Who CAREs?

This paper introduces the CARE framework (Critique, Annotate, Re-author, Experiment) as a unified pedagogical model for critical AI literacy for English language learners (ELLs). As AI-generated texts, multimodal content, and conversational agents become integrated into multilingual classrooms, educators must determine not only how these tools support learning but also how students can critically evaluate and re-author AI-mediated information. Drawing on critical literacy perspectives, sociocultural theory, distributed cognition, and Self-Determination Theory, the paper conceptualizes AI engagement through CARE by framing AI as a dialogic partner rather than a neutral tool in meaning-making. By illustrating how CARE systematically analyzes pedagogical potential and risks and positions learners as critical and creative mediators, the paper directly responds to the Special Issue’s call to nurture critical thinking and inquiry in the Digital Age. The framework highlights how ELLs can analyze and interpret AI outputs, identify bias, and produce revised texts that reflect their own identities, voices, and linguistic assets. CARE also provides educators with a single, coherent, classroom-ready framework for guiding multilingual learners’ reflective, ethical, and agentive engagement with AI.