Youth services librarians, like all of us in libraryland, are grappling with the implications of AI for our profession. I recently gave a presentation to colleagues from across New York State as they concluded a 6-week AI Youth Services Challenge. Designed by NYS youth services coordinators, the challenge helped library staff become more familiar with generative AI. Now archived, it offered participants the opportunity to explore the usefulness of various AI tools across a range of tasks. You can view it below.
My own presentation sought to provide additional context to the challenge by illuminating how young people are engaging with artificial intelligence and the ways public libraries can guide patrons through this rapidly evolving landscape. Here’s some of what we discussed:
The Omnipresence of AI in Our Children’s Lives
Simply put, AI is everywhere, in ways that are sometimes hidden and sometimes more explicit. For example, when a young child receives video recommendations from YouTube Kids, this seemingly mundane exchange is still one where they are interacting with an AI algorithm, providing human data to a training model. The outputs of artificial intelligence are on display across the internet, as the images encountered are increasingly AI-generated. CoPilot continues to insinuate itself into desktop computing, while Apple Intelligence and Gemini do the same for mobile devices. Social media is one more vector; Meta AI is now accessible via Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, and WhatsApp. There is also industry movement towards making generative AI available to children under 13.
Unsurprisingly, all of this access to AI has translated into use, with a recent report from Common Sense Education “The Dawn of the AI Era: Teens, Parents, and the Adoption of Generative AI at Home and School“ indicating that 70% of teens have used at least one generative AI tool, with chatbots and search engines being the most popular. Concerningly, this same report revealed that just 37% of parents whose teen reported using at least one generative AI platform thought their child had already used the technology. To cap off this environment of uncertainty, 60% of teens report either that their school has no rules for how generative AI can be used or that they’re not sure if there are rules, and most parents say that schools have not communicated with them about their generative AI policies!
The Potential for Harm
The combination of wide access, poor understanding, and little regulation, creates a risky environment for youth interacting with artificial intelligence. Chatbots, the preferred gen AI format of this demographic, have been linked to self-harm, may be addictive, and can dispense dangerous health advice. In the 2023 Center for Democracy & Technology report “Off Task: EdTech Threats to Student Privacy and Equity in the Age of AI,” 45% of middle and high school students have used generative AI for personal reasons, including dealing with mental health and anxiety issues. Clearly, the stakes are quite high.
Where Public Libraries Come In
When a knowledge deficit exists in our communities, libraries have an obligation to step in. In this case, building a foundation of AI literacy, defined by non-profit Digital Promise as:
“…the knowledge and skills that enable humans to critically understand, evaluate, and use AI systems and tools to safely and ethically participate in an increasingly digital world.”
Given the documented gap between caretakers’ awareness of their children’s AI usage and the actual extent of that usage, parents and caregivers should be a priority audience for a library’s educational efforts, focused on demystifying AI, internet safety, and identifying/critiquing outputs. Curation of helpful resources can aid us in curriculum building, or in offering referral information to others. Some good sites to check out include:
Talk to Your School District!
As library staff assist students with their research, questions of the appropriateness of AI usage are likely to emerge. Are you familiar with your school district’s official stance (if one exists)? You’ll want to engage with your school district and their school media specialists to understand their guidelines on AI and its use academically. Do they have approved tools? Do they require an AI disclosure?
For example, the Northport-East Northport Union Free School District has an extensive document called K-12 Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) Guidelines. It makes clear what tools are approved for use, and under what conditions. The Downingtown Area School District has a simple, 2 tiered AI disclosure that they require students to use when using AI academically (under AI tools for students).
Knowing where your school district stands on AI use positions the library to best aid students in their research, without running afoul of district policy! Furthermore, once the approved tools for student use are identified, library staff can become familiar with them to better support instruction in effective search and prompting techniques, though age restrictions may still require parental consent.
Until Next Time!
Artificial intelligence is a powerful technology with the potential to both help and harm. Navigating AI requires a cautious, informed approach in which public libraries collaborate with community partners to support our youth.
Items of Interest
- I was named a 2025 Library Journal Mover and Shaker. You can read my profile here.
- I’ll be providing the opening keynote at the Generative AI in Libraries Annual Conference. The online event runs from June 9-12, 2025. Registration is now open.
- I’ll be at ALA 2025 this year, part of a very talented panel on “The Future of Library Services: Innovating with AI, User Experience, and Service Design.” The full conference schedule is available here.
As always, if you’re looking for a speaker for your library event or staff development day, let’s talk! I cover the intersection of emerging technologies and libraries, keeping it conversational, informative, and entertaining. I have limited availability remaining in late fall and winter, and have begun booking out into 2026.
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