Zdeněk Sloboda – Association for Media Pedagogy
MEDIA LITERACY panel report – Zdeněk Sloboda
I have been given the task of reporting on the workshop titled Media Literacy.
I am glad that this topic has been taken up by the Czech government, namely by the Ministry of Culture, and I hope they will remain involved after the end of the Czech presidency of the EU Council. One of the reasons – and here I refer to a remark made by one of our panellists, Prof. Jirák of the Faculty of Social Sciences of Charles University in Prague – is the long-established tradition of media education in the Czech lands. Many foreign authors have referred to Jan Amos Comenius as the first intellectual, philosopher and pedagogue to have promoted the use of various media (“mediators”), including the use of news, in the educational and training process.
The contributions to our panel presented different ways of developing media literacy, especially models of good practice.
There appeared to be an agreement on the three basic criteria for media literacy (“the 3 C’s”): a) access, (b) critical evaluation and understanding, and (c) create and communicate – or, in other words, on the triangle or the three pillars: Create-Discuss-Understand.
I started on a more theoretical note and, continuing on the same note, I will first report on two conceptual contributions.
In the first Ms Aviva Silver, Head of the European Commission’s Unit A2 MEDIA programme and media literacy, spoke of the still rather recent (the first expert group at EC level was established only in 2006) yet keen interest of the EU in activities in the field of media education. The main focus of the European Commission in the near future will be on three areas: commercial communication, audiovisual works and the online environment (i.e. digital literacy). The main political objectives set by the EC are: (1) promotion and international exchange of (and information on) good practice, (2) raising the level of media literacy, and (3) promotion of research and development of assessment criteria.
An interesting appeal made in his mainly theoretical contribution by Prof. Jan Jirsák of the Faculty of Social Sciences of Charles University in Prague called for detailed and systematic research into the media environment of, especially, the new EU Member States. This is needed because of rising evidence of large diversity in media education and media literacy in Europe, often the result of different historical and cultural experience, and because of frequently expressed doubts about the transferability of media education models from one country to another. Prof. Jirsák then described the system of media education in the Czech Republic as a curriculum-embedded cross-sectional theme (introduced gradually from 2005) that must be dealt with somehow by Czech primary and secondary schools either (a) through projects or workshops, (b) by creating a new subject devoted to the media, or (c) by implementing media education – both knowledge of the media, and acquisition of media skills and competences – within the scope of current school subjects.
Other contributions to the panel presented options and tools for handling - or rather facilitating - media education and media literacy.
Henrik Bo Nielsen of the Danish Film Institute, Gabriel Maasen of the Dutch Institute for Film Education and Karel Strachoň representing the Czech organisation One World - which is mainly a human-rights film festival - spoke about the use of film in media education. These three rather similar media-education projects were then complemented by Cecilia Boreson of the Swedish Educational Broadcasting Company.
Both Nordic contributions – probably due to the long-established tradition in the represented countries – informed about projects focusing on active and creative film and television work by children and teens. The Danish Film-X project is based on a film studio where pupils learn methods of film creation by making their own films and where they learn about the way in which films work including, for example, critical reflection on the manner in which images are handled etc. The projects presented by Cecilia Boreson were more varied, designed generally by children and teens but also designed for them, addressing them in an appropriate and interesting manner by using themes interesting and close to them.
Gabriel Maasen from the Netherlands introduced the films-for-schools project (with its fitting and trendy logos) titled Klasse Film for primary schools and Movie Zone for junior secondary schools. More than 1000 film showings were given to schools at various (voluntarily participating) locations all over the Netherlands. The film showings were accompanied by a manual, computer games and exercises for teachers, and also by a mobile film studio, a DVD explaining the relation of film to the other media, and a project web page.
One of the few examples of Czech best practice models is the One World project in schools where, as a part of the festival, One World organises shows for children and produces thematic DVD-boxes (with attached teachers’ manual) that can be used to open usually sensitive human rights issues in the school environment. The feeling that media education in the Czech Republic is insufficient has led to one of the themes being the media itself, especially news coverage.
All four contributors were of course aware of the fact that young people today prefer the internet and mobile communications, which they consider to be more sexy; the projects are therefore supplemented by, and interconnected with other media, like websites, blogs and online gaming.
The last contribution not yet mentioned was by Ewan McIntosh of Channel 4 in Scotland, focusing on modern technology, communication and entertainment – the web, mobile and gaming. The broadcaster’s 4iP aims at addressing young people wherever they are, i.e. online, in a manner that can capture their interest (and does not resemble school), and giving them room for their own creativity, interaction, sharing and offering a possibility to participate. This contribution was interesting, untraditional, even rousing, since it presented something that is not, and does not intend to be a part of school or of the formal educational system or process. As a rule, media consumption, too, takes place away from the school institution.
The same point was made in the final discussion by Aviva Silver, who summarised the proceedings of the panel rather fittingly. I will thus conclude by trying to quote: Media literacy has become a trendy theme - which is more or less a good thing. It is, however, a difficult requirement for teachers and teacher training to deal with, because it is escaping the classrooms and is usually acquired in peer groups.
My summary: What is to be done in the EU area? First of all provide for cooperation and exchange of experience. Albeit not 100% transferable from one county to another, media literacy and media education does exist, it is considerable and can be built on; but we must know about it by NETWORKING
Next, it is necessary to reinforce media and media-pedagogic RESEARCH.
An aspect that has not really been the theme of our panel, but is an obvious one, is FINANCING.
