The Unexpected Consequences of Employing AI to Assess School Library Materials
In an unforeseen twist, the application of AI technology in education has led to the unintentional suppression of literary works in school libraries. A school district situated in Iowa inadvertently employed an AI model to scan books for explicit content, resulting in the removal of 19 titles, including distinguished pieces such as Toni Morrison's iconic novel, "Beloved."
This incident sheds light on an unintended application of AI models, similar to ChatGPT, which can inadvertently lead to academic censorship. In this case, a school district in Iowa sought to comply with legislation that prohibited books containing descriptions or visual depictions of sexual acts from being present in school libraries. Unfortunately, this endeavor led to the rushed removal of literary masterpieces such as Maya Angelou's "Where the Caged Bird Sings" and Toni Morrison's "Beloved." The AI software systematically scanned the books for any instances of sexual content and subsequently flagged them for further assessment by administrators.
The Mason City Community School District, as reported by The Gazette, employed an unnamed AI software to evaluate the books within their school libraries prior to the commencement of the 2023-2024 academic year. The district's board members compiled a list of books that were frequently challenged and utilized the AI system to identify any potentially objectionable content related to sexual themes. Following this analysis, the flagged books were withdrawn from the collections of 7th to 12th-grade school libraries and relocated to the Administrative Center. These actions were a direct result of the AI's evaluation process.
The books that were removed due to the AI assessment include:
- "Killing Mr. Griffin" by Lois Duncan
- "Sold" by Patricia McCormick
- "A Court of Mist and Fury" (series) by Sarah J. Maas
- "Monday’s Not Coming" by Tiffany D. Jackson
- "Tricks" by Ellen Hopkins
- "Nineteen Minutes" by Jodi Picoult
- "The Handmaid’s Tale" by Margaret Atwood
- "Beloved" by Toni Morrison
- "Looking for Alaska" by John Green
- "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini
- "Crank" by Ellen Hopkins
- "Thirteen Reasons Why" by Jay Asher
- "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian" by Sherman Alexie
- "An American Tragedy" by Theodore Dreiser
- "The Color Purple" by Alice Walker
- "Feed" by M.T. Anderson
- "Friday Night Lights" by Buzz Bissinger
- "Gossip Girl" by Cecily von Ziegesar
- "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou
Bridgette Exman, the Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction at Mason City, expressed the challenge of manually assessing vast collections of donated and purchased books for potentially objectionable content. She stated that the use of AI technology was a response to the difficulty of addressing this issue manually and also aligned with the district's legal and ethical obligations. She emphasized that the intention was to provide teachers with a defensible process when dealing with questions or concerns about the suitability of books.
The motivation behind Mason City's book removals was the enactment of Senate File 496 (SF 496) in the state. This legislation, inspired by cultural and conservative sentiments, prohibits the presence of books with sexual content descriptions or visual depictions of sex acts in school libraries. It also stipulates that the content must be age-appropriate. The introduction of AI software aimed to offer an additional layer of support to teachers, easing their concerns about inadvertently violating the law.
The scenario in Iowa is emblematic of a broader trend across various states, mainly those with conservative leadership, implementing stricter regulations on the content available in public school libraries. A recent analysis conducted by PEN America reveals that in the first half of the 2022-2023 school year, there were 1,477 reported instances of individual book bans nationally, marking a 28% increase compared to the preceding six months. Notably, these bans are not limited to explicit content but extend to themes of race, racism, and characters of color, comprising 30% of the banned titles. Additionally, 26% of the prohibited titles during the same period encompass LGBTQ+ characters or themes.
The integration of off-the-shelf AI software into this context introduces a new layer of complexity. While it may expedite the process for librarians and school officials, it also introduces the risk of misinterpretation due to AI's inability to grasp contextual nuances. This potential for misunderstanding could lead to the unnecessary removal of literature that is not truly inappropriate.
In conclusion, the utilization of AI for content assessment in school libraries has inadvertently resulted in the removal of significant literary works. This occurrence underscores the challenge of balancing compliance with the law and preserving academic freedom. As technology continues to evolve, it is crucial to find ways to harness its potential while also ensuring that critical aspects like context and human interpretation are not compromised in the process.
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