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Essay on Media And Information Literacy

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100 Words Essay on Media And Information Literacy

Understanding media and information literacy.

Media and Information Literacy (MIL) is knowing how to smartly handle and use information from different sources like TV, internet, and books. It’s like learning to swim in a sea of endless news, pictures, and videos.

The Importance of MIL

It’s crucial because it helps you tell what’s true from what’s not. With MIL, you can make better choices about what to read, watch, and share. It’s like having a map in the world of media.

Learning to Check Facts

A big part of MIL is learning to check if something is correct. Before believing a story, see if trusted places also report it. It’s like double-checking your answers in a test.

Using Media Wisely

MIL teaches you to use media in a good way. It means not spending too much time on screens and knowing that not everything online is good for you. It’s about making smart media choices.

Sharing Responsibly

With MIL, you learn to think before you share something online. Ask yourself if it’s helpful, true, and kind. It’s about being a good friend in the digital world.

250 Words Essay on Media And Information Literacy

Media and Information Literacy, or MIL, is knowing how to smartly use the internet, newspapers, books, and other ways we get information. It’s like learning how to fish in a huge sea of news and facts. With MIL, you can tell which fish are good to eat and which might make you sick.

Why MIL is Important

Today, we get bombarded with tons of messages and pictures through our phones, TVs, and computers. Some of these are true, but others are not. MIL helps you sort out the truth from the lies. It’s like having a special tool that helps you know which friend is telling the truth and which is just making up stories.

One part of MIL is checking if something is true or not. Before you believe a story, ask yourself: Who wrote this? Why did they write it? Is there proof? It’s like being a detective, looking for clues to solve a mystery.

MIL also teaches you to use media in a good way. It means spending the right amount of time watching TV or playing games and also using the internet to learn new things. Think of it as a diet for your brain—you need a mix of fun, learning, and rest.

Sharing the Right Information

Lastly, MIL helps you share information the right way. Before you send a message or a picture to others, think: Is it kind? Is it necessary? Is it true? By doing this, you can be a hero who helps stop lies and spread kindness.

500 Words Essay on Media And Information Literacy

Media and information literacy is like learning how to read a map in a world full of signs and messages. It teaches us how to understand and use the information we get from television, the internet, books, and other sources. Just like knowing how to read and write helps us in school, media literacy helps us make sense of the news, advertisements, and even social media posts we see every day.

The Need for Media Literacy

We live in a time when we are surrounded by a sea of information. From the moment we wake up to the time we go to bed, we are bombarded with messages from our phones, TVs, and computers. With so much information coming at us, it’s important to know what is true and what isn’t. This is where media literacy comes in. It helps us tell the difference between facts and opinions, and it teaches us to ask questions about what we see and hear.

Spotting Fake News

One of the biggest challenges today is fake news. This is information that is made to look real but is actually made up to fool people. Media literacy gives us the tools to spot fake news by checking where the information comes from, who is sharing it, and whether other reliable sources are reporting the same thing. By being careful and checking the facts, we can avoid being tricked by false information.

Using Information Wisely

Information isn’t just about news. It’s also about understanding how to use the internet safely and responsibly. Media literacy teaches us to protect our private information online, to be respectful to others, and to understand how our clicks and shares can spread information quickly, for better or for worse. It’s like learning the rules of the road before driving a car.

Advertising and Persuasion

Advertisements are everywhere, trying to persuade us to buy things or think a certain way. Media literacy helps us see the tricks advertisers use to grab our attention and make us want something. By understanding these tricks, we can make better choices about what we buy and believe.

Creating Media

Media literacy is not just about what we take in; it’s also about what we put out into the world. With smartphones and the internet, anyone can be a creator. Media literacy teaches us how to share our own stories and ideas in a clear and honest way, and how to respect other people’s rights and feelings when we do.

In conclusion, media and information literacy is an important skill for everyone, especially students. It helps us navigate through the vast amount of information we encounter every day and use it in a smart and ethical way. By being media literate, we can be better students, smarter consumers, and more responsible citizens in our digital world.

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essay about media and information literacy

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What is media literacy, and why is it important?

The word "literacy" usually describes the ability to read and write. Reading literacy and media literacy have a lot in common. Reading starts with recognizing letters. Pretty soon, readers can identify words -- and, most importantly, understand what those words mean. Readers then become writers. With more experience, readers and writers develop strong literacy skills. ( Learn specifically about news literacy .)

Media literacy is the ability to identify different types of media and understand the messages they're sending. Kids take in a huge amount of information from a wide array of sources, far beyond the traditional media (TV, radio, newspapers, and magazines) of most parents' youth. There are text messages, memes, viral videos, social media, video games, advertising, and more. But all media shares one thing: Someone created it. And it was created for a reason. Understanding that reason is the basis of media literacy. ( Learn how to use movies and TV to teach media literacy. )

The digital age has made it easy for anyone to create media . We don't always know who created something, why they made it, and whether it's credible. This makes media literacy tricky to learn and teach. Nonetheless, media literacy is an essential skill in the digital age.

Specifically, it helps kids:

Learn to think critically. As kids evaluate media, they decide whether the messages make sense, why certain information was included, what wasn't included, and what the key ideas are. They learn to use examples to support their opinions. Then they can make up their own minds about the information based on knowledge they already have.

Become a smart consumer of products and information. Media literacy helps kids learn how to determine whether something is credible. It also helps them determine the "persuasive intent" of advertising and resist the techniques marketers use to sell products.

Recognize point of view. Every creator has a perspective. Identifying an author's point of view helps kids appreciate different perspectives. It also helps put information in the context of what they already know -- or think they know.

Create media responsibly. Recognizing your own point of view, saying what you want to say how you want to say it, and understanding that your messages have an impact is key to effective communication.

Identify the role of media in our culture. From celebrity gossip to magazine covers to memes, media is telling us something, shaping our understanding of the world, and even compelling us to act or think in certain ways.

Understand the author's goal. What does the author want you to take away from a piece of media? Is it purely informative, is it trying to change your mind, or is it introducing you to new ideas you've never heard of? When kids understand what type of influence something has, they can make informed choices.

