Designing a critical AI literacy program for K-8 STEM education: Adopting a community-centered approach

Abstract Considering the growing use of AI in society, designing learning environments that promote students’ critical consciousness and literacy regarding both the affordances and challenges of AI has become imperative. While focusing on the technical and foundational concepts of AI is essential in curriculum and learning environment design, scholars of science and STEM education have raised concerns about the limited attention given to teaching the social, cultural, and ethical dimensions of AI systems, particularly in elementary and informal STEM learning contexts. Therefore, in this methodological paper, we focus on developing a Critical AI Literacy program by adopting a design process grounded in a community-centered approach. To achieve this, we employ participatory design in collaboration with elementary students and public librarians to co-develop curricular modules to promote critical AI literacy. These modules aim not only to teach core AI concepts but also to explore localized, community-relevant ethical issues related to AI in K–8 informal education settings. This paper contributes to the growing body of research in informal STEM education by demonstrating how to adopt a community-centered perspective and participatory approach to design a critical AI literacy curriculum.