Senior Lecturer in Law & Director of the Open Justice Centre Francine Ryan writes about why AI literacy is so important and how access to free education and training resources is key.

The rapid advancement of Generative AI (GenAI) has brought about significant change across industries, AI is disrupting education, work, and society. GenAI tools like ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude have re-shaped the way in which we engage with technology. This means it is critical that everyone understands how these tools work and can critically evaluate the outputs of the tools. This requires the right knowledge and skills to ensure they are being used ethically and responsibly, which is why AI literacy, which goes beyond digital literacy is so important. 

AI is pervasive, it now features in so many aspects of our daily lives; AI literacy helps people understand how to use AI technologies ethically, critically and responsibly. Many different AI literacy frameworks have been created; they set out the competencies required to use these tools. Although there is no singular framework, AI literacy comprises of having an awareness and understanding of how AI works, how to use AI tools, being able to critically evaluate the outputs of AI, AI ethics and the impact of AI on society. 

Ensuring that everyone has the skills to use AI tools safely and responsibly is critical, to do that people need access to free education and training resources. As part of a UKRI-funded project on ‘Responsible AI’, The Open University, in collaboration with Citizens Advice and the University of Lincoln, have developed a series of free online courses on Generative AI. 

There are eight courses available:

1. Understanding Generative AI
2. Skills and Strategies for Using Generative AI
3. Key Considerations for Successful Generative AI Adoption
4. Use Cases for Generative AI
5. Ethical and Responsible Use of Generative AI
6. Navigating Risk Management
7. Legal Regulation and Compliance
8. Horizon Scanning and AI Literacy

Participants receive a digital badge and certificate upon completing a short quiz at the end of each course. To find out more and explore the courses go to:  OLCreate: AI Law and Legal Training | OLCreate

These courses are designed for beginners and will support AI literacy; they will allow people to engage more meaningfully with AI tools. Course 1 gives people an awareness and understanding of how AI works. Course 2 supports people to understand how to prompt AI tools and be able to critically evaluate the outputs of AI.  Course 5 helps people understand some of the implications of AI technologies- how they are impacting on society, and the environment, and how to ensure they use the technology ethically and responsibly. The developments in AI are rapid, so Course 8 explores how to keep up to date with the changes that are happening and reflect on the development of AI literacy.  

AI tools are being used for many different purposes including within the advice and legal sector. Since the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022, the possibilities for AI tools to support legal processes and improve access to information have grown exponentially. However, these developments bring additional challenges, using AI tools for legal information and advice can be risky. So, these courses have been designed not only to help people understand how AI tools work, but they also explore some of the opportunities and challenges around using AI tools for legal information and advice. Course 4 provides examples of the ways in which AI tools are being used in the advice and legal sector; Courses 6 and 7 explore some of the risks created by AI and how to mitigate them and gives an overview of how AI technologies are regulated. Many organisations are thinking about incorporating AI tools into their workflows, Course 3 gives an overview of the areas that organisations need to consider and questions they need to ask if they want to successfully incorporate AI tools. 

AI poses many challenges; we need to ensure that everyone has the knowledge and skills to understand the impact of AI and employ it responsibly.