@bemeredith
Librarian, educator, wife, mother, AuDHD. She/Her. #BeInfoLit. Author of "Master of Information: Skills for Lifelong Learning and Resisting Misinformation." On Substack @themerilibrarian “Fear dims when you learn things.” -Alys, Lois Lowry, Son.
If people can effectively engage with and apply information in their lives, then they will have agency over their futures. That’s the core of what inspired me to become a school librarian 20 years ago and it’s never been more true now. There are no magic wands.
As per the report, the leading use of AI by teens is “to search for information.” To what extent are teens actively engaging in the search process and to what extent is the bot simply retrieving information?
Words matter. Framing context matters.
www.pewresearch.org/internet/202...
Teens in households making under $75K are more likely to use chatbots for help with all or most schoolwork % of U.S. teens ages 13 to 17 who say they do all or most of their schoolwork with the help of AI chatbots U.S. teens — 10 Household income <$30,000 — 20 $30K–$74,999 — 15 $75,000+ — 7 Note: Those who did not answer or gave other responses are not shown. Source: Survey conducted Sept. 25–Oct. 9, 2025. “How Teens Use and View AI” PEW RESEARCH CENTER
According to PEW, teens in households making under $75K are more likely to use chatbots for help with all or most schoolwork. I read a comment on another platform that said this is amazing news because we are "finally going to close the achievement gap." That is not how I would interpret this data.
I have so much mistrust of AI due to the negative repercussions of digital tech in my lifetime. That being said, AI isn’t going away. Understanding the learning process and teaching deep info lit skills will help people use any and all tools and resources to make their own way forward. #BeInfoLit
Being a guest on a podcast was a bucket list item and I’m so happy to have been on SLLN twice now. I hope you have as much fun listening as I did talking with Steve. Enjoy!
Steve, you’re the best hype man and host. Thanks for having me! I have about a year to come up with something new for you, right?
Yes but with that also comes some earned wisdom! 😊
I had so much fun with Steve Tetreault @drtlovesbooks.bsky.social this morning while recording an episode of his podcast. I got to talk about something that’s been a long time in the making and am very excited to share it with everyone! Subscribe to his podcast and keep an eye out for yours truly.
Adding to my to-read list.
Needing this today. Thank you for making this feed.
Information is a commodity. The Internet led the belief everything is at our fingertips more cheaply or for free. After decades of underfunding and outright cutting professional info institutions - journalism, libraries - our democracy is weaker, not stronger.
You get what you pay for.
I have known about and have been experiencing the myriad of ways the roll out of digital technology in education (and society writ large) has been totally bungled. We can and must do better.
So honored to have been asked to take this on — and ready to get to work!
We are in an absolutely critical moment in history for information access and equity in the US. If you have an idea, please reach out. I’m more than happy to help you hone your ideas and navigate the submission process.
I concur. So soothing.
Tales from suburbia: Someone raced me to a lone shopping cart at the entrance of the grocery store. I was nearest, but when I paused to ask if she needed it, she snatched it away and I was left bewildered for the rest of my time there. I’m still not sure what I actually managed to buy.
Some days - especially when I start to feel lost in the guilt of believing I’m not doing enough because there’s so much that needs doing - I have to remind myself of this very thing.
Here's my own article about it from 2020. It was clear to me then, but clearer still today, that transformation to meet this moment requires bottom-up transformation that looks like fighting racism and misogyny, which includes anti-trans bigotry, and learning to work together toward common goals
A map of the US colored spastically with red, yellow, and blue crayon. The meme says “Big weather system coming through. Here's what we know so far.”
Good morning, skeeters! Attack the day with the confidence of a meteorologist. And stay warm.
This is my all time favorite book and I was interested to read this article on it. Initially after hearing some things about the movie, I wasn’t too excited about it, but now I may actually watch it.
www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainmen...
Most adults don’t understand how tech is made and operates, yet it’s all tossed at our children without explicit instruction on how to use it properly.
Children are not small adults and the executive functioning demanded of them writ large is not appropriate nor necessary.
Many adults have demanded for decades that schools mirror “real world” by using all of the latest tech. “They need to know how to use this for a job.” Most of benefited from school and learning in a pre-Internet world.
Children deserve time and space to learn before using tools meant for adults.
😆 that’s perfect
Please read and share ⬇️
John Cusack wants to talk about paywalls.! 🦋
www.cjr.org/the-intervie...
A helpful thread, including the report’s problematic and seemingly contradictory conclusions.
Still, good to see others reaching the conclusion that school leaders and educators need to pause the uptake of GenAI.
Now let’s keep resisting narratives of inevitability that serve tech companies.
Exactly
"Sam Altman has defended the technology’s “right to learn” from books and articles, “like a human can.” This deceptive, feel-good idea prevents the public discussion we need to have about how AI companies are using the creative and intellectual works upon which they are utterly dependent."
I’ve read so much about how men are isolated, but women hurt from lack of and breaks in relationships, too. We ALL benefit from better human connections.
www.thegirlfriend.com/relationship...
Seriously.
The last stanza.
Words matter. Language matter. Context matters. Humanity matters.
Best thing people can do in today’s digital environment- learn how to access settings and turn stuff off.
It won’t stop everything, but it’s an act of resistance that does stop some things. You don’t have to feed the monster. You can do some things without doing everything.