Work

By Belinha De Abreu, PhD.

Censorship, cancel culture, Generative AI, ethics, or lack of ethics are topics found daily in the media as well as mainstream conversation. Where is the media literacy education amid the concerns that have arisen? It should be front and center, but the problem is that the heartbeat of the work is missing as its focal point. In part, because people are so focused on the unknowns which have caused internalized as well as vocalized angst. It is also because media literacy education has been misunderstood to be just about teaching the identification of misinformation. Instead, media literacy is a more thoughtful consideration of how media influences our lives in all forms. Media literacy education requires that we question and consider various points of views and perspectives. It is about engagement, not indifference.

In a recent The Atlantic interview, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie stated, “I worry that what we’re looking at is the end of curiosity” (2023). Are we? As it certainly appears that we are living in a time of constrictive narratives. Adichie speaks to these points in her 2009 TED Talk, but this theme has found relevance in the workings of today’s world where language needs to be couched and self-censorship perseveres at times for the sake of self-preservation.

Two sides of the same coin

Censorship and cancel culture have become key points of national discourse, heightened since 2016. Increasingly, both sides of these issues have created the same inequities in our culture. The ability to shut down discussions creates people who want to eliminate materials in the public space.  No one wins. In fact, everyone is losing especially the general population who is being subjected to rhetoric without understanding the context of the issues. In this coin flip, it can cause uncertainty and even chaos. We lose the ability to have conversation, to discern, and to talk to each other.

Are there rights and wrong? Yes, in some cases, but in many cases, there is more than presented. We are after all made up of many facets and we learn about that through being presented with multiple points of view whether in literature or in other public forums. Listening and processing what is happening around us helps us to better understand the world. It enables us to consider others’ opinions and to have rational, solutions-based conversations.

Many of us have read the books: Fahrenheit 451, 1984, and Animal Farm which are all about the power structures that control the people.  Fear and control, those power structures exist today in various forms. They are subjugated to the position that one wants to control or control someone else. It is the cherry picking of ideas and the lack of full understanding. But in here lies the crux of the issue, we don’t want to understand or fully see the scope of why someone is so upset that they want to pull a book out of library or that one wants to shame someone into oblivion, so their voice is silenced. Isn’t this exactly the same action? Here is the coin flip.

Whose voice?

“The voice of the voiceless.” This sentence is used widely. I’ve used it and there is a distinct problem with the way it presents itself because we all have a voice. However, what if you are fearful to use your voice because of what was discussed above?  What if instead of opening society to have a pluralistic view of the world, we are creating a singularity? The differences, the multifaceted viewpoints, the diversity that we say we want to encourage are instead being lost to the angry voices which drown out other voices.  Is this helpful? Are we in the midst of a culture war because we are losing ourselves to the intolerance of ideas?

My college students have indicated to me that they are fearful of speaking up in class for they don’t know who will be upset with their statements. Even if they are curious, and they have questions that would help to inform them better, they choose not to speak.  It becomes harder to educate someone when there is no dialogue or transparency in understanding how information or even misinformation presents itself. How can we foster that in our communities, classrooms and world?

Being Comfortable in the Uncomfortable.

This part is the most difficult.  In a polarized society, how do we get to a point where we can have the uncomfortable conversations. That those conversations are exchanges of ideas that allow for growth to happen.  Beyond assumptions, beyond fear and control, is a place where common language, discourse, discernment, and engagement exists. The question is how do we cultivate that without jeopardizing already fragile relationships? In bell hooks work, she talks about harmonious spaces that foster intellectual curiosity as well as sustainability.  It is perhaps the one path that leads us to the constructive building blocks of our society.

Amplifying AI

With Generative AI here and adding to the turmoil, these conversations need to continue. The amplification of these tools is changing our world and it will also change the way in which we interact with each other further.  As part of the work of media literacy, an ethics component needs to be included in our growing dialogue. In many ways, media literacy education is stuck in the misinformation space, mostly because there is a lot of work to be done there, but Open AI is growing and being infused in all that we do regularly and at a growing speed. What is the stopgap or gatekeeper to ensure ethical conduct in this space?  It seems tenuous at best and one that seems to be circling instead of gathering a stronger foothold by which we all have an invested interest, especially if we are interested in an effective humanistic society.

