Children’s Views on AI

Academic Insights

• Primary students hold mixed cognitive and emotional views of AI.
• AI is seen both as a machine and as a quasi-human entity.
• Students appreciate AI help but fear job loss, surveillance, and harm.
• Children call for regulation and slower AI development.
• Early AI exposure highlights the need for structured AI literacy.
• Children’s voices are largely absent from AI policy debates.

Apply This Now

• Introduce AI through discussion, not just tools.
• Address fears alongside benefits explicitly.
• Teach AI as a social issue, not only a technology.

Add This in Your Lesson

Ask students to write: “What should adults know about AI?”

Avoid This Mistake

Assuming young learners see AI as neutral or harmless.

Keywords

Children and AI; AI literacy; Student perceptions; Ethics; Primary education