DON’T KNOW HOW TO TEACH MEDIA LITERACY? CAN YOU RELATE?

DON’T KNOW HOW TO TEACH MEDIA LITERACY? CAN YOU RELATE?
by Frank W Baker (revised November 19 2025)

“Research suggests teachers are motivated to teach media literacy, but…often don’t know where to start.” That is a quote from PBS Newshour Classroom article, detailing an experience from Canada.

A recent survey indicated that most educators want to teach media literacy and that most students want media literacy instruction, but are not receiving it.

One issue arises here and that is how educators understand (or misunderstand) what media literacy is exactly. (Some in the mainstream media misuse the phrase when they actually mean news literacy or digital literacy, or information literacy.)

On my website, the Media Literacy Clearinghouse, I have defined it narrowly (from my POV as an educator) as “applying critical thinking and viewing skills to all media messages.” My introduction to media literacy was through critical inquiry questions, which I have written about previously at Middleweb.com.

Several questions are raised here:

Are schools equipped to provide teachers with media literacy instruction?
Do educators really want/ need help starting to teach it?

Many schools do provide media literacy instruction, but educators may not call it that or recognize that’s what they are doing.

For example, a school librarian who demonstrates “lateral reading” shows students how questioning sources is vital in the 21^st century.

A social studies teacher, who explores how the Nazis used propaganda to convince people that Jews were the reasons for their problems, is also demonstrating how words and images influence.

Elementary educators who carefully read a “picture book” to younger students may utilize questions while they read to show how important visual literacy is in reading and comprehending.

Any arts educator who decides to guide students through the deconstruction of an historic or iconic photo is also demonstrating how to both analyze as well as infer/deduce meaning through images.

A literature teacher, using a film like “To Kill A Mockingbird,” has opportunities to teach “film language” by pointing out how costume, lighting, sound and set design are designed to be read, like a book.

A math educator might use the occasion of the annual Super Bowl football game to engage students in a study of the costs of those 30 second commercials and why advertisers may up to $8 million per spot.

Are you one of those educators who has already dipped their toes into some aspect of media literacy? If so, good for you.

Years ago, when I began teaching media literacy as a consultant, it was clear to me that I needed relevant examples that educators (and students) could instantly recognize and be familiar with.

So, a toy commercial (recorded from TV prior to the Christmas holidays) became fodder for a lesson to help students see through some of the deceptive practices often used to make things “look better than they really are.” At the same time, I would challenge students to brainstorm the answer to: who would you write to in order to complain about a toy seen on TV?

During the election campaign season, using any of the various politician’s TV ads was another opportunity to help students understand how words, images and sound combine to make persuasive and influential messages—which may fool unsuspecting voters unknowingly.

An ad for pizza, from a magazine aimed at children, gave me the chance to explore how advertising targets specific audiences as well as guiding them through how words and images persuade.

Does any of this sound “doable”? I hope so.

IDEAS FOR A WEEKLY MEDIA LITERACY LESSON
– Have students bring in one news story from their TikTok or other social media feed. This provides an opportunity to discuss source evaluation and reliability.

– Since CLICKBAIT is rampant and most will have been exposed to it, chose several examples, and taken students through the process of verifying whether the post is authentic and fake

– Task students with bringing in a photo (or other image) from their feed that they suspect has been AI-altered. A rich lesson will involve having students say specifically why they suspect it might be altered. (Did they take the time to verify the image or fact check it?)

– Have students bring in the cover of magazine, preferably one from a family member, for a visual literacy deconstruction. Questions like who is the audience, who is likely to advertise in it, why do you think it appeals to your parent and/or grandparent.

-Task students with downloading an opinion or op-ed piece on a subject of their choosing. They should be asked to identify how the writer uses words or phrases that demonstrate persuasion or influences the reader to think one way or another.

– Assign students a lengthy news story (examples from the New York Times are particularly good) and have them create a tweet (maximum 280 characters)…how did they determine what to prioritize/summarize and why?

– Ask “what’s your favorite movie” and be prepared to discuss a favorite scene from same. This activity is one of my favorites. Students love to describe why a particular film (or scene) makes it memorable.

– Have students bring in a favorite MEME and initiate a discussion about why it might be a favorite; does it depend on prior knowledge; does it poke fun at someone or something in pop culture?

Educators have many opportunities to introduce “healthy skepticism” to students, especially at a time when it seems that EVERYTHING online and in social media has been manipulated in some way.

To aid educators, I recently created the web page STUDENTS SHOULD KNOW, a curated collection of brief media literacy related videos (divided into categories) that I believe could be used to jump start media literacy instruction, discussion and research. I hope you’ll check it out.

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Frank W Baker has been a consistent presence on MiddleWeb for nearly a decade. His columns and blogposts are designed to help educators make the connection between popular culture, current events, teaching standards and media literacy. His lifelong work, which includes hundreds of workshops with teachers, was recognized in 2019 by UNESCO. In 2025, NAMLE (the National Association of Media Literacy Education) recognized his lifelong work with the Elizabeth Thoman Service Award.

Frank maintains the popular Media Literacy Clearinghouse (MLC) education resource website. His most recent book, co-published by MiddleWeb & Routledge Eye on Education is Close Reading The Media: Literacy Lessons and Activities for Every Month of the School Year. He invites readers to follow MLC on Facebook and him on Twitter @fbaker.