More emphasis on media literacy needed in Canadian schools, says UCalgary professor

As far back as the 1980s, media literacy lessons have been a part of Canadian school curriculums. From simple awareness of news stories and the pop culture of the day to questions around media bias and messaging, most elementary and high school students have been exposed to these discussions at some point.

But, in an era where the very foundations of media have been upended, with traditional news sources increasingly diminished and distrusted as we contend with a constant barrage of conflicting information, misinformation and disinformation online, has media literacy in our schools kept up?

In the wild west of social media, where politicians deflect critical media coverage as “fake news,” and the spread of misinformation can be a matter of life or death, as witnessed during the COVID-19 pandemic, are media lessons in our schools more important than ever? And are they in need of an upgrade?

Dr. Catherine Burwell, PhD, an associate professor in the Werklund School of Education at UCalgary who specializes in media education and digital literacy, believes so. Here are some edited excerpts from a discussion with Burwell on this increasingly critical subject.

Q: How crucial has media literacy become in the school system?

A: It’s more urgent than ever because today we are literally drowning in seas of information coming from so many different sources. With that, there’s also an overwhelming flood of mis- and disinformation. Making sense of this information overload has become a matter of paramount importance for students.

Q: Are parents also having trouble navigating these waters?

A: Oh yes, parents are often struggling as much as their children. Consider the sheer amount of online information and the speed with which it comes at us. And the news changes so rapidly. Often, media outlets feel the need to be on top of stories instantly and they send information online that hasn’t been verified. So sometimes misinformation spreads not only on social media, but also through the mainstream media. It’s not unusual to see media outlets quoting Twitter (X). We also need to be wary of false information that’s coming from bots. And now the introduction of AI is about to change everything dramatically, yet again. It’s hard for anybody to keep up.

Q: Are school curriculums sufficiently adapting to these vast changes, or is there a whole lot of catching up to do in the teaching of media literacy?

A: More work needs to be done, there is no doubt. I don’t blame teachers for this. We're all scrambling now to understand how to keep up with the problem of mis- and disinformation, which is being generated ever more quickly. The very institution of journalism is struggling with these concerns and so is the institution of education.

Q: What can schools do to better teach media literacy in this rapidly changing landscape?

A: During the pandemic, I and my Werklund colleagues, Dr. Maren Aukerman and Dr. David Scott, researched the ways kids were making sense of COVID-19 information. We asked them if they were being taught to evaluate information in school. The majority said yes, but, in many cases, it tended to be within a single class. And that’s no longer enough. In the past, media literacy has mostly lived in classes like language arts and social studies, but it needs to be incorporated in other areas, too, such as science. Another thing we found in our research is that kids are really interested in talking about issues that affect them and they want to able to recognize and pass on accurate information to their friends and family. The appetite for media literacy is there!

Q: Do you feel there should be a class in the curriculum dedicated to media literacy, just as there are dedicated classes to math, science, physical education, et cetera?

A: Yes, that would be ideal, but I don’t see school curriculums introducing this anytime soon. If we can’t have that, though, we need be to be thinking about how to incorporate these lessons deeply into the existing curriculum, across subject areas, and beginning in the early elementary grades, too.

Q: How do you teach media literacy to those students who come from families steeped in misinformation – a family that believes COVID-19 is a hoax, for example?

A: It’s true that some young people are entering the classroom believing misinformation learned at home. And it’s not the teacher’s role to simply say, ‘You’re wrong.’ What we can do is teach critical thinking and give students the space to participate in important conversations and the tools to think deeply. This can foster the ability to ask intelligent questions about the information we receive.