The Benefits of Teaching Critical Media Literacy

We live in an ever-changing world. Our society evolves each day, and in doing so renders certain standards and paradigms obsolete. The field of communications serves as an example of this evolution. For a long time, this sector was dominated by print media. Newspapers, magazines, and letters functioned as the primary methods of information delivery. Within recent years, however, the field of communications has experienced the emergence of a new phenomenon: the internet. The internet has altered greatly the way in which information is delivered and presented. Both interpersonal communications and news stories now can be published and accessed instantaneously. These advances have had a definite impact on all realms of society, especially the one in which we function: education. As educators, we must confront the fact that ours in no longer a culture dominated by print media. We must recognize the impact, importance, and prevalence of multimedia. The dominance of multimedia outlets such as television, the internet, and film has been well-documented in recent years. As teachers, we must accept the fact that our students have grown up in a world dominated by technology. For them, multimedia forms are a central part of everyday life. This means that schools can no longer afford to ignore the impact that technology has on its students. We must adjust our pedagogical approach in order to address the role of technology and multimedia in modern education.

One important adjustment that needs to be made involves recognition of the fact that learning can and does occur outside of school boundaries. Students can accumulate knowledge and new ideas while doing something as simple as reading a magazin...

... middle of paper ...

...orld experience. Without it, students are reduced to machines of rote memorization, and the process of schooling becomes irrelevant.

WORKS CITED

Flood, J., & Lapp, D. (1995). Broadenening the lens: Toward an expanded conceptualization of literacy. In K.A. Hinchman, D.J. Leu, & C.K. Kinzer (Eds.), Perspectives on literacy research and practice: Forty-fourth yearbook of the National Reading Conference (pp. 1-16). Chicago: National Reading Conference.

Hinchey, P. (1998). Finding freedom in the classroom: A practical introduction to critical theory. New York: Peter Lang Publishing.

Pailliotet, A.W., & Semali, L. (Eds.). (1999). Intermediality: The teachers’ handbook of critical media literacy. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.

Semali, L. (2000). Literacy in multimedia America: Integrating media education across the curriculum. New York: Falmer Press.