AI and Online Information: Teaching Students to Question

A recent UNESCO survey of 500 digital content creators across 45 countries found that 62% said they did not rigorously check information before sharing it.

The survey also found that around one-third would share information without checking it if they trusted the source or creator.

When asked how they judged whether online information was credible, 41.7% said they looked at the number of likes and views. Only 17% said they looked at the documentation and evidence supporting a claim.

That matters.

Because young people are increasingly encountering information through social media, creators and influencers, the ability to question what they see online is becoming an increasingly important skill.

Being popular doesn't make something credible.

And being told by someone you trust doesn't automatically make information true.

Why critical thinking matters online

We can't simply tell students to "be careful online".

That doesn't give them a practical way to work out whether something is reliable.

Students need to know what to actually do when they come across a claim, video, post or piece of advice online.

This is where critical thinking and AI become particularly important.

AI is making it easier to create convincing information at scale. But even without AI, students are already navigating an online environment where information can be presented confidently without being accurate.

The challenge isn't simply finding information.

It's working out whether that information deserves to be trusted.

Popularity is not the same as credibility

One of the findings from the UNESCO survey really stood out to me.

More than four in ten content creators surveyed said likes and views were their main factor when assessing the credibility of online information.

It is easy to understand why this happens.

If a video has millions of views, thousands of comments and a creator with a huge following, it can feel like that information must be reliable.

But popularity tells us how many people have interacted with something.

It doesn't tell us whether the information is accurate.

A post can go viral because it is entertaining, controversial, surprising or emotionally engaging.

None of those things make it true.

This is an important distinction for students to understand.

Trusting the person isn't enough

The survey also found that about one-third of creators would share information without checking it if they trusted the source or creator.

This is another useful lesson for students.

We all have people we trust online.

It might be a creator they have followed for years, a teacher, an expert, a friend or someone whose content they regularly enjoy.

But trusting someone doesn't mean we should automatically trust every claim they make.

A person can be knowledgeable about one subject and completely wrong about another.

They can misunderstand something.

They can repeat information they haven't checked.

They can also be influenced by their own experiences, opinions or incentives.

Critical thinking means being willing to question information even when it comes from someone we like or trust.

What should students learn about evaluating online information?

Digital literacy for students needs to go beyond telling them which websites are trustworthy.

Students need a process they can use when they encounter information online.

For example:

Who is making the claim?

Students can start by identifying the person or organisation behind the information.

What do they know about the topic?

Are they speaking from expertise, personal experience or opinion?

What evidence supports it?

This is one of the most important questions.

Students should look for evidence, documentation, original sources or other information that supports the claim.

The UNESCO survey found that only 17% of creators surveyed identified documentation and evidence as their primary credibility indicator.

That is a useful reminder of why students need practice with this skill.

Can I find the same information somewhere else?

Checking another source can reveal whether a claim is widely supported or whether it only appears in one place.

Students can compare information rather than accepting the first answer they see.

Am I being persuaded?

Students also need to notice how information makes them feel.

Is the content designed to make them angry, scared, excited or shocked?

Strong emotions can make us less likely to stop and question what we're seeing.

Does popularity actually tell me anything about accuracy?

Likes, views, comments and follower numbers can tell us that content has reached people.

They cannot prove that the information is correct.

That distinction is simple, but incredibly important.

AI makes this skill even more important

Students are now navigating an online world where information can be created and distributed very quickly.

AI adds another layer to that environment.

AI can generate text, images, audio and video that can look or sound convincing. Students therefore need to be able to question both the content itself and the source behind it.

That doesn't mean students need to assume everything they see is fake.

It means they need to develop the habit of checking before believing or sharing.

This is a key part of AI literacy and online safety.

The goal isn't to teach students who to trust

The real skill isn't knowing who to trust.

It's knowing how to work out whether something deserves your trust.

That is a much more useful skill because it doesn't depend on having a permanent list of trustworthy people or websites.

The internet will keep changing.

The platforms students use will change.

The creators they follow will change.

AI will continue to change how information is produced and presented.

The ability to stop, question, check and think will remain useful.

That is why critical thinking needs to be treated as a practical digital skill, not just something students learn for an English or humanities assignment.

Critical thinking is a skill students will take with them

Students will leave school and continue to encounter claims, advice, news, advertising, AI-generated content and opinions online.

They will need to make decisions about what information to believe and what to ignore.

We can't guarantee that they will always encounter reliable information.

What we can do is help them develop the skills to question what they see.

That means teaching students to look beyond likes and followers, ask where information came from, look for evidence and consider whether a claim actually holds up.

Because being popular doesn't make something credible.

And knowing how to question information is a skill students will need long after they leave the classroom.

Paris works with schools across Western Australia to build practical critical thinking, AI literacy and online safety skills, helping students become more confident and thoughtful consumers of online information.