When teaching your kids media literacy , it's not so important for parents to tell kids whether something is "right." In fact, the process is more of an exchange of ideas. You'll probably end up learning as much from your kids as they learn from you.

Media literacy includes asking specific questions and backing up your opinions with examples. Following media-literacy steps allows you to learn for yourself what a given piece of media is, why it was made, and what you want to think about it.

Teaching kids media literacy as a sit-down lesson is not very effective; it's better incorporated into everyday activities . For example:

  • With little kids, you can discuss things they're familiar with but may not pay much attention to. Examples include cereal commercials, food wrappers, and toy packages.
  • With older kids, you can talk through media they enjoy and interact with. These include such things as YouTube videos , viral memes from the internet, and ads for video games.

Here are the key questions to ask when teaching kids media literacy :

  • Who created this? Was it a company? Was it an individual? (If so, who?) Was it a comedian? Was it an artist? Was it an anonymous source? Why do you think that?
  • Why did they make it? Was it to inform you of something that happened in the world (for example, a news story)? Was it to change your mind or behavior (an opinion essay or a how-to)? Was it to make you laugh (a funny meme)? Was it to get you to buy something (an ad)? Why do you think that?
  • Who is the message for? Is it for kids? Grown-ups? Girls? Boys? People who share a particular interest? Why do you think that?
  • What techniques are being used to make this message credible or believable? Does it have statistics from a reputable source? Does it contain quotes from a subject expert? Does it have an authoritative-sounding voice-over? Is there direct evidence of the assertions its making? Why do you think that?
  • What details were left out, and why? Is the information balanced with different views -- or does it present only one side? Do you need more information to fully understand the message? Why do you think that?
  • How did the message make you feel? Do you think others might feel the same way? Would everyone feel the same, or would certain people disagree with you? Why do you think that?
  • As kids become more aware of and exposed to news and current events , you can apply media-literacy steps to radio, TV, and online information.

Common Sense Media offers the largest, most trusted library of independent age-based ratings and reviews. Our timely parenting advice supports families as they navigate the challenges and possibilities of raising kids in the digital age.

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Sonia Livingstone

October 25th, 2018, media literacy: what are the challenges and how can we move towards a solution.

1 comment | 86 shares

Estimated reading time: 10 minutes

essay about media and information literacy

Last time I wrote about media literacy, I was glad to observe that, as the media increasingly mediate everything in society, there is growing emphasis on the importance of ensuring that people have the media literacy not only to engage with the media but to engage with society through the media . But I was also frustrated at some of the superficial hand-waving from policy makers towards media literacy and media education, seemingly without understanding what is involved or what the challenges are.

Silver bullet solution?

In our ever-more complex media and information environment, media literacy is being hailed as a silver bullet solution – hopefully to be dealt with by one-shot awareness-raising campaigns delivered by brand-promoting CSR departments, or by issuing vaguely-phrased high-handed injunctions to the (apparently unhearing and otherwise preoccupied) Department of Education. The motivation is rarely pedagogic but, rather, more the policy of ‘last resort.’

So, in the face of multiple problems of hate speech, or cyberbullying, or hacked YouTube content, or fake news etc., we are witnessing urgent calls to manage the media environment better – especially, to regulate the internet. But in the face of clashes of positive and negative rights, regulatory difficulties, powerful global companies and short-termist political expediency, this call in turn quickly morphs into a call for the supposedly ‘softer’ solution of educating the internet-using public.

Let me be clear. I am 100% in favour of educating the public. I have devoted years to arguing for more and better media literacy. In this digital age, I believe media literacy’s time has come, and its advocates should grab the opportunity with both hands and advance the cause with all their energy.

But energy and enthusiasm are most effectively expended when the challenges to be met are properly recognised. So let me set these out, as I see them, lest our energies are wasted and the window of opportunity is lost.

First, three educational challenges

  • Investment . Make no mistake: education is an expensive solution in terms of time, effort and infrastructure. It needs a pedagogy, teacher training, curriculum resources, mechanisms for audit and assessment. To manage schools, governments devote an entire ministry to achieve this – yet they are simultaneously heavily criticised for their failures, and yet constantly under siege to solve yet more of society’s pressing ills.
  • Reaching adults not in education or training is an even larger challenge, rarely met in any area of demand. So who is responsible, and who are or should be the agents of change? The answers will vary by country, culture and purpose. But they should be identified so that the actions of civil society, public services such as libraries, industry and other private actors can be coordinated.
  • Exacerbating inequalities . We like to think of education as a democratising mechanism, because everyone has the right to school and training. But research consistently shows that education affects life outcomes differentially, advantaging the already-advantaged and failing sufficiently to benefit the less-advantaged, especially the so-called “hard to reach.” What proportion of media literacy resources are provided equivalently to all (risking exacerbating inequality) and what proportion are targeted at those who most need them? (I don’t know the answer, but someone should know it).

Then there’s the challenges of the digital

  • Mission creep . As more and more of our lives are mediated – work, education, information, civic participation, social relationships and more – the scope of media literacy grows commensurately. Just today, in my Twitter feed, I read exhortations to ensure that people:

– Understand how black-boxed automated systems make potentially discriminator decisions

– Distinguish the intent and credibility signalling behind mis- and dis-information to tackle “fake news”

– Identify when a potential abuser is using their smart home technology to spy on them

– Weigh the privacy implications when they use public services in smart cities

It is, therefore, vital to set some priorities.

  • Legibility . As I’ve observed before: we cannot teach what is unlearnable, and people cannot learn to be literate in what is illegible. We cannot teach people data literacy without transparency, or what to trust without authoritative markers of authenticity and expertise. So people’s media literacy depends on how their digital environment has been designed and regulated.
  • Postponing the positives . The rapid pace of socio-technological innovation means everyone is scrambling to keep up, and just battling with the new harms popping up unexpectedly is extremely demanding. The result is that attention to the “ hygiene factors ” in the digital environment dominates efforts – so that media literacy risks being limited to safety and security. Our bigger ambitions for mediated learning, creativity, collaboration and participation get endlessly postponed in the process, especially for children and young people.

