Understanding Media Literacy: Tips for Parents and Educators  
EDUCATION

Understanding Media Literacy: Tips for Parents and Educators  

What is media literacy and what skills are needed to identify misinformation? Learn the first steps in implementing media literacy in the classroom and at home.

By Tracey Carter, M. Ed.

This month marks the 10th anniversary of U.S. Media Literacy Week. In a world saturated with media, helping kids navigate and understand what they're seeing—and how it shapes them—can feel overwhelming, but media literacy can help people understand and critically engage with media. The National Association of Media Literacy (NAMLE) defines media literacy as the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, create and act using all forms of communication. These five components of media literacy can also help in understanding and identifying misinformation. 

Brooke Becker, an Associate Professor and Media Literacy Librarian at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, emphasizes that there’s more to media literacy than distinguishing between what’s fake and what’s real. “It’s realizing what kind of messages are being sent, the techniques being used and the framing of the messages,” she explains.  

Becker believes that “media literacy is also about wanting to educate people on how they engage in the world and what they put out in the world instead of just accepting what is given to you.”  

Parents and educators can take the first step in implementing media literacy by talking with kids about what media they create and consume. NAMLE suggests that adults use the five components of media literacy to exemplify, explain, engage, educate, empower and empathize with kids about media.   

U.S. Media Literacy Week is October 21 – 25. Each day will focus on activities and information to help learn the best ways to access, analyze, evaluate, create and act on media safely. During the week you can can host webinars or meetings to educate adults about media literacy, engage students in lessons that apply media literacy skills, create student media projects, and take time to share posts about media literacy online. For more information about the week, go to U.S. Media Literacy Week (namle.org). 

Below is a list of media literacy resources to use in your classroom or at home.

PBS LearningMedia Collections Teaching Media Literacy Skills: 

Media Literacy Professional Development Opportunities: 

More from Librarian Brooke Becker: 

Media Literacy and Misinformation Resource for the 2024 Election: 

TAGGED:parents | Media Literacy

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