Final Thoughts

The issues presented here are increasing with more societal upheaval. We are already disrupted by the images, messaging, and the media tools that we use regularly. The question remains, how do we make the work of media literacy education accessible to all as a means of counteracting the disruption? The answer is not simple but can be found within the cultivation of media literacy education practice. At its best, it requires an openness in understanding ambiguity, and it requires a willingness to understand the human experience in its fullest expression, thus considering the humanity in all of us. Only then, can we move forward.

References:

Sarappo, E. (2023, October 2). “Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: ‘ I worry that what we’re looking at is the end of curiosity.’” The Atlantic. Retrieved: https://www.theatlantic.com/books/archive/2023/10/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie-atlantic-festival-freedom-creativity/675513/

This piece originally appeared on the ALA Store blog 

Critical thinking, critical discourse and — frankly — critical understanding of our media-laden world are essential, universal skills. Today, people question the certainty of information. Truth appears to be unclear. It has even become the new norm to debate what the word “truth” actually means. The last is especially disturbing because it offsets the balance of what we believe about our world and society. This balance has been threatened even further by media giants who may not consider the consequences of their actions.

Read More: https://ylai.state.gov/truth-fiction-and-media-literacy/

In a small community, Odivelas, which can be found within Lisbon area, Portugal is an on-going community based research project on digital citizenship. The focus of the work is on children ages 3-9 with the purpose of empowering them to become active digital citizens in their mediated environments. This project is an undertaking between researchers and the local community whose goal is to bridge a communication gap that is frequently seen when students are not given operational capacity for discerning digital practices in all facets of their lives.

This endeavour has been focused on school, family and out-of-school contexts, it also aims to contribute to identify best practices in all these venues, to influence public policies, and to integrate digital citizenship education in the curricula. This ongoing work is intended to be replicable in Portugal or abroad.

Our research looked at the child, family, and school triangle through the understanding of these three questions:

• How can in-service teacher training on digital citizenship education improve teachers’ digital literacy practices in classrooms?
• What are the digital literacies practices of young children in school, family and community contexts?
• How do both formal and informal learning contexts shape children’s digital literacy practices?

The methodological approach used followed the research model developed by Sefton-Green, Marsh, Erstad and Flewitt (2016), in Establishing a Research Agenda for the Digital Literacy Practices of Young Children, according to which individual production and reception of media messages, whether in formal and in informal settings, are based in its:

• Operational capacities and skills needed to read, write and interpret messages from different media and its various platforms;
• Ability to interact critically with texts and digital products, seeking to answer questions related to the power and agency, representation and voice, authenticity and veracity;
• Cultural concerns interpretations and actions that develop according to its involvement in digital literacy practices in specific social and cultural contexts.

Early results

Our work began with training 25 Preschool and Primary school teachers (January-February 2016) who developed digital media literacy activities involving 366 of their students (147 pre-schoolers and 219 primary schoolers). Activities focused on producing and discussing media, online news analysis, communicating and learning through media and advertisement critical analysis. In March the longitudinal action research began involving eight out of the 25 teachers who agreed to develop digital citizenship activities with their students. Parents (42) and their children (45, of which twenty-five are between 3 and 6) were interviewed on digital citizenship practices and mediation. Results showed the following:

• All teachers agreed that the media have educational potential in the pre-school and Primary school, but media content was used with sporadic frequency in their classrooms;
• Most teachers considered that the lack of time and resources explained the minimal use of digital technologies;
• Through professional development training, teachers were able to develop digital literacy activities without deviating from their previous pedagogical plans;
• Most teachers were surprised by the increased use of digital technologies by children;
• Most children are frequent users of digital media and technologies, sometimes without adult supervision, especially those who live with older siblings;
• A small group of children do not engage with or barely use digital technologies, primarily the youngest ones due to their parent’s decision;
• Most parents are really concerned about digital media use by their children, feeling they lack information on risks and opportunities using these tools, and therefore they try to protect their children limiting media use;
• Most parents admit they do not talk with their children about their digital media practices;
• There’s a wide gap in the communication discussion between parents and teachers regarding children’s media use.

Between March and June 2016 our work continued with eight of the 25 teachers (three Preschool, three Primary teachers, a teacher of Special Education and a teacher librarian), working in the same school, in the development of activities with their students (e.g.: advertisement analysis; creative written). In the meantime, having in mind the data analysis (teachers, children and parents) an intervention plan was designed.