For the media literacy community itself, there’s some very real challenges of expertise and sustainability.  These may be dull, or even invisible, to those calling for the silver bullet solution. But they matter.

  • Capacity and sustainability . The media literacy world comprises many small, enthusiastic, even idealistic initiatives, often based on a few people with remarkably little by way of sustained funding or infrastructure. The media literacy world is a bit like a start-up culture without the venture capitalists. We can talk a good story, but there’s always a risk of losing what’s been gained and having to start over.
  • Evidence and evaluation . When you look closely at the evidence cited in this field, it’s not as robust or precise as one would like. Even setting aside the now tiresome debate over definitions of media literacy, the difficulties of measurement remain. Perhaps for the lack of agreed measures, there’s more evidence of outputs than outcomes, of short term reach rather than long term improvements. There’s remarkably few independent evaluations of what works. Compare media literacy interventions to other kinds of educational interventions – where’s the randomised control trials, the systematic evidence reviews, the targeted attention to specific subgroups of the population, the costed assessments of benefit relative to investment?

Last but certainly not least, there’s the politics of media literacy

  • “Responsibilising” the individual. In policy talk especially, the call for media literacy and education to solve the problems of digital platforms tends, however inadvertently, to task the individual with dealing with the explosion of complexities, problems and possibilities of our digital society. In a policy field where governments fear they lack the power to take on the big platforms, it is the individual who must wise up, becoming media-savvy, rise to the challenge. Since, of course, the individual can hardly succeed where governments cannot, the politics of media literacy risks not only burdening but also blaming the individual for the problems of the digital environment.

As Ioanna Noula recently put it , “by emphasising kindness and ethics, these approaches also undermine  the value of conflict and dissent  for the advancement of democracy” and they “decontextualize” citizenship such that “ the attentions of concerned adults and youth alike are turned away from the social conditions that make young people vulnerable.” So instead of empowered media-literate citizens exercising their communicative entitlements , the emphasis becomes one of dutiful citizens, as part of a moralising discourse.

How can we turn things around?

I’ll make three suggestions, to end on a positive:

Before advocating for media literacy as part of a solution to the latest socio-technological ill, let’s take a holistic approach. This means, let’s get really clear what the problem is, and identify what role media or digital technologies play in that problem – if any! We might even ask for a “ theory of change ” to clarify how the different components of a potential solution are expected to work together. And, getting ambitious now, what about a responsible organisation – whether local, national or international – tasked with coordinating all these actions and evaluating the outcomes?

Then let’s figure out all the other players, so that we can articulate which part of the solution media literacy may provide, and what others will contribute – regulators, policy makers, civil society organisations, the media themselves – thereby avoiding the insidious tendency for the whole problem to get dumped at the feet of media educators. We might further expect – demand – that the other players should embed media literacy expectations into their very DNA, so that all organisations shaping the digital environment share the task of explaining their operation to the public and providing user-friendly mechanisms of accountability.

Last, let’s take the questions of value, empowerment and politics seriously. What does good look like? Is it dutiful citizens being kind to each other online, behaving nicely in an orderly fashion? Or is it deliberating, debating, even conflicting citizens? Citizens who express themselves through digital media, organise through digital media, protest to the authorities and insist on being heard? I think it should be the latter, not least because our societies are increasingly divided, angry and dis-empowered. It’s time that people are heard, and it’s time for the digital environment to live up to its democratizing promise. But this requires change on behalf of the policy makers. We should not only ask whether people trust media, or trust the government. We should also ask whether the media trusts the people and treats them with respect. And whether governments and related authorities and civic bodies trust the people, treat them with respect, and hear what they say.

This article gives the views of the author, and not the position of the LSE Media Policy Project nor of the London School of Economics and Political Science.   

About the author

essay about media and information literacy

Sonia Livingstone OBE is Professor of Social Psychology in the Department of Media and Communications at LSE. Taking a comparative, critical and contextual approach, her research examines how the changing conditions of mediation are reshaping everyday practices and possibilities for action. She has published twenty books on media audiences, media literacy and media regulation, with a particular focus on the opportunities and risks of digital media use in the everyday lives of children and young people. Her most recent book is The class: living and learning in the digital age (2016, with Julian Sefton-Green). Sonia has advised the UK government, European Commission, European Parliament, Council of Europe and other national and international organisations on children’s rights, risks and safety in the digital age. She was awarded the title of Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2014 'for services to children and child internet safety.' Sonia Livingstone is a fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences, the British Psychological Society, the Royal Society for the Arts and fellow and past President of the International Communication Association (ICA). She has been visiting professor at the Universities of Bergen, Copenhagen, Harvard, Illinois, Milan, Oslo, Paris II, Pennsylvania, and Stockholm, and is on the editorial board of several leading journals. She is on the Executive Board of the UK Council for Child Internet Safety, is a member of the Internet Watch Foundation’s Ethics Committee, is an Expert Advisor to the Council of Europe, and was recently Special Advisor to the House of Lords’ Select Committee on Communications, among other roles. Sonia has received many awards and honours, including honorary doctorates from the University of Montreal, Université Panthéon Assas, the Erasmus University of Rotterdam, the University of the Basque Country, and the University of Copenhagen. She is currently leading the project Global Kids Online (with UNICEF Office of Research-Innocenti and EU Kids Online), researching children’s understanding of digital privacy (funded by the Information Commissioner’s Office) and writing a book with Alicia Blum-Ross called ‘Parenting for a Digital Future (Oxford University Press), among other research, impact and writing projects. Sonia is chairing LSE’s Truth, Trust and Technology Commission in 2017-2018, and participates in the European Commission-funded research networks, DigiLitEY and MakEY. She runs a blog called www.parenting.digital and contributes to the LSE’s Media Policy Project blog. Follow her on Twitter @Livingstone_S

There’s a funny thing about media literacy, and that is that media have crept their way into everyone’s daily life. A young person knows who’s a friend and who’s not and media have a lot to do with that…. Isn’t media literacy also: discussing daily life and the latest news wit peers and teacher and trying to reach a common goal: making the world a better, more liveable place? PS I’m a schoollibrarian in Amsterdam, Holland and for me media literacy also means also informing teachers about books that tell about worldwide digital developments, like The raod to Unfreedom by Timoty Snyder, not exactly hopeful information, but it’s better to know than not to know.

