The Gap Between AI Use and AI Literacy

A new report on 9-17 year olds' use of AI by Common Sense Media puts a spotlight on the widening gap between AI usage and AI literacy. While 85% of students who use AI turn to it for schoolwork, a large majority lack even the most basic knowledge of how AI works.

The report found that out of the respondents who said they know "a lot" about how AI works, only 37% knew that GenAI can't tell the difference between what's true and what's false.

Perhaps most concerning is the finding that students who struggle academically, including those who have a hard time staying focused, lean on AI the most: 56% compared with 46% of their peers. These students are turning to AI for help, but without AI literacy, their use runs the risk of exposing them to misinformation, overreliance, and cognitive offloading.

Schools have a critical role to play. Policies and guidelines are a start, but there is a danger in only communicating to students what not to do. Effective AI literacy teaches students how to make informed decisions not only about how to use GenAI, but also about when they should set the tools aside.

Our SEE GenAI Literacy Framework lays out the importance of AI literacy instruction that counters misconceptions, builds foundational knowledge of how the tools work, and cultivates critical mindsets.

This is how students move from confident but uncritical AI use to true self-efficacy, where their use is grounded in safe, ethical, and effective practices.