TORRANCE, Calif. — Using artificial intelligence in schools is increasing across the state. 

What You Need To Know

  • The Torrance Unified School District and its EdTech team are aiming to increase AI literacy for students.

  • A recent study by Education Week finds that only 16% of Americans passed an AI literacy test.

  • According to the National Institute of Health, roughly 95% of teens between the ages of 13 and 17 are active on social media. 

With the rise in using AI, the Torrance Unified School District and its EdTech team are aiming to improve literacy among students with the technology.

Kelly High teaches at North High School and uses AI in the classroom to aid students. 

“We want to develop our students to be ready for the future, and this is another skill in their tool belt they can use,” High said. “We want them to ethically be able to use it, to develop those critical thinking skills, and I think it’s really important for me as an educator to build those skills so that I can pass it on to them.”

Roughly a third of high school teachers across the country say that AI does more harm than good, according to the Pew Research Center.

As of late, some downsides have come to light with the use of deep fakes being shared on social media, and with high school students in Beverly Hills sharing fake nude images of their classmates.

“Students ask me all the time about stuff, ‘Hey, is this real? Is this true?” High said. “So teaching them to not just look at the image, but then go and find sources, and find information, is going to make them better-informed citizens.”

Tara O’Brien, a member of Torrance Unified’s EdTech team, goes around the district and assists students and teachers in effectively using technology and AI in the classroom. She says there are some things to look for in spotting when an image is AI-generated.

“Often, when you see fingers or even feet in an image, they come with extra fingers, and sometimes even extra arms or limbs,” O’Brien said. “So those are clear indications.”

Taraneh Karim works alongside O’Brien on the EdTech team. Another aspect they focus on with students is how to decipher between misinformation, disinformation and malinformation. She says there are some cues to look for when you’re reading online articles.

“If there’s a lot of information that’s really disparaging about something, or if there’s too much information that’s positive, too much skew and bias one way or the other kind of lets you know that this might not be completely factually correct.”

Experts expect a continued rise in using AI in the classroom in the coming years.

High advised to be cautious when using the technology because of its potential downsides.

“We want to teach students to push back on the artificial intelligence,” High said. “Not to believe everything it says. We want them to be able to question it.”