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Media Literacy, Essay Example

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Introduction

Media literacy is a complex issue that requires further investigation and evaluation in the modern era. It is important to identify the resources that are required to effectively adapt to a media-filled culture, whereby there are significant opportunities to achieve growth and change in the context of new ideas for growth and maturity for the average viewer/reader. It is known that “Interactivity as a core factor in multimedia is in some ways closely related to performance and can enable the viewer/reader/user to participate directly in the construction of meaning” (Daley 36). This quote is inspiring because it requires individuals to truly connect with the media on several levels that will have an instrumental impact on personal growth and the ability to be informative on many levels. The media saturates society through Facebook, Twitter, 24-hour news channels, and traditional forms such as magazines newspapers. Therefore, it is essential to identify a personal strategy that enables the reader/viewer to decipher through the hundreds if not thousands of messages that the media delivers on a daily basis so that individuals are better prepared to manage their own degree of literacy effectively.

For a website such as CNN.com, there appears to be a clash of sorts between that which is truly newsworthy and important to the lives of many people and that which might be deemed sensationalism to grab readers’ attention and an increased number of views, as well as ratings. This is a complex situation because the network and its accompanying website strive to remain competitive with the needs of its readers/viewers, while also requiring other factors to be considered that might improve their ability to decipher through the messages and to identify those which are most meaningful and appropriate within their lives. The homepage of the CNN website typically has an emerging or news-worthy story that is designed to grab the reader’s attention and to facilitate a response from the reader, perhaps a visceral reaction. This is part of the appeal of online news, as it attempts to draw viewers’ attention to what the website deems as newsworthy and of value to the reader. Although this is not always the case, the website achieves it key objective by attracting the reader enough to at least read the headlines and perhaps read some of the other stories that are listed on the homepage. Nonetheless, it is likely that many viewers will barely scratch the surface of an article because they lose interest or do not understand the backstory regarding the topic to keep reading. This is a key component of the high level of media illiteracy that exists in the modern era and that supports the development of new strategies to encourage readers to become less media illiterate and to improve their literacy regarding issues that generate much attention and focus from the masses.

There are critical factors associated with media literacy that require further consideration and evaluation, such as the tools that support the growth of individuals as they learn how to weave through the messages that they receive online, on television, and in print. Media literacy is more than merely reading stories, as it is about taking these stories in, forming opinions, developing a passion for a topic or an idea, and forming a bond with others who might share or contrast with these views (Media Literacy Project). In this context, it is important to identify the resources that are required to develop a strategy that supports media literacy on a much larger level that will impact society and its people as they develop a higher level of intelligence and/or acceptance of the ideas set forth within a given story or headline.

Overcoming media illiteracy requires the development of new strategies for individuals to take ideas that they read on a website such as CNN.com and to make them their own and perhaps apply them to their own lives in one or more ways. This is how media literacy works, as it enables individuals to transition from simply reading news stories online towards adapting them to their own lives in one way or another. This process engages readers and enables them to recognize the importance of improving their own level of literacy through these opportunities. It is imperative to recognize the value of media literacy as it applies to the human condition in the modern era, particularly as individuals have become increasingly dependent on the news as a part of their daily routines. This process supports and engages readers/viewers in the context of many different situations that enable them to cross over into a world where they have a better understanding of the media and how it impacts their lives in different ways.

Media literacy is a complex and ongoing phenomenon that has a unique impact on the lives of individuals. Many websites influence how people interpret the news, such as CNN.com, as they only tend to scratch the surface of news without any real opportunity to formulate opinions regarding the topics that are within. Therefore, it is important to identify some of the issues that are common in these stories and to recognize the importance of developing new approaches to stories that will have a positive impact on the response from readers/viewers. Media literacy is an ongoing process that requires the full attention and focus of individuals in order to accomplish the desired goals and objectives, while also considering the value of developing new perspectives that will encourage readers to take greater steps towards formulating their own opinions regarding stories and topics that may impact their own lives on many levels.

Works Cited

CNN.com. 11 May 2014: http://www.cnn.com/

Daley, Elizabeth. “Expanding the concept of literacy.” Educause, 11 May 2014: https://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/erm0322.pdf

Media Literacy Project. “What is media literacy?” 11 May 2014: http://medialiteracyproject.org/learn/media-literacy

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Teenagers and Misinformation: Some Starting Points for Teaching Media Literacy

Five ideas to help students understand the problem, learn basic skills, share their experiences and have a say in how media literacy is taught.

essay about media and information literacy

By Katherine Schulten

In a sense, every week is Media Literacy Week on a site like ours, which helps people teach and learn with the news. But Oct. 24-28 is the official week dedicated to “amplifying the importance of media literacy education across the United States.” We are delighted to help.

Here are some ways teachers and librarians can teach with the extensive reporting The New York Times has done recently on misinformation and disinformation, whether your students are just beginning to understand the problem, or whether they are ready for deeper inquiry.

1. Get the big picture: What is media literacy education? Why do we need it?

essay about media and information literacy

If you have time for just one activity, this one, based on the Times article “ When Teens Find Misinformation, These Teachers Are Ready ,” can provide a broad overview and help frame future work.

To start, share the statements in italics, all adapted from the article. You can do this as a “ Four Corners ” exercise in which you read each line aloud and ask students to position themselves in the room according to whether they strongly agree, agree, disagree or strongly disagree. Or, you can hand out the PDF version and have students mark each statement “true” or “false” based on their own experiences, then discuss their reactions — and the experiences that informed those reactions — in partners or small groups.

Here are the statements:

It’s easy to look at stuff on social media and take it as it is and not question it.

Older adults are more likely to struggle to recognize fake news than young people and are also the most likely to share it.

I have come across misleading and false narratives about the upcoming midterm elections online.

