Artificial intelligence and technology have now become an inseparable part of our lives. However, as with everything, when used excessively and carelessly, it can cause harm. Doç. Dr. Şebnem Özdemir, the Head of the Data Science Department at the Faculty of Economics, Administrative and Social Sciences at İstinye University, points out that the era of addictive artificial intelligence is beginning. Özdemir emphasized the importance of this issue, stating, "We must develop children with high abilities in questioning and critical thinking."
Artificial intelligence and the technology that comes with it are undoubtedly making our lives easier today. However, like everything else, too much of this convenience can be harmful. Doç. Dr. Şebnem Özdemir, Head of the Data Science Department at the Faculty of Economics, Administrative and Social Sciences at İstinye University, pointed out that the era of addictive artificial intelligence will soon begin, sharing insights from a report published by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the third quarter of 2024. Özdemir stated that children who are not adequately supported by their families or have not developed strong social acceptance are increasingly seeking to socialize with machines that will never judge them and will answer anything they say. She warned that this could lead to the "era of addictive artificial intelligence" and emphasized, "As parents, we must take precautions," highlighting the crucial role parents play in their children's use of AI.
“If We Don’t Instill a Sense of Curiosity, it Will Undermine the Memory and Learning Processes of Productive AI”
Doç. Dr. Özdemir pointed out that it is critical to instill in children the ability to fight for access to accurate information and a sense of curiosity. She warned that if this is not done, every child who asks questions to machines (AI) and simply copies the answers will damage the AI's permanent memory and undermine their learning processes. She said, "How we use the tool can either benefit us or harm us. Therefore, it is not a correct approach to label AI as something that will either make us lazy or certainly push us forward. However, if we do not instill in children the emotions of curiosity, the desire to seek knowledge, and the ability to question and struggle for answers, scientific studies tell us that artificial intelligence will damage their permanent memories and disrupt their learning processes. This is where parents and teachers play a very serious role. We must develop children who have high questioning abilities and critical thinking skills. We do not need questions like ‘What is a cell?’ or ‘What is a cat?’ We need questions that feed creativity, questions whose answers we cannot learn from books or memorize. When we introduce children to these types of questions, we will witness the strengthening of the child’s memory, vision, and skills, who interacts with AI.”
“We Must Teach Children to Verify and Research the Answers of Artificial Intelligence”
Doç. Dr. Özdemir emphasized that children need to be taught that machines can be wrong. She discussed the use and limits of AI:
"Every tool, every technology that has emerged on the world stage has a positive or negative impact depending on how humans use it. Text-based generative AI models, such as Chat-GPT (Claude, Gemini, LLAMA, DeepSeek R1), become sacred and unquestionable sources of information for children when they are not taught the proper way of obtaining information by their families and teachers. This will damage their permanent memory. In some cases, children may encounter fictional, non-realistic content. We must first guide the child in the right direction at this point. This machine can be wrong. This machine may not tell the truth. This machine does not know everything. We must teach them that we should not blindly trust the answers we get from machines, that we need to verify the answers from different sources, and that we must research them. But we, as adults and teachers, must also stop asking children questions that they can directly get answers to from a machine."
“We Must Take Precautions as Parents to Prevent Dependency”
Addressing the potential harm of artificial intelligence on children, Özdemir said:
“While there are benefits, of course, there are also harms. The standards of these machines are not clear. It is possible that inappropriate or harmful content may be generated for children, or that images created from a child's words may not be pedagogically suitable. As always, we, as parents, will be there for our children, supporting them throughout the process. We will not leave children alone with machines. MIT released an important report in the third quarter of last year, stating that the ‘addictive intelligence’ era is beginning. Children who have not been adequately supported by their families or have not strengthened their social acceptance are increasingly choosing to socialize with machines that will never judge them, and will respond to anything they say, due to their fear of not being socially accepted. This could lead to a generation that is approaching machines with human-like qualities, potentially losing the human characteristics we associate with ourselves. Again, as parents, we must take precautions.”
“Especially Support Girls to Be Stronger and More Eager for Technology”
On how to prepare children for the future in the context of AI, Özdemir explained:
“Preparing our children for the AI world is a difficult problem, and I accept that. Because humanity has never faced so many unknowns before in history. First, we must acknowledge that there is no need to fear this technology. If we fear it, we will fall into a huge mistake, just like fearing fire when it was invented. First, we must try to understand this technology with all its benefits and harms. We must accept that this technology will be our children’s reality, and they will live and grow old with it. In short, the artificial intelligence that we are now afraid of will become our children's reality. After understanding AI, let’s please support local and national solutions. We must also examine the culture our children are gaining. All the artificial intelligences our children use were born and learned in another culture. Another critical issue for children spending time with machines (AI) is cultural erosion and alienation from their own culture. The biases that machines (AI) hold outside of culture are another aspect. Unfortunately, AI has a high bias against women. When we ask a data scientist, ‘Who is the best data scientist on your team?’ the machine always thinks of a man. At this point, mothers, please support your girls to be stronger and more eager in the technology field. If women don’t find a place in the world of data-based AI, the machine will remain biased against women for the next 108 years.”
“Unlike Every Tool We Use, Artificial Intelligence Is a Smart Entity”
Giving information about AI literacy, Özdemir said:
"AI literacy means understanding the limitations, advantages, and disadvantages of the AI world. It means being able to understand every point where the technologies we use can either harm or support, and transmitting that correctly to children. So, when we evaluate this, we are talking about mastering every aspect of the tools we use, from a simple TV remote control to a musical instrument. However, unlike every other tool we use, artificial intelligence is an intelligent entity. Therefore, the child interacting with it is not just facing a tool or a machine, but also an intelligent entity. We need to understand that this entity can break, it can record, and it learns from it. Understanding AI and guiding children’s use of it is crucial."