Collaborative Research: Advancing Latino Children’s Science Learning through Community Co-Design of AI-Enhanced Bilingual E-Books

Early childhood years are critical for developing the foundational knowledge, skills, and attitudes for later success in STEM. Young children learn science best when they actively engage with topics that are meaningful to their everyday lives. Artificial intelligence can help in developing science learning content and making it more interactive, while also presenting the challenge - and opportunity - of providing unbiased AI-generated materials. This project involves direct participation from local parents in co-designing these AI-based educational materials. University and community partners will jointly work with AI to create interactive science stories that draw on family values, and everyday experiences, and that are adaptable for families in multilingual contexts. The project leverages storytelling - a major form of social capital in local communities - to foster children's scientific curiosity and engagement, while also helping build community members' AI literacy skills. The project will contribute important knowledge about how AI can be effectively harnessed to support science learning across contexts. The project utilizes participatory design with families in California and Michigan to create 24 e-books for children aged 4-7, employing generative AI for rapid, iterative content development. The e-books will feature an AI-powered conversational agent that allows children to dialogue directly with the story characters, as well as family discussion prompts to encourage parent-child interaction. After the 24 interactive e-books are piloted and iteratively improved, a randomized control trial will be carried out with 120 families to evaluate the impact of e-book use on children's science knowledge and engagement and on parent-child science communication. Subsequent improvements will prepare the e-books for free national distribution. Findings will expand knowledge of how AI-powered storybooks support children's science learning and family interaction, and will inform the design of scalable, language-adaptable tools that can strengthen early STEM education across varied home and school settings. In doing so, this project will also demonstrate pathways for promoting the innovation and use of trustworthy AI in educational technologies. This Integrating Research and Practice Project is funded by the Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program, which supports research on the development and impact of STEM learning opportunities in informal educational environments. This project is also partially funded by the Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) program, which supports projects that build understandings of practices, program elements, contexts and processes contributing to increasing students' knowledge and interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and information and communication technology (ICT) careers. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.