I have come across misleading and false narratives about the Covid-19 pandemic online.

If it’s gone viral, it’s probably true.

A .org domain makes a website trustworthy.

Media literacy is a necessity for everyone because of the way we live online today.

Some young adults share misinformation because they think it is true.

Some young adults share misinformation impulsively, because they are too busy to verify the information.

Most young adults talk to their parents and guardians about what makes media sources trustworthy.

TikTok is a primary information source for people my age.

Social media often reduces complex issues to one-sentence explanations.

A lot of young people are politically polarized at a very young age, and are angry at anyone who believes differently than they do.

Media literacy education should start in middle or even elementary school, when children are just beginning to venture online.

The way media literacy is taught needs improvement.

After your students have finished the exercise, discuss as a class what you discovered. On which statements was there broad agreement? On which was there disagreement? Why do they think that was? What personal experiences would they like to share that helped inform how they feel about the subject of “media literacy”? What, if anything, do they think schools, teachers and librarians should do to improve how they teach about these topics?

Finally, have them read “ When Teens Find Misinformation, These Teachers Are Ready ,” perhaps annotating to note their reactions as they go. You might then ask:

1. What jumped out at you as you read? Why?

2. This article describes many ideas, including curriculums, games and even legislative initiatives, that have been tried in recent years to support media literacy in public schools. Which of these, if any, were familiar to you? Which, if any, do you wish our school could adopt?

3. What problems with teaching media literacy did this article identify? Do you think our school has experienced any of these struggles? If so, what should we do about them? Why?

Then, to take the discussion further, you might continue to some of the exercises below.

2. Have students share their experiences and opinions — and offer adults advice .

What don’t adults understand about teenage life on the internet?

How, if at all, can schools help?

Via our Student Opinion column , we ask teenagers a new question every school day based on something in the news, and thousands of young people from around the world post comments in reaction every month.

For Media Literacy Week, we have published a forum that invites teenagers to answer questions like the two above , and encourages them to share experiences and opinions about what it’s like to navigate their digital lives in 2022. We ask them about their media literacy education so far, and invite them to offer adults advice for how to make it more relevant, interesting and useful.

If your students have thoughts about any of these topics, we hope they’ll join the conversation, either by posting a comment, or by replying to comments from others.

3. Learn from teen fact-checkers.

The video above is from the MediaWise Teen Fact-Checking Network , which publishes fact-checks for teenagers, by teenagers. According to the site, the network’s “fact-checks are unique in that they debunk misinformation and teach the audience media literacy skills so they can fact-check on their own.” Here is a collection of some recent fact-checks they have done, but you can see more on Instagram , YouTube , Twitter and Facebook . You can also find a related “toolkit” of lesson plans to help.

What skills do these students use? Among others, they have mastered lateral reading, a quick and effective method mentioned in the article students read above.

Mike Caulfield, a digital literacy expert, explained the rationale for that method in a 2021 interview with Charlie Warzel, a former Times opinion writer. In “ Don’t Go Down the Rabbit Hole ,” Mr. Caulfield argues that the way we’re taught from a young age to evaluate and think critically about information is fundamentally flawed and out of step with the chaos of the current internet:

“We’re taught that, in order to protect ourselves from bad information, we need to deeply engage with the stuff that washes up in front of us,” Mr. Caulfield told me recently. He suggested that the dominant mode of media literacy (if kids get taught any at all) is that “you’ll get imperfect information and then use reasoning to fix that somehow. But in reality, that strategy can completely backfire.” In other words: Resist the lure of rabbit holes, in part, by reimagining media literacy for the internet hellscape we occupy. It’s often counterproductive to engage directly with content from an unknown source, and people can be led astray by false information. Influenced by the research of Sam Wineburg, a professor at Stanford, and Sarah McGrew, an assistant professor at the University of Maryland, Mr. Caulfield argued that the best way to learn about a source of information is to leave it and look elsewhere , a concept called lateral reading .

Invite your students to read the full piece. In it, they will learn how Mr. Caulfield has refined the process fact-checkers use into four simple principles:

1. S top. 2. I nvestigate the source. 3. F ind better coverage. 4. T race claims, quotes and media to the original context. Otherwise known as SIFT.

To go deeper, students might first watch a Crash Course video about lateral reading, then learn how to put it into practice via Stanford’s Civic Online Reasoning site . You might then invite them to practice it with information they come across in their social media feeds. What are the benefits of this approach? What are the limits? How well does it arm them to navigate information on their own, outside of school?

Finally, they might either revisit the Teen Fact-Checking Network to identify where they see those skills in action or, if they are ready, produce their own videos that fact-check the information they find in their feeds.

4. Invite students to investigate your school’s media literacy offerings and make recommendations.

Does your school have a media literacy program? How effective is it? Invite your students to investigate and make recommendations, perhaps by starting with questions like these, and involving your school librarian or media specialist:

What is our school doing to teach media literacy?

Is it working? How can we measure that?

Does it teach students skills they will actually use to evaluate information they come across in their private lives as well as at school? Does it work for all the places and ways students access information, or does it need broadening or updating somehow?

Identifying the problem is, of course, a lot easier than solving it, but your students’ next step might be to learn about what has been effective elsewhere. Articles like the one we recommend in Step 1 include ideas for how schools and regions in the United States are tackling the problem, and this Opinion piece further details ideas from Finland and Estonia.

What additional ideas can your students find by researching? Which might work for their school? Why? If they were to write up a set of recommendations to share with school leaders, what would those recommendations include?

5. Help students “access, analyze, evaluate, create, and act” with these additional resources.

One of the winning videos from The Learning Network’s 2018 “ News Diet Challenge ” for teenagers.

The National Association for Media Literacy Education (NAMLE) defines media literacy as “the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, create, and act using all forms of communication.”

Here are ways to do that — via The Learning Network, The New York Times and some trusted outside sources.

Apply Key Media Literacy Questions to Information of All Kinds

How credible is this and how do I know?

Is this fact, opinion, or something else?

Can I trust this source to tell me the truth about this topic?

Who might benefit from this message? Who might be harmed by it?

