburgh. “But that isn’t the same as being accurate.” Experts say this is likely to improve over time, but it’s a reason for caution.
3. Does AI use reliable sources?
Chatbots are known for providing chunks of information without any indication of where the information came from. Even when AI chatbots list sources, sometimes those sources don’t exist (these are called “ghost sources”). At the very least, this means that any specific data or research provided by an AI chatbot needs to be verified, which means going to the original source to make sure the information is accurate.
4. How could we use AI for fun?
Jamie Davis Smith, a mom of four in Washington, D.C., says her family used an AI chatbot to plan a summer road trip, which was mostly accurate. As a journalist, she knows accuracy and sourcing are crucial skills for kids to learn. That’s why she highlights AI’s limitations, as well as its usefulness, when she talks to her kids about AI chatbots. And she uses these fun activities to help teach what AI can (and can’t) do.
Try this:
Ask low-stakes questions. Recently, Smith’s son asked her if barn owls actually live in barns. Not knowing the answer, they turned to an AI chatbot. (Spoiler alert: Barn owls do prefer to live in barns.) These types of low-stakes questions are a great way to familiarize children with the pros and cons of artificial intelligence, Smith says.
Play games with bots. Most of the popular AI chatbot tools have game features built in; playing 20 questions or trivia games is a great way to help kids understand how these tools respond, as well as a great way to highlight when they are wrong.
Ask a bot to tell jokes. Artificial intelligence isn’t only for research — these AI chatbots can be funny, too. Ask an AI chatbot or smart speaker to tell you a knock-knock joke. This is a great way for kids to learn how artificial intelligence can communicate with them while they also have a laugh with their parents.
The bottom line
Artificial intelligence tools require supervision and guidance. Smith is cautiously having fun with these new tools even as she worries about kids using them to cut corners or even plagiarize work.
“It’s important to start talking with your kids about how to use them responsibly, and their limitations,” Smith says. “And start now if you haven’t done so already.”
About the author:
Meg St-Esprit, M.Ed., is a journalist who writes about education, parenting, tech and travel. With a background in counseling and development, she offers insights to help parents make informed decisions for their kids. St-Esprit lives in Pittsburgh with her husband, four kids and too many pets.
The author has been compensated by Verizon for this article.
For more tips and guidance from the experts, visit Parenting in a Digital World.
