Media Literacy And Critical Thinking For Children

 

Media literacy is the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, and create media messages. It involves understanding the ways in which media shape our perceptions, attitudes, and beliefs. The key components of media literacy include:

1. Access (It is the ability to access and use various media platforms and tools.)

2. Analysis (It is the ability to break down and examine media messages to understand their meanings and significances.)

3. Evaluation (It is the ability to deeply assess the credibility, accuracy, and relevance of media messages.)

4. Creation (It is the ability to create and disseminate (spread) media messages effectively.)

Critical thinking (I have treated it in my posts in 2024) is the systematic evaluation and analysis of information and ideas to form a reliable judgment or decision. It involves objectively considering multiple perspectives, evaluating evidence, and avoidance of all elements of bias. A critical thinker does not respect or fear anybody when he is judging or making decisions. The key components of critical thinking (or reasoning) are:

1. Analysis (It is the ability to break down complex information into smaller one in order to understand its relationships and patterns.)

2. Evaluation (It is the ability to assess the credibility, accuracy, and relevance, or otherwise of an information.)

3. Inference (It is the ability to draw logically-empiric conclusions based on proven and tested evidence.)

4. Explanation (It is the ability to clearly and effectively communicate one's thoughts and ideas to others.)

There is a relationship between media literacy and critical thinking (reasoning). Media literacy provides the foundation for critical thinking by enabling individuals to access, analyze, and evaluate media messages, whereas critical thinking enhances media literacy by providing the skills to systematically evaluate and analyze media messages. Therefore, we can assertively say that media literacy and critical thinking are essential skills for navigating the complex media landscape. This is how to teach children critical thinking and reasoning skills: 

1. Use Socratic method of teaching ( by asking questions). Encourage children to ask questions about media content which they read and watch. Children should ask questions such like, "Who created this post?", "What was his state of mind, objective, or purpose of creating it?" If you do not teach your child critical thinking (reasoning) and how to ask intelligent questions, that child would not be able to defend the truth. He would not be able to stand by his/ her own conviction. He would rely on other people's opinions like a "yes man on the board", according to the Navy. If a child is not trained to suspect, argue sensibly, and stand on his/her own conviction, he will not surely go far in this world. If that child's parents die to bequeath trillions of dollars to him/ her, he/ she will still mismanage it and drop into bankruptcy. The parents did not train that child properly. There is no brain in his/ her skull! He is not able to take care of the family business because he trusts everyone that comes his way.

2. Foster scepticism: 

I want to use this medium to ask parents, caregivers, and educators to teach their children scepticism. Tell the children not to believe what people tell them hook, line, and sinker. Why? It is because the world is full of pathological liars and professional deceivers. Let your children be well informed that over 60% of information heard in the global society are premeditated lies. The remaing 40% is a mixture of truth and falsehood. If the mixture is passed through the crucibles of empiric analysis, only about 25% could be true, whilst the other 15% is still lie and deception. If you add 60% lie together with 15% lie, what do you have? Your answer should be 75% lie. That is why it amounts to a high risk to train a child you love so much without emphasizing the fact that most things we hear in the world are not true at all. I explained this point elaborately in chapter one of one of my six books published and sold by Amazon (The book is titled Doctrines of Devils). Therefore, as a parent, you have a responsibility to teach your children to ask reasonable questions when they hear information from people. If they are not sure of the information, they must not believe it or act on it. However, fostering skepticism should not be extended to the subjects the children are taught by educators in their classrooms. These ones are true because they have been proved beyond all reasonable doubts in the past centuries. 

3. Promote critical evaluation: 

Teach your children to evaluate all media contents based objectively on evidence, logic, and fairness.

4. Model critical thinking or reasoning skills: 

Parents, caregivers, and educators should demonstrate critical thinking skills themselves for their children and wards to emulate, and provide ample opportunities for the children to observe and practise these skills.

Age-specific strategies for teaching the children media literacy and critical thinking skills include:

1. For children between 5 and 8 years old: 

Use simple interactive activities to introduce media literacy concepts such as identifying media sources or recognizing advertising.

2.  For children between 9 and 12 years old: 

Encourage critical thinking through discussions and activities that analyze media content such as evaluating new articles or posts, identifying biases in media messages etc. 

3. For children of 13 years old and above: 

Engage in more advanced discussions and activities that promote critical thinking or reasoning, such as analyzing social media influencers or evaluating online sources. 

Parents, caregivers, and educators can use the following online resources to teach children media literacy:

1. Common Sense Education:

It provides media literacy lessons and activities for children of all ages. 

2. Media Literacy Now: 

It offers resources and guidance for teaching media literature to children.

3. PBS Learning Media: 

It provides interactive media literacy activities and lessons for children. 

International agencies have contributed immensely to promoting media literacy and critical thinking for children globally. The UNESCO's Media and Information Literacy (MIL) Programme aims to promote media literacy and critical thinking in children globally. It also uses its sister-initiative called Global Media and Information Literacy Week to create awareness on media literacy and critical thinking. The UNICEF's Digital Literacy Programme focuses on promoting media literacy and critical thinking skills among children and young people. Its Children's Online Safety Programme provides guidance and resources for parents, caregivers, educators, and policymakers to promote media literacy and critical thinking among children. The European Union's Media Literacy for All Programme aims to promote media literacy and critical thinking among European Union's citizens, including children. The EU's Digital Education Action Plan also promotes media literacy and critical thinking in schools. Other international organizations such as Global Alliance for Partnerships on Media and Information Literacy (GAPMIL) and International Association for Media and Communication Research (IAMCR) promote media literacy and critical thinking among children, as well as encouraging researchers and scholars who study media and communications to teach children media literacy and critical thinking.

In summary, it is ultimately believed that the development of media literacy and critical thinking skills is essential for creating a more informed, engaged, and critically thinking citizenry.

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