How does this make me feel and how do my emotions influence my interpretation of this?

How might different people understand this message differently?

Is this message good for me or people like me?

Those are the questions that NAMLE suggests students ask when evaluating media , and you can find similarly useful information and questions in their short guides to how to access , analyze , create and act on media. Invite them to practice answering them as they apply the information that crosses their screens, whether articles in The New York Times, advertising, memes on social media, or anything else. To help, we have posted all the questions on this PDF.

Use The Learning Network’s Journalism and Media Literacy Collection

All of our daily and weekly features — including multimedia activities like What’s Going On in This Picture? , our lesson plans and our many annual student contests — are focused on media literacy and help young people “access, analyze, evaluate, create and act.” But our Journalism and Media Literacy page collects resources that are especially focused on helping students understand how the news is created, and how it can be safely consumed.

For example, here are some things you can find:

An idea from a teacher-reader: News Groups: A Simple but Powerful Media Literacy Idea to Build Community

A lesson plan tied to a student contest: Improving Your ‘News Diet’: A Three-Step Lesson Plan for Teenagers and Teachers

Tips for students from Times journalists: Want to Write a Review? Here’s Advice From New York Times Critics.

A writing prompt: Do You Think Online Conspiracy Theories Can Be Dangerous?

Keep Up With Times Reporting on Misinformation and Disinformation

The New York Times has an entire team of reporters covering misinformation and disinformation.

For instance, do your students know that the qualities that allow TikTok to fuel viral dance fads are also making it a “ primary incubator of baseless and misleading information ”? The articles below explore how:

For Gen Z, TikTok Is the New Search Engine

On TikTok, Election Misinformation Thrives Ahead of Midterms

TikTok Is Flooded With Health Myths. These Creators Are Pushing Back.

Toxic and Ineffective: Experts Warn Against ‘Herbal Abortion’ Remedies on TikTok

TikTok Is Gripped by the Violence and Misinformation of Ukraine War

Snorting Crushed Porcelain, Face Reveals and a TikTok Lawsuit

Wasn’t TikTok Supposed to Be Fun?

Find Additional Resources Through These Media Literacy Organizations

The description below each link was taken from the sites themselves.

The Stanford History Education Group’s Civic Online Reasoning Curriculum

Students are confused about how to evaluate online information. We all are. The COR curriculum provides free lessons and assessments that help you teach students to evaluate online information that affects them, their communities and the world.

National Association for Media Literacy Education

The association aims to make media literacy highly valued and widely practiced as an essential life skill. It envisions a day when everyone, in our nation and around the world, possesses the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, create and act using all forms of communication. Media literacy education refers to the practices necessary to foster these skills.

The News Literacy Project

This nonpartisan education nonprofit is building a national movement to advance the practice of news literacy throughout American society, creating better-informed, more engaged and more empowered individuals — and ultimately a stronger democracy.

KQED’s Above the Noise

A YouTube series for teens, Above the Noise cuts through the hype and dives deep into the research behind the issues affecting their daily lives. The series investigates controversial subject matter to help young viewers draw their own informed conclusions, while inspiring media literacy and civic engagement. Teachers can also find related lesson plans.

Media Literacy Now

This group leverages the passion and resources of the media literacy community to inform and drive policy change at local, state and national levels in the United States to ensure all K-12 students are taught media literacy so that they become confident and competent media consumers and creators.

The Media Education Foundation

The foundation produces and distributes documentary films and other educational resources to inspire critical thinking about the social, political and cultural impact of American mass media.

Common Sense Education

This organization provides a variety of media literacy resources including courses and curriculum, research on media literacy, a news and media literacy resource center as well as a list of other media literacy organizations worth exploring.

News Decoder

This site partners with schools around the world to teach media literacy and journalistic skills that enable students to create and consume media responsibly.

Find more lesson plans and teaching ideas here.

Katherine Schulten has been a Learning Network editor since 2006. Before that, she spent 19 years in New York City public schools as an English teacher, school-newspaper adviser and literacy coach. More about Katherine Schulten

Literacy Ideas

Information Literacy and Media Literacy for Students and Teachers

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A Teacher’s Guide to Media and Information Literacy

What is literacy.

Up until fairly recently, when we used the term ‘literacy’ in a discussion, it would most likely be in reference to the reading and writing of texts.

These days, however, the definition of literacy extends well beyond its once conventional use in reference to words on pages. Today, we commonly talk of various types of literacies, such as financial literacy , digital literacy , or even emotional literacy .

Rather than speak of literacy as exclusively referring to the ability to read and write, it is now more accurate to think of literacy as an ability in a specific area of knowledge.

It’s in this context that we will use the term here. In this article, we will explore media and information literacy , what they are, how they intersect, and how you can approach teaching them in your classroom – either as discrete subjects, or interwoven with other areas of the curriculum.

A Complete Teaching Unit on Fake News

fake news unit

Digital and social media have completely redefined the media landscape, making it difficult for students to identify FACTS AND OPINIONS covering:

Teach them to FIGHT FAKE NEWS with this COMPLETE 42 PAGE UNIT. No preparation is required,

The Importance of Media and Information Literacy

The importance of literacy has been well recognized by governments around the world for a for a considerable length of time. Literacy rates have long been used as an indicator of a nation’s development – such is the importance of being able to read and write for a citizen to fully engage as a functioning member of society.

Undoubtedly, we now live in an information age. Daily, we take in huge amounts of information through a vast array of largely digital media. It is essential that our students are empowered to access, organize, analyze, evaluate, and create in this context. To do this successfully, we must help them to become information and media literate.

Media and Information Literacy

If media literacy refers to the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, and create media in all its forms, then information literacy refers to the ability to recognize when information is required, how to locate and evaluate it, as well as the ability to effectively communicate that information in all its forms, both traditional and modern.

We can see here that there is already a significant crossover between the two terms. Not surprisingly, for the sake of convenience, they are often used almost interchangeably.

To help disentangle the concepts, it can be useful to think of information as being the content, with media being the tools by which that content is delivered.

