Online untruths: ‘Don’t leave kids to their own devices’

The need to teach children to sort fact from fiction online has never been more pressing, writes Marina Gardiner Legge

Marina Gardiner Legge

Last year was the biggest year of elections globally and we felt it.

Together with the seismic shifts in leadership some are sadly still in flux we also witnessed the use of mis- and disinformation in many of these elections: some through third party countries, some by candidates themselves and some with purely financial goals.

The European Union saw a about election integrity compared to the previous election cycle. Donald Trump repeatedly made baseless claims about and actively as part of his campaign to win the presidency in the US. While research has shown that AI disinformation didn鈥檛 affect any election results, there are plenty of warnings about its future influence.

Further concerns about veracity of the content that we are consuming online have been raised since Meta鈥檚 decision to across Facebook, Instagram and Threads.

Two years ago I initiated a social discourse programme for our Year 7 students, at a time when much online discussion felt both polarised and extreme. I wanted our students to be ready to engage in important discussions, but to learn to “disagree well” and appreciate different points of view.

Some young people come into the classroom parroting inaccurate and biased arguments.

Year 7 is the stage at which many students are given their first mobile phone and all too often, left to their own devices, these young people are unprepared to question the content they are confronted with online and come into the classroom parroting inaccurate and biased arguments. Stories I鈥檝e heard from fellow heads include really challenging ideas about the war in the Middle East and views from Andrew Tate as examples. It is then up to the teacher to hold this space and support positive discussion not easy when feelings run deep.

Together with equipping our staff appropriately, I have since adapted the social discourse programme to focus more on digital and media literacy enabling our students to evaluate and assess what they read or watch, with a critical eye. Making use of materials from the curriculum, we work with the students to get them ready for an AI-enabled workplace, enhance their source-evaluation skills and crucially, invite them to explore: what do I think?

The Civic Online Reasoning curriculum is full of relevant teaching materials and sources to interrogate. The cornerstone is to embed the following critical questions in every students鈥 minds as they go about their lives, consuming content:

  • Who鈥檚 behind the information?
  • What鈥檚 the evidence?
  • What do other sources say? 

Devastatingly, last year we witnessed the violent potential of disinformation with the far-right riots that spread across the UK this summer. Thanks to , we now know that one of the “publications” sharing false information that led to more rioting, had no interest in the issue at hand and was in fact a commercial operation, 鈥渃overing as many stories as possible鈥 in order to generate income.

Last year we witnessed the violent potential of disinformation with the far-right riots.

The UN is rightfully prioritising media and information literacy as mis- and dis-information has significant potential to threaten democracy and the dissemination of vital public health information. There鈥檚 an additional element for us as a school for girls.  We know that much of the data that informs AI. Additionally, it is female politicians that are largely targeted with online abuse and deep fake pornography smears, harming their wellbeing and posing risks to their professional reputations.

How do we support young women in particular as they emerge into this deeply challenging environment? We equip them with the critical skills that enable them to uncover the truth, challenge the misogyny inherent in technology and lead. We don鈥檛 shy away from teaching our students how to use AI ethically or having difficult conversations about complex issues in the world. These are critical skills that will enable them to make a difference.