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The campus was alive with energy—parents carrying shopping bags, students laughing as they mapped out their next four years, and my daughter, Prestyn, planning for her future. This was our last college visit before moving in for good this fall. In one of the parent sessions, one message stood out above the rest:
Critical thinking is the skill of the future
I smiled to myself. I couldn’t agree more. After decades of leadership and workforce experience and advanced training in generative AI, I knew they were right.
Critical thinking—questioning, analyzing, challenging—has never been more essential. In this era of AI, critical thinking is no longer optional. It is the skill that will separate those who can thrive from those who will drown in information that may not tell the full story.
I couldn’t wait to meet back up with Prestyn to share yet another moment of confirmation that she had indeed chosen the right place to continue her educational journey.
A Simple Birthday Query
The First Question
I asked AI:
Other than my birth (LOL), what other amazing things happened on October 13?
The answer came back confidently:
The U.S. Navy was founded.
The White House cornerstone was laid.
Nero became Roman Emperor.
The Second Question
I typed again:
"What major events in Black history happened on October 13?”
This time, the response was different:
Edith Spurlock Sampson, the first African American woman appointed to the United Nations, was born in 1898.
Angela Davis was arrested in 1970, sparking global protests and a rallying cry for justice.
Maryland ratified its emancipation constitution in 1864, freeing enslaved people before the 13th Amendment.
Why These Matter
Edith Sampson’s appointment represented international recognition of Black women scholars and diplomats at a time when such roles were exceedingly rare.
Angela Davis’s arrest highlighted Black radical thought and the legal system’s treatment of activists.
Emancipation in Maryland before the 13th Amendment shows that progress toward freedom took place on multiple legal fronts throughout the Civil War era.
Two questions. Two answers. Two very different versions of history.
Why Did We Have to Ask Twice?
This wasn’t just an AI problem—it was a history problem.
AI learns from existing data—news archives, encyclopedias, and history books. If those sources center Eurocentric narratives while treating Black history as an afterthought, AI will mirror that bias.
The AI didn’t “forget” Edith Sampson or Angela Davis. It was never trained to consider those stories as equally important in the first place.
Our Rewrite Journey
I decided to turn this moment into a learning lesson with Prestyn—a story about how a simple birthday question revealed something much bigger about how history is told.
When I asked ChatGPT to help to explain its biased response, the first answer placed the burden on me:
“If you want to see inclusive stories, you have to ask differently.”
That didn’t sit well with me at all! Why should I—or anyone—have to ask twice to get the full truth?
So, I pushed back:
“This isn’t about asking better questions. This is about building systems that tell better stories by default.”
ChatGPT and I had another lengthy conversation about the piece I wanted to write. In doing so, I realized the rewrite itself was an act of critical thinking—examining what was missing, challenging the first answer, and reshaping the narrative.
Critical Thinking in the AI Era
When Prestyn and I were debriefing our experiences at the university event, I looked at her and said, “This is what I want you to take with you into college…this is what I mean by critical thinking.”
Critical thinking today means:
Recognizing what’s left unsaid.
Asking why certain voices are amplified while others are erased.
Demanding systems that reflect the whole truth—not just the parts deemed ‘mainstream.’
AI Is a Mirror of Our Society
The omissions we see in AI responses are not random. They reflect centuries of historical erasure, where the contributions of Black people and women were minimized or ignored.
Unless AI is intentionally built with inclusive data, it will continue to replicate these patterns. Edith Sampson’s diplomacy, Angela Davis’s activism, and the emancipation of enslaved people in Maryland aren’t “extras.” They are history.
The Lesson for Students and Parents
Prestyn’s generation will grow up with AI as a constant companion—researching, learning, even writing. But AI is not the final authority. Critical thinking is.
The future belongs to those who can:
Question the first answer.
Spot the gaps.
Refuse to settle for half-truths.
The Lesson for Corporate Leaders
In the era of AI-driven decision-making, leaders cannot afford to delegate critical thinking to algorithms. AI is powerful, but it reflects the data—and biases—it’s built upon. True leadership requires oversight, discernment, and accountability.
The future belongs to those who can:
Interrogate the data behind the decisions.
Identify bias and its business impact.
Refuse to adopt technology without ethical alignment.
The Lesson for Educators and Policymakers
As AI reshapes how we learn, work, and interact, educators and policymakers hold the responsibility of ensuring future generations are prepared not just to use AI, but to question and improve it. AI cannot replace human judgment, ethics, or contextual understanding—and our systems of learning and governance must reflect that.
The future belongs to those who can:
Integrate AI literacy and critical thinking into education.
Create policies that address bias in technology.
Champion equitable access to both technology and truth.
A Call to Action
October 13, my birthday, taught me something unexpected:
The whole truth should never require a second question.
Parents - Teach your children that the most powerful thing they can do is think deeply and demand better answers.
Students – When you use AI or any other tool, don’t just accept the first thing it gives you. Ask what’s missing. Ask who’s missing.
Corporate Leaders – Refuse to adopt technology that lacks ethical alignment.
Educators and Policymakers – Equip future generations to question and improve AI and create policies that prioritize accountability and equity.
Truth isn’t just about what’s said. It’s also about what isn’t.
