Media Literacy: One of the 21st Century Skills Your Students Need
by Frank Baker, media educator
Palmetto Administrator magazine, Fall 2005 issue
We know that many of our students learn from the media-saturated world in which
they live. Marshall McLuhan compared it to the fish who lives inside a
glass bowl but is oblivious to the fact that the water surrounds it. So is
the media like the water.
In the mid 1990's, several initiatives began to raise the level of awareness of
media literacy. For purposes of this article, media literacy is defined as
those " skills (necessary) to empower persons 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." (Alliance for a Media Literate America, 2001).
Some schools believe that because they have video or TV production, that they
are fulfilling the objective of media education. These courses, while well
meaning, do little to advance the cause of true media literacy.
In 1999, I co-authored (along with Rutgers University Professor Robert Kubey)
the nation's first study of media literacy in all 50 state's teaching standards.
What we found surprised us: media literacy exists in the standards of English,
Social Studies and health. (At the same time, we lamented the fact that just
because a state has included media literacy in its standards does not mean that
it is being taught.)
Media literacy can be the key to helping students understand topics as diverse
as body image, political advertising, product placement, tobacco marketing,
propaganda, photojournalism and more.
Two state initiatives designed to infuse media literacy into the curriculum are
worthy of note here. Shortly after the Columbine, Colorado school
shootings, the Discovery Channel parent company decided to underwrite the
production of a comprehensive media literacy course for every teacher in the
state of Maryland. The result was "Assignment: Media Literacy," a
curriculum strongly connected to Maryland's English-language arts standards.
URL Link: http://www.marylandpublicschools.org/MSDE/programs/medialit/
The second state initiative of note is in the state of Texas. In our original
review of state standards, we concluded that Texas' standards for media literacy
were, by far, the most comprehensive. Since that time, much effort has been put
into professional development for reading teachers in the state.
Another positive move for media literacy is its inclusion in current textbooks.
As of this writing, Holt, Reinhart and Winston's Language Arts text
"Elements of Language," and McDougal Littell's "Media
Focus" ( A video companion to Language Network) both include media literacy
education in their texts.
In January 2003, this writer, in a partnership with the South Carolina State
Department of Education, conducted several introductory workshops for English
Language Arts supervisors. As a result of those workshops, a media literacy
online document was designed to provide ELA teachers some background and some
starting points in introducing "viewing" into their classrooms.
URL Link: http://medialit.med.sc.edu/elahandouts.htm
Finally, let me say a word about the role of the school library media
specialist. As the gatekeeper of the media ( newspapers, magazines, video, film,
Internet), your media specialist is in a perfect position to assist teachers and
students in media literacy education.
In an article I wrote for the September 2004 School Library Media Activities
magazine, I suggested that media specialists:
- Survey teachers about their needs: do teachers need texts, magazines or videos
that touch on media literacy topics?
- Consider subscribing to the nation's only media literacy journal: Telemedium.
URL Link: http://www.nationaltelemediacouncil.org
- Devote bulletin board space to media issues
In conclusion, media literacy has come a long way in the United States. With the
help of administrators and school library media specialists, it can go even
farther.
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Note: Frank Baker is a media education consultant, based in Columbia SC, who
works with schools wanting to integrate 21st century media literacy
into instruction. He can be reached at fbaker1346@aol.com