During the first term of the school year 2016/17, activities with students were focused on the theme “What means to be a citizen in the digital era?” Teachers organized activities involving students, their families and other community members in order to discuss how citizenship and media evolved in the last three generations (grandparents, parents, and children). Results were published in a school print newspaper and shared with the greater community.

Next steps

During the second term of the school year (January-April 2017) the activities, developed in partnership with the local Health services will focus on Human Rights, Children Rights, respect and anti-violence actions at school. These topics will be the main focus of the second edition of the school newspaper to be published in April of 2017. During the third term (April-June 2017) the main theme will be advertisement, media and freedom of expression.

Feedback

After the publication of the school newspaper in December 2016, the project attracted the attention of the local school board, which organized a meeting with all teachers and researchers involved in the project, as well as the coordinators of the other three Pre/Primary schools. After the meeting, we all agreed to extend the project to the other three schools who were not part of the original project.

We are also developing another in-service teacher training course involving 26 Primary and Secondary school teachers from another Odivelas Municipality school that will be formally integrated in the project next March.

Moving Forward

As this project has progressed interest has extended beyond the school and into other community agencies. A partnership has been developed which will include one of Lisbon’s largest public libraries that will work in partnership with one of the selected schools starting from September 2017. This extension might be seen as a first step to replicate our project in other municipalities as well as continuing the development of partnerships that encompass agencies which have direct and invested interests in schools.

Core results of the project will be presented during a local conference that will take place in February 2018.

Source: https://digilitey.wordpress.com/2017/02/13/community-empowerment-digital-citizenship-for-our-youngest-children/

In the past few weeks, there have been more and more reports about data breaches and hacks. The biggest recent announcement came from Yahoo, who notified their customers that more than 500 million users may have been impacted by a breach. On a more personal note, my own account was compromised this month when a document was sent to me via a colleague and infiltrated my contact list. The document itself was false, but the design of the email appeared legitimate. All of these incidents implore the question, how are we able to maintain safety and security when it seems so easy to get around the system? More importantly, how do we use critical thinking to consider that information over the internet, social networks and email may not always be so secure? In my own perspective, this is where the value of media literacy education can best be used and observed.

Media literacy education as defined by the National Association for Media Literacy Education as:

“The ability to access, analyze, evaluate, create and act using all forms of communication. In its simplest terms, media literacy builds upon the foundation of traditional literacy and offers new forms of reading and writing. Media literacy empowers people to be critical thinkers and makers, effective communicators and active citizens.”

This definition provides us with a structure, whether for educators, adults, or students, to discern and consider how messages are delivered and propagated. Further, it demonstrates that the role of media literacy education in relation to privacy and data is incredibly important.

The framework provided by the Center for Media Literacy presents educators and students with a way for understanding how systematic companies are with obtaining information and how we as consumers need to be responsible participants in this ongoing dynamic. The five key concepts and questions of authorship, format, audience, content and purpose are gateways for a broader discussion on mediated environments.

Privacy, in particular, needs to be analyzed more closely as it relates to education and schools. Further, the concept itself must be defined to those who facilitate learning in the classroom, such as teachers, administrators and superintendents. The action of privacy reinforces why media literacy education is essential and must be taught in school as technology companies continue to introduce ways for which they can invest in schools and garner participation in K-12 and higher education. At the same time, the idea of “free” in education must be reevaluated and critically considered as schools continue to adopt and use various technologies.

Another issue that many educators think about is that they know very little information about laws related to privacy in and outside of schools, especially as technology is changing so quickly. For example, many teachers have heard the terms FERPA or COPPA but don’t know what they mean. Just for clarification, FERPA stands for the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. The goal of FERPA is to protect the confidentiality of education records. Those records include “any files, documents or other materials that are maintained by an educational agency or institution or by a person acting for such agency or institution and contain information directly related to a student.” COPPA, the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, delineates “privacy standards and obligations for online service providers that either target children or knowingly collect personal information from children under the age of 13.”

The concerns expressed here are ongoing and the lessons learned, taught and reiterated must be parts of the growth of the individual consumer young and old. Data encryption, data privacy, student data privacy and digital citizenship will be under consideration from various perspectives moving forward. For educators and for individuals, it will important to watch the development of cybersecurity and privacy issues because they will have consequences in the technologies we use, mobile or otherwise. Further, the cyber impact will be felt whether in the data we obtain or the data that is lost – and how much we are willing to sacrifice as individuals, especially if we are not media literate.

Source: https://staysafeonline.org/blog/safe-and-secure-a-work-in-progress