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When should AI be trusted?

Lesson details

Learning outcome

I can explain when AI is helpful and when it should not be trusted.

Key learning points

  1. AI systems can help with some tasks such as searching and suggesting.
  2. AI outputs can contain mistakes or incomplete information.
  3. People must decide when to trust AI systems.

Keywords

  • Reliable - something that works correctly most of the time

  • Mistake - something that is wrong or incorrect

  • Trust - to believe that something is honest or correct

Common misconception

Computers are always correct.

AI applications can give incorrect or incomplete answers because they depend on the data and instructions they were given.

Teacher tip

A key point in this lesson is that AI systems can be helpful but can also make mistakes. Encourage pupils to recognise that people are responsible for deciding when to trust AI.

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2026), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0
except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions
(Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Prior knowledge starter quiz

4 Questions

Q1.
What does an AI system follow to give answers?

its own thoughts and feelings
Correct answer: instructions written by humans
random guesses

Q2.
Which statement is true about AI?

AI understands what its answers mean.
AI feels emotions when it gives answers.
Correct answer: AI follows instructions but does not understand meaning.
AI decides its own goals.

Q3.
Put these steps into the correct order for a voice assistant.

1 - humans write instructions for the system
2 - the system detects sound from your voice
3 - the system compares sound patterns with stored data
4 - the system generates an answer

Q4.
If a voice assistant gives a correct answer, what does this mean?

It understands the question.
Correct answer: It followed instructions and compared patterns.
It decided what to say on its own.
It felt confident about the answer.

4 Questions

Q1.
Which task is most likely to be reliable when using AI?

giving advice about a friendship problem
deciding how someone feels from a photo
Correct answer: suggesting a route using traffic data
choosing who to invite to a party

Q2.
A voice assistant gives you an answer to your question. What should you remember?

The answer must be correct because computers are always correct.
The answer is always correct if it sounds confident.
Correct answer: The answer may still be wrong because AI can make mistakes.
The answer is correct if it is about a fact.

Q3.
A is something that is wrong or incorrect.

Correct Answer: mistake

Q4.
In which of these situations should you not trust answers given by AI applications?

a video platform recommending a cartoon
Correct answer: a chatbot giving medical advice
predictive text suggesting a word
a map app suggesting a route

To help you plan your 4 digital literacy lesson on: When should AI be trusted?, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...