We can also combine these various aspects under the umbrella term Media and Information Literacy , or MIL , though they may also appear as separate disciplines in many syllabuses and curriculum.

Developing the essential abilities listed above, enables our students to engage fully as active citizens by developing their critical thinking and communication abilities. This process begins by grasping the basic concepts of the subject. Let’s take a look at some of the most important of these.

Media and Information Literacy: Basic Concepts

It’s true to say we live in an increasingly connected world and spend more time than ever before exposed to media in all its myriad shapes and forms.

From traditional media formats such as newspapers, printed books, TV, and radio to more recent developments such as email, ebooks, online games, and apps, we have never been more inundated by the media and its messages in our day-to-day lives.

Understanding the basic concepts of media and information literacy will help students to navigate the complexities of this ever-encroaching world.

1. Types of Media

For students to begin thinking seriously about media, they first need to be able to classify media into its various types. Broadly speaking, there are 3 types of media:

i. Print Media

ii. Broadcast Media

iii. New Media

i. Print Media refers, unsurprisingly, to the printed word, that is, media reproduced mechanically via the printing process which is then physically distributed.

ii. Broadcast Media refers to media that is distributed or transmitted to its audience via the airwaves, such as TV and radio.

iii. New Media refers to media that is organized and distributed via the various digital platforms.

A good explainer video on Information literacy for students and teachers

Types of Media: Reinforcement Activity

This is an effective exercise to help students learn to distinguish between these different forms of media. First, brainstorm with the class the different specific examples of media they can think of, for example, newspapers , radio , podcasts, etc. List these on the whiteboard. Then, have students sort the items listed on the whiteboard into one of 3 columns printed on a worksheet as follows:

media_literacy_task.png

Media Convergence

As well as understanding these 3 main types of media as defined above, it may arise during discussion that some examples don’t easily fit into one single category. The term media convergence refers to media that coexists in traditional and new media forms.

We can see this clearly in the existence of print and online versions of newspapers, for example, where content can exist in both paper and digital forms. The underlying concept of media convergence is that the various media platforms become more similar over time.

2. The Purpose of Information

information_literacy

Before students begin to do the deeper level work of evaluating information, they should learn to give some thought to the purpose of various forms of information. Drawing out the purpose of the information in the first place will help enormously when it comes to assessing its credibility at a later stage.

There are a number of legitimate reasons for information to be held by media and other information providers such as museums, archives, the internet, and libraries.

These reasons include to:

●     Inform

●     Educate

●     Entertain

●     Gather together

●     Provide access

●     Facilitate teaching and learning

●     Promote values and rights

●     Preserve cultural heritage

Purpose of Information: Reinforcement Activity

This exercise is best undertaken as a group project over a period of time such as a week or two.

Instruct students to gather together a broad range of information and media and perform a survey of each sample to assess the reason behind its creation and/or existence. The reasons listed above as bullet points will provide a good starting point, though also allow for the possibility the students may uncover reasons other than those listed above.

Opening each item to a whole class discussion can be a rewarding way to encourage the sharing of different perspectives on the purpose of each sample.

For higher-level students, on completion of this activity you may wish to engage in a discussion on what restrictions, if any, could justifiably be placed on media and information and in what contexts those would be.

COMPLETE TEACHING UNIT ON INTERNET RESEARCH SKILLS USING GOOGLE SEARCH

Information literacy,media literacy | research skills 1 | Information Literacy and Media Literacy for Students and Teachers | literacyideas.com

Teach your students ESSENTIAL SKILLS OF THE INFORMATION ERA to become expert DIGITAL RESEARCHERS.

⭐How to correctly ask questions to search engines on all devices.

⭐ How to filter and refine your results to find exactly what you want every time.

⭐ Essential Research and critical thinking skills for students.

⭐ Plagiarism, Citing and acknowledging other people’s work.

⭐ How to query, synthesize and record your findings logically.

3. Mass Media and Critical Thinking

With video streaming sites, social platforms, digital billboards, and podcasts, electronic media infiltrates many of our waking hours. And, though we have benefited from this mass and instant communication in our personal and business lives, it poses many challenges for us as individuals.

With 4.2 billion people inhabiting the online world, all sending and receiving innumerable messages, our students need to develop specific strategies to navigate and filter this potentially overwhelming sea of information.

The 5 Filter Questions

Students need to exercise their critical faculties when engaging with media to avoid passively accepting the views and opinions embedded there.

They can begin this process by routinely examining new media in the light of 5 key filtering questions:

1. WHO created this message?

2. WHAT techniques were used to capture the attention?

3. HOW could this message be interpreted by different people?

4. WHY is this message being communicated?

5. WHAT values, views, lifestyles are being expressed or omitted in this message?

These 5 filter questions will help students develop a firm foundation for critically engaging with the various media they are exposed to. They will help students to distinguish between factual reporting and fake news and clickbait from measured critique.

If you are searching for an excellent article on critical thinking be sure to check out this great guide from edgalaxy.com

Mass Media and Critical Thinking: Reinforcement Activity

Be sure to offer students ample opportunities to use the 5 filter questions in the classroom. You can easily achieve this by asking one or more of these questions when discussing a text or viewing a film, for example.

You could also organize the students into small groups and assign them a media item to analyze in reference to the above 5 questions. With lots of practice, students will begin to consider all new information and media in light of these important questions, becoming in the process active rather than passive consumers of information.

4. Representation in the Media

media_literacy

In media and information literacy, the ways in which various groups, communities, thoughts, and ideas are portrayed form an important area of study within the subject.

Investigations into this area will quickly rid students of the idea that media merely reflects the reality of the world around them. Any examination of representation in media quickly reveals that the media re -presents the reality around us as much as reflects it. This examination reveals much about the media and ourselves in the process.

By examining what is presented, what is omitted, and how things are framed, students delve deeper into the attitudes, values, politics, and psychology of the media-makers. They will also shine a spotlight on some of their own perceptions, perspectives, and biases too.

Representation in the Media: Reinforcement Activity

Though examining representation in media can spark classroom discussions on some quite sensitive and even contentious topics, it can be extremely engaging and valuable for students.

