FLARE AI
Future Literacy and AI Readiness in Education

About Flare AI

Designed to help secondary school librarians incorporate AI literacy into their library programs with materials that are practical to use, open-access, and built for long-term relevance. The goal is to support students as they learn to make sense of AI systems, evaluate outputs and limitations, and engage with AI technologies thoughtfully and responsibly.

Students and AI working together

Project Initiative

The School of Information Science at the University of South Carolina (USC) is leading a national initiative to strengthen artificial intelligence literacy (AIL) education through school libraries. Over three years, the project will create an open-access curriculum and ready-to-implement materials that help secondary school librarians integrate AIL sustainably into their programs. “We place students at the center as sense-makers of these systems—learning how AI works, questioning it, and using it thoughtfully,” the project team emphasizes. By equipping librarians with practical resources, the initiative aims to help students understand, critically evaluate, and responsibly interact with AI in an increasingly AI-driven world.

What Flare AI Aims to Achieve

  • Create a free, open-access AI literacy curriculum tailored for secondary school librarians.
  • Provide ready-to-implement, adaptable teaching materials that fit naturally into school library programs.
  • Focus on enduring AI literacy principles (not specific tools) so the curriculum stays relevant as AI changes.
  • Co-design with librarians nationwide through surveys and participatory workshops to reflect real needs and contexts.
  • Support librarians in teaching students to understand, evaluate, and responsibly interact with AI in everyday learning and life.
  • Pilot-test and continuously refine the curriculum using online workshops, advisory board input, and iterative feedback.
  • Expand research on AI literacy in school library settings and share findings through professional and scholarly venues.
  • Increase equitable access with bilingual (English/Spanish) materials and downloadable formats for low-connectivity settings.