From New York Times bestselling author Dana Suskind, a timely, urgent guide to parenting in the age of artificial intelligence (AI) – and protecting what matters most in childhood
As AI enters nurseries, playrooms, and classrooms, parents are being sold a “smart” childhood at every turn. This book is a guide to protecting the most important label of all: human raised.
Dr. Suskind writes here to set forth some templates about how to keep your parenting (especially) guided toward making human connections, so that your children end up more human-focused than digitally guided people as adults. After all, the goal is not “good kids,” but adults capable of thriving in the world around them.
Some folks will likely fault Dr. Suskind’s work because she does not come out flatly against using AI-tools in parenting, including exposing children to the products of AI. While there are valid ethical critiques of many AI-systems, she approaches the situation with the realism that says:
“There will be AI, so how do we deal with it?”
You have basic guidance on researching AI and what you should and should not use it for. There are several chapters first establishing the very real need for parents and caregivers to be human-first in their interactions with children. Suskind makes plain that imperfect human interaction far supersedes algorithmic perfection.
Each chapter in this book ends with a helpful TLDR section, giving you, the reader, the main takeaways from each chapter.
One should still read the chapters! However, life gets busy. You will see the value of each chapter as you check these chapters out. If you see this book on a bookstore shelf and want to know if it’s worthwhile, take a peek at any of those chapter endings.
Finally, almost worth the price of purchase itself, she walks the reader through an investigative framework using DETEK as an acronym. This shows up in the body of the text starting in chapter 8, but then is helpfully pulled-out into an appendix for easy reference.
FOUR GUIDING PRINCIPLES FOR RAISING CHILDREN ALONGSIDE AI
- Human connection is irreplaceable
- Own your imperfections
- Protect the early years
- Enhance don’t replace connection
