Generative AI, rapid information exchange, and political polarization have reshaped the way we interact with information. Here are some quotes about these challenges from a panel discussion hosted by Information Science & Technology (IS&T) Lab of the School of Library and Information Science (SLIS) and the Simmons ASIS&T Student Chapter. The grant to the IS&T Lab was funded by the Simmons Center for Information Literacy (SCIL).
What is Information Literacy?
SLIS Assistant Professor Don Simmons prefers the definition published by the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) in 2000: “A set of abilities enabling an individual to recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information."
While this definition proves all-encompassing, the nature of information literacy continues to change. “We are living in an age of Generative AI,” said Simmons. “This is changing how information is created, shared, and used.”
To define the impact of AI, SLIS Dean Sanda Erdelez contrasted it with a traditional internet search.
“Search engines like Google point you to existing sources,” she said. “Generative AI produces responses that synthesize information rather than simply retrieving it. That shift changes what it means to find information, and raises new questions about how we evaluate accuracy, credibility, and responsibility.”
How does AI change how you teach information literacy?
Assistant Dean of Academic Support & Special Projects JoJo Jacobson, who teaches “Writing Boston” (WRI 101) for first-year undergraduate students, encourages students to experiment with Generative AI, while also being aware of who owns the platform they are using, and who benefits from the information they are sharing.
“We talk about the CEOs of these companies, the privacy issues involved,” said Jacobson, noting that “a lot of organizations profit off of all of us feeling isolated and depressed.”
In addition, algorithms and online “rage bait” make it difficult for people with differing political or social viewpoints to talk to each other. “We need to grow our ability to deal with mild discomfort, so we can talk to someone [with different views] and find a common ground, even if we disagree.”
“We all may be biased in some way. Whenever a narrative comes that suits our bias, we tend to believe it,” said SLIS Professor Naresh Agarwal. He noted that “the moment we start referring to [people with opposing views as] those people, we are guilty of othering. That is a sign of our own bias.”
SLIS Assistant Professor Shengang Wang noted, however, that there are also safe pockets of the internet; echo chambers that offer refuge from difficult situations. “Queer participants can find safety in an online queer community,” he noted. The echo chamber becomes problematic if it cuts off any external perspective.
AI in the Classroom
Wang was born in China, a country where sources of information were controlled or censored by the government. Perhaps this informs his approach to AI use in the classroom; his goal is transparency.
“I tell my students that they can use AI, as long as they say they are using it,” he said, noting that students will likely use it anyway. “I want them to master the skill of using the platform. Students can converse with AI in order to boost their research,” he noted, though the ability to use it in this way is, in itself, a skill to be developed.
To this end, the Tutoring Center received an internal grant from the SCIL to hire five SLIS students as Information Literacy Consultants to support Simmons students in the rapidly evolving digital landscape.