MEDIA LITERACY
Media literacy is the capacity to access, analyze, evaluate, and communicate messages in a wide variety of forms.
According to a recent study from the Pew Internet & American Life project (Lenhardt & Madden,2005),more than one-half of all teens have created media content,and roughly one-third of teens who use the Internet have shared content they produced.In many cases,these teens are actively involved in what we are calling participatory cultures.A participatory culture is a culture with relatively low barriers to artistic expression and civic engagement, strong support for creating and sharing one's creations,and some type of informal mentorship whereby what is known by the most experienced is passed along to novices.
Do you suffer from Copyright Confusion? This is another great video from the Center for Social Media that describes the new Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy. This is a great video to show at an educator workshop as a segue into the new thinking on Copyright Law and Fair Use. The Fair Use document was developed and funded by a MacArthur Foundation grant after a research study revealed that rigid interpretations of copyright law are actually strangling educational practice rather than enabling it.
“The Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy Education,” set for release this week, provides a framework for using copyright materials in classroom activities and student projects and lays out what applications are restricted or permitted by law.
In this lesson, students draw conclusions from an analysis of propaganda techniques used in a piece of literature—such as the novel Brave New World, the play The Crucible, or the movie Dr. Strangelove—and political advertisements posted on the Internet. Students also make connections to their own world by looking for examples of propaganda in other media, such as print ads and commercials.
<b> Lessons for exploring and interpreting one form of political communication</b> Topics and standards covered include political communication, mass media, political parties and campaigns.
YouTube gathers video content from the debates, the super-recent sound bites, best of the week videos, the candidates voices on particular issues--economy, healthcare, education, energy, immigration--election news from YouTube's partner sites, and videos organized by upcoming primaries. This is a wonderful resource for promoting media literacy, rhetorical analysis, as well as political awareness. It may also be a lobbying tool for expanded video access.
My Pop Studio is a creative play experience that strengthens critical thinking skills about television, music, magazines and online media directed at girls. Users select from four behind-the-scenes opportunities to learn more about mass media: My Pop Studio strengthens media literacy skills, promotes positive youth development, and increases knowledge about health issues. Highly interactive creative play activities are used to create an online community that guides users through the process of deconstructing, analyzing and creating media. Video segments, flash animation, media deconstruction games and quizzes, and moderated blogs make the website lively, fun and educational. My Pop Studio was created by a team of researchers and media professionals at the Media Education Lab, located at Temple University's School of Communication.
This case study features a project of ninth grade biology students at Upper Merion Area High School in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. The students created a "Virtual Zoo" using images they found online through the photo sharing site Flickr.com.\n
From Temple University Media Literacy Lab. Catchy little tune to introduce copyright and fair-use concepts to students. Sing along to understand copyright and learn about your rights to fair use.
Workshop wiki. http://www.mediaeducationlab.com/topic/Copyright+and+Fair+Use
Writer, tech consultant, and educator Clay Shirky just gave a talk at the State Dept. explaining the media sea change we're experiencing globally. Keeping participatory media, the most fluent though not necessarily most literate users of which are youth, out of school only solidifies the firewall between formal and informal learning and holds school back from 21st-century relevance. Isn't the idea of adults unidirectionally disseminating to students info that the latter have actually never encountered before beginning to sound quaint?
Check out the commercials and curriculum ideas presented by Jamie McKenzie. Should be part of media literacy curriculum for all students.
Great video from MIT Tech TV on Wikipedia norms. Students discuss the correct way to participate in the Wikipedia community.
Today's media environment provides an opportunity--and responsibility--for parents and schools to teach critical thinking. Not only must young people learn to "consider the source" of what they take in but also think critically about what they post in a world where just about every young person is now potentially an author, photographer, and videographer. Kids--who may never even know who Walter Cronkite was--need to have a miniature version of him inside their head by asking questions such as "Is this true?" and "How do I know it's true?."
Comprehensive literacy lesson plans and student materials from any content in minutes from ClassTools.net
Great slideshow from the UK on how the truth can be hidden to fraud or mislead viewers. Includes six guiding principles to avoid deception.