⭐ Bonus Step: Supporting Student AI Literacy Through Assignments and Assessments

Overview

This optional bonus step invites you to think intentionally about how AI literacy can be embedded into your assignments and assessments as a natural extension of the work faculty already do to support information literacy.

Information literacy remains essential. Students must still learn how to find, evaluate, cite, and ethically use information.

AI literacy builds on those same foundations of critical thinking, adding new skills related to understanding, evaluating, and responsibly using AI-generated content.

Because students come to us with widely varied experiences and assumptions about AI, intentional design matters.

⭐ Where This Bonus Step Fits in Your Journey

This step is completely optional and designed to extend your course design work.

Use this step if you want to:

Clarify expectations for AI use in assignments and assessments
Support ethical, reflective AI use
Build student AI literacy intentionally rather than reactively
Reduce confusion around acceptable and unacceptable AI use
Align AI expectations with your learning outcomes

Note: Skipping this step will not prevent you from completing the course.

⭐ AI Literacy as a Dimension of Information Literacy

Information literacy and AI literacy share core foundations:

Critical thinking
Evaluation of sources
Ethical use of tools
Academic integrity
Transparency

Just as we do not assume students automatically know how to research or cite sources, we cannot assume students know how to use AI appropriately in learning environments.

AI literacy adds new questions students must learn to navigate:

When is AI appropriate to use?
How reliable is AI-generated content?
What biases or limitations exist?
How do I use AI without misrepresenting my learning?
How do I communicate my AI use transparently?

Faculty play a key role in helping students develop these skills.

⭐ Why Faculty-Guided AI Literacy Matters

Students are already using AI, often without guidance.

When expectations are unclear, students may:

Over-rely on AI
Avoid it entirely out of fear
Use it in ways that undermine learning
Misunderstand academic integrity expectations

By designing assignments and assessments that acknowledge AI openly, faculty can:

Reduce confusion and anxiety
Support ethical behavior
Reinforce learning goals
Model critical evaluation of AI tools
Help students transfer skills beyond the classroom

If faculty don’t guide this learning, students are left to figure it out on their own.

⭐ Designing Assignments That Support AI Literacy

Assignments can support AI literacy when they:

Clearly state whether AI use is allowed, limited, or prohibited
Explain why those expectations exist
Require students to reflect on how AI was used (or not used)
Emphasize human judgment, interpretation, and synthesis
Ask students to evaluate AI-generated content critically

AI literacy is developed through guided practice, not prohibition or silence.

⭐ Designing Assessments With AI in Mind

Assessments that support AI literacy often:

Focus on application, analysis, and reflection
Require personal, local, or contextual connections
Include process documentation or drafts
Incorporate oral, visual, or experiential components
Ask students to explain their thinking

These approaches do not eliminate AI, but they clarify the role of the human learner.

⭐ Examples of AI-Literate Assignment and Assessment Strategies

AI as a Brainstorming Tool: Students may use AI to generate initial ideas, then refine them independently. Example: “Use AI to brainstorm possible approaches. Submit a brief reflection describing which ideas you used, modified, or rejected.”
AI Evaluation Tasks: Students critique AI-generated responses using course concepts. Example: “Evaluate the accuracy and completeness of an AI-generated explanation using course readings.”
AI Reflection Components: Students explain how AI contributed to their learning. Example prompts: “How did AI support your thinking? Where did it fall short? What decisions did you make as the learner?”
Transparency Statements: Similar to citation practices, students disclose AI use. Example: “I used AI to brainstorm ideas and revise wording. All final analysis is my own.”

⭐ Using AI to Help You Design AI-Literate Work

AI can help you think through how to embed AI literacy intentionally. Try prompts like:

“How can I incorporate AI literacy into this assignment without undermining learning outcomes?”
“What reflection questions would help students think critically about AI use?”
“How can I clarify ethical AI use expectations for this assessment?”
“What aspects of this assignment require human judgment and should remain human-centered?”

AI can generate ideas. You decide what aligns with your course and students.

⭐ Optional Course Map Reflection

If helpful, you may add a note to your Course Map identifying:

Assignments or assessments where AI use may be guided
Reflection or transparency components
Expectations you want to communicate clearly to students
How AI literacy supports your outcomes

This reflection is optional and for your own planning.

⭐ Need Support?

If you want help thinking through AI literacy in your course, consider connecting with:

Instructional Designers
Library faculty (information literacy expertise)
Colleagues exploring AI-informed pedagogy

This work is evolving, and collaboration matters.

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