Children entering this year’s BBC 500 Words writing competition are increasingly mentioning artificial intelligence (AI) in their stories, research has found.
Analysis of stories submitted to this year’s writing competition by Oxford University Press found mentions of AI increased 50% from the previous year’s edition.
Researchers also found that children were increasingly personifying the technology, whilst also starting to express concerns about spending too much time on phones.
ChatGPT appeared as a character or a narrator in several stories, Oxford University Press found, whilst some other stories included themes like AI versus humans.
Sarah Hannafin, from the National Association of Head Teachers union, said the findings “suggest some children have real self-awareness and insight about some of the risks as well as benefits of AI and phone use.”
“They also underline the importance of pupils, teachers and families receiving support to help ensure safe and appropriate use of digital technology,” she said.
“It is absolutely vital that children develop critical thinking – to be questioning and able to identify good and bad sources of information – and to understand the risks of harmful content and the importance of data privacy.”
All the stories submitted to the BBC 500 Words competition are added to a database of children’s written language, and analysed by experts.
Oxford University Press said the research was integral to understanding how children use language and reflect on the world around them.
Mentions of football fell for the first time in five years, researchers found, while mentions of rugby have increased by 50% since 2024.
Children were also likely to mention popular toys like Lego, TV shows such as The Traitors, and characters like Cinderella and Snow White.
Last week, Windsor Castle played host to the grand final of BBC 500 Words – with young writers from across the country attending the reception, hosted by Queen Camilla.
The event – which saw the six winning entries read out by celebrities including Jodie Whittaker, Bradley Walsh and Sara Cox – will be shown during a special episode of The One Show on Friday.
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