21st Century Literacy Skills All

Teachers & Students Need to Succeed

Frank W. Baker
fbaker1346@aol.com

Media Literacy Clearinghouse
http://medialit.med.sc.edu



Summer Leadership Institute 2006
The current critical need
Economic forecasters and business analysts
are predicting that jobs in the 21
st
century
will require information processing skills.
..media literacy (is one of these)...
Merely teaching reading and writing is no
longer sufficient..

Source: Janet Murray, Contemporary Literacy: Essential Skills for
the 21
st
Century MultiMedia Schools Magazine, March/April 2003

The need for media literacy
"Our young people need to be
educated to the highest standard
in this new information age, and
surely this includes a clear
awareness of how the media
influences, shapes, and defines
their lives. .Media literacy courses can give
young people the power to recognize the difference
between entertainment, television that is just bad
and the information they need to make good
decisions.
Former US
Secretary of Education
Richard Riley
Recommending media literacy
American Assn of School Libraries
Cable In The Classroom
International Reading Assn.
National Communication Assn.
Natl Board of Prof Teaching Standards
Natl Council for Teachers of English
National Middle School Assn.
Why teach media
Movies, advertisements,
and all other visual media
are tools teachers need to
use and media we must
master if we are to
maintain our credibility in
the coming years.

Jim Burke, from
The English Teachers Companion
Media Literacy: Critical Skills &
Knowledge for the 21st Century
Generation M: media & multi-tasking
Media Literacy: Critical Skills &
Knowledge for the 21st Century
Our students are growing up in a world
saturated with media messagesyet they
(and their teachers) receive little or no
training in the skills of analyzing or re-
evaluating these messages, many of
which make use of language, moving
images, music, sound effects


Source: R. Hobbs, Journal Adult & Adolescent Literacy, February 2004


Media Literacy: Critical Skills &
Knowledge for the 21st Century
While more young people have access to the
Internet and other media than any generation
in history, they do not necessarily possess
the ethics, the intellectual skills, or the
predisposition to critically analyze and
evaluate their relationship with these
technologies or the information they
encounter. Good hand/eye co-ordination
and the ability to multitask are not
substitutes for critical thinking.
Dr. David Considine, media educator

Media Literacy: Critical Skills &
Knowledge for the 21st Century
"It is incumbent upon our educational
system to prepare its students with the
skills necessary to be able to approach the
media criticallythe middle school years
are an ideal time to teach media literacy."



Marie Davies, The impact of the mass media upon the health of early
adolescents. Journal of Health Education, 1993
Media Literacy: Critical Skills &
Knowledge for the 21st Century

What is media literacy?
OR
Why is it important that our
students be media literate?
Media Literacy: Critical Skills &
Knowledge for the 21st Century
Media literacy is concerned with helping students
develop an informed and critical understanding
of the nature of mass media, the techniques used
by them, and the impact of these techniques.
More specifically, it is education that aims to
increase the students' understanding and
enjoyment of how the media work, how they
produce meaning, how they are organized, and
how they construct reality. Media literacy also
aims to provide students with the ability to
create media products.
(Source: Media Literacy Resource Guide,
Ministry of Education Ontario, 1997)
Media Literacy: Critical Skills &
Knowledge for the 21st Century
Media literacy:
the ability to---
access, analyze, evaluate & produce
communication
(both print & electronic media)
Source: 1992 Aspen Institute Natl. Leadership Conf.
Media Literacy: Critical Skills &
Knowledge for the 21st Century
Media literacy empowers people to be both critical
thinkers and creative producers of an increasingly
wide range of messages using image, language,
and sound. It is the skillful application of literacy
skills to media and technology messages. As
communication technologies transform society,
they impact our understanding of ourselves, our
communities, and our diverse cultures, making
media literacy an essential life skill for the 21st
century.

Source: Alliance For A Media Literate America, 2000

Media Literacy: Critical Skills &
Knowledge for the 21st Century
What is media literacy?
Set of skills, knowledge & abilities
Understanding how media work and produce
meaning
Awareness of personal media use
Critical thinking applied to media messages
Appreciation of media
What media literacy is NOT:
A separate course
Expensive
Media bashing
Judging whether media or good or bad
Just television or video production
Teaching with media; rather it is teaching
about the media
Media Literacy: Critical Skills &
Knowledge for the 21st Century
1999 study finds media literacy in all states standards
Media Literacy: Critical Skills &
Knowledge for the 21st Century

Partnership for 21
st
Century Skills
www.21stcenturyskills.org

Information & Communication
Technology (ICT) Map
Media Literacy: Critical Skills &
Knowledge for the 21st Century
English, Language Arts: 8
th
grade

demonstrate the ability to distinguish
between fact and opinion; compare and
contrast information and ideas; make
inferences with regard to what he/she
has viewed
Media Literacy: Critical Skills &
Knowledge for the 21st Century
Social Studies Health Library Media
Civics: the role
of media
in politics

Economics:
the influence of
advertising on
consumer
choices

8
th
grade
analyze
advertising
messages
related to
alcohol and
tobacco
Information
literacy

Media Literacy: Critical Skills &
Knowledge for the 21st Century
All media are constructions
Media use their unique languages with
their own set of rules
Media convey values & points-of-view
Different people see the same media
messages differently
Media are about power & profit
Source: Center for Media Literacy
Media Literacy: Critical Skills &
Knowledge for the 21st Century
Who produced/paid for the message?
What is its purpose?
Who is the target audience?
What does the message mean?
Who or what might be left out?
What techniques are used to attract
attention and increase believability?
Understanding the visual


Visual literacy slides
The languages of TV & Film
CAMERAS
Position (perspective) Movement (pan, tilt)
Lens (zoom in, pull out)
LIGHTS
SOUND (music, sound effects)
EDITING (post production)
ACTOR EXPRESSIONS; WARDROBE
Thinking Critically About Media
Schools should incorporate media literacy
education throughout the curriculum, not just in
English classes, and at all grade levels.

Technology, and its use by students to produce
their own media, is a key component to media
literacy education.


Source: http://www.ciconline.org/uploads/CIC_Media_Literacy_Report.pdf


Thinking Critically About Media
School districts and colleges of education should
increase professional-development efforts to
reflect the importance of media literacy
education.

Parents should play an important role in media
education, too. School districts can encourage
their participation by holding workshops for
parents and conducting other outreach efforts.

Source: http://www.ciconline.org/uploads/CIC_Media_Literacy_Report.pdf


Recommendations
Schedule professional development
workshops on this topic
Help teachers see the media/education links
Recruit school library media specialists to
identify needed resources which correlate to
state standards
Give students opportunities to create and
produce media and showcase those
Support stronger media literacy standards
Schedule a teacher workshop

Frank W. Baker*
fbaker1346@aol.com
Media Literacy Clearinghouse
www.frankwbaker.com



* A national Leader In Learning finalist May 2005