Middle Schoolers Learn Essential Media Literacy Skills

So when Jillian McCoy, head librarian and coordinator for digital information and learning, was invited to speak to the middle school about media literacy, she was up for the challenge.

“Our middle school students are already encountering news stories on social media and engaging in discussions at school and home about the election,” McCoy explained. “It is crucial to help our students, who will be voters in the near future, become well-informed citizens so they have resilience against misinformation.”

McCoy spoke during two middle school gatherings last week. Through interactive activities and surveys, she introduced students to misinformation vs. disinformation, fake news, echo chambers and AI.

“Students were able to engage with questions to get them thinking about where they get their news and whether they’re able to identify fake news and AI-generated images,” McCoy said. 

Lorenzo Zapata ’29 said, “I think it was a very good way to spread awareness about all these specific topics that can greatly impact an individual's mind and thoughts.” 

Students continued the discussion in small groups during advisory. They watched a TED talk on online filter bubbles, which are created by algorithms to keep track of an individual’s clicks.

Mark Tamucci, middle school humanities teacher, found the discussions with his advisees enlightening. “The video addressed how news and a lot of things that people are seeing on the internet are designed for them in particular without bringing in other viewpoints,” he said.

“The problem with that is, as youngsters grow up, they need other viewpoints because they tend to get stuck, as described in the video, in an ‘echo chamber.’”
 
This gave sixth grader Shiv Padmanabhan food for thought: “It's interesting because there are some things that you just don't ever think about. I could just open up my computer and never think about why I'm getting something. But you won't be exposed to new ideas and learn new things if you stay in an echo chamber.”

Lynn Salehi, associate head of middle school, said the experience provided students with valuable tools and skills: “I think it was a great opportunity to accomplish two things: first, to raise student awareness about how the media they consume is being manipulated, and what they can do to be smarter, more discerning media consumers.”