While you can explore representation in any number of media, music works very well for many of our young people.

Music is central to much of youth culture. It can inform everything from young people’s attitudes to politics and sex, to the clothes they wear and the way they speak. It can also serve as fertile ground for the examination of how various groups, communities, values etc are represented.

In this activity, allow students to choose a music video to explore. This will usually be best done in small groups to keep the ideas flowing and to allow for some passionate discussion. Students should watch the video, listen to the song, read the lyrics and analyze representations of gender, race, and sexuality etc.

The 5 filter questions mentioned in the previous section can work well here to get the process started. Just be sure students maintain their focus on the central idea of representation as they ask each question.

5. Analyzing Advertising

Advertisements are pretty ubiquitous. Whether we consume old or new media, advertising will likely play a large part in what we engage with.

Indeed, advertisements often serve as the main revenue stream to fund the production of many forms of media. In this regard, they can even be considered to perform a valuable function in assisting in the dissemination of information.

No doubt about it, advertising has come a long way since the early 20th century with the obviousness of its radio jingles and roadside billboards.

Today, advertising comes in ever more subtle and sophisticated guises. At times these can be so understated or indirect that we may not even realise we are being sold to.

From sponsored content masquerading as impartial articles to cleverly placed products attempting to sneak in through the backdoor of our subconscious, the omnipresence and complexity of advertising make this is an important area of study within the subject.

Analyzing Advertising: Reinforcement Activity

With advertising intruding on so much of our lives, finding samples to use for this activity will be like shooting those proverbial barrel-dwelling fish.

For this activity, organise students into small work groups, distribute an advertisement to each group, and then encourage them to analyze how the advertisement works.

Regardless of the media used, encourage the students to look at the advertisement in terms of its emotional appeal, the technical and design components, and who the advertisement is targeted at.

When the groups have had a chance to dissect their advertisements, have them make a brief presentation to the class on what they have learned about how it works.

Video Lesson: How to analyze print media?

In this article, we have provided an introduction to some of the main concepts and ideas that form the core concerns of the subject of Media and Information Literacy. It is, however, by no means an exhaustive list.

Further reflection on some of the topics raised will open up a rich seam of interesting and important issues to explore in the classroom, whether in the form of discrete MIL lessons, or woven into other areas of the curriculum.

The fodder for lessons and learning opportunities within this area, much like media and information themselves, is practically inexhaustible.

A Complete Visual Text Teaching Unit

Information literacy,media literacy | movie response unit 1 | Information Literacy and Media Literacy for Students and Teachers | literacyideas.com

Make  MOVIES A MEANINGFUL PART OF YOUR CURRICULUM  with this engaging collection of tasks and tools your students will love. NO PREPARATION REQUIRED.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (49 Reviews)

This collection of  21 INDEPENDENT TASKS  and  GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS  takes students beyond the hype, special effects, and trailers to look at visual literacy from several perspectives, offering DEEP LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES watching a series, documentary, film, or even video game.

ARTICLES RELATED TO INFORMATION LITERACY

Information literacy,media literacy | fake news for students 1 | 6 Ways To Identify Fake News: A Complete Guide for Educators | literacyideas.com

6 Ways To Identify Fake News: A Complete Guide for Educators

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How to Write an Advertisement: A Complete Guide for Students and Teachers

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Top Research strategies for Students

Information literacy,media literacy | Firefly a newspaper with the headline of fake news 47289 | 5 Ways to Teach Critical Thinking in Media Literacy to Fight Fake News | literacyideas.com

5 Ways to Teach Critical Thinking in Media Literacy to Fight Fake News

a complete guide to teaching critical thinking and fake news to students

Home — Essay Samples — Information Science and Technology — Digital Literacy — Value of Being a Media and Information Literate Individual

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Published: Sep 1, 2023

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essay about media and information literacy

essay about media and information literacy

  • Publications

Artificial Intelligence: Media and Information Literacy, Human Rights and Freedom of Expression

essay about media and information literacy

The collection of papers “Artificial Intelligence: Media and Information Literacy, Human Rights and Freedom of Expression” continues the UNESCO IITE’s series of publications entitled “Digital Transformation of Education”. The publication describes the fundamentals of artificial intelligence and AI-based technologies, their impact on the modern information and media environment, new challenges in the field of media and information literacy associated with the growing automation of the processes of creating, disseminating and accessing information, the use of AI in decision-making and control systems in various areas. There is a strong focus on the growing risks of reducing individual agency, people’s ability to interpret reality autonomously and to act according to their own agenda.

These issues are more relevant now than ever before for education undergoing digital transformation. The publication seeks to contribute to a critical understanding of the digital environment in which learning and teaching unfold, and strategies and tactics for the use of new technologies and the digitalization of educational interactions.

The publication was authored by Mr. Igor Shnurenko, an independent expert in AI, writer and journalist; Ms. Tatiana Murovana, UNESCO IITE programme specialist; and Prof. Ibrahim Kushchu, the head of TheNextMinds.com, the AI ​​consulting and training company.

The new series of publications “Digital Transformation of Education” is in line with the mission of UNESCO IITE to serve as facilitator and enabler for achieving Sustainable Development Goal 4 through ICT-enhanced solutions and best practices. It includes policy briefs, analytical reports and reflection papers developed to explore ongoing and emerging fundamental changes in education due to the use of technologies and their impact on education and other spheres of human life.

The collection of papers “Artificial Intelligence: Media and Information Literacy, Human Rights and Freedom of Expression” is available in English.

Publication year: 2021

Media and Information Literacy

Strengthening media and information literacy (mil) in nepal, related items.

  • Information and communication
  • Artificial intelligence
  • Country page: Nepal
  • Region: Asia and the Pacific
  • UNESCO Office in Kathmandu
  • See more add

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Home / Essay Samples / Information Science and Technology / Digital Literacy / Navigating the World of Information: Media Literacy

Navigating the World of Information: Media Literacy

  • Category: Information Science and Technology , Sociology
  • Topic: Digital Literacy , Effects of Social Media , Modern Society

Pages: 2 (1063 words)

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