Philly Event to Consider News Literacy
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Lauren Barack -- School Library Journal, 10/20/2008
As Americans continue to lose faith in the fourth estate, Temple University’s Media Education Lab hopes to bring some thoughtful engagement to the topic—especially for those who work with our youngest citizens.For three days this week, Oct. 23–25, educators, journalists, researchers, and all those interested are invited to Philadelphia for “Rebooting the News: Reconsidering an Agenda for American Civic Education.” The goal? To finds ways to bring young people back into a civic mindset—helping them learn how to navigate the news in ways that make them feel more connected to their world.
At this so-called “informal” convention, organizers hope people will discover new ways to involve students in conversations about the news—by learning how to critique and even create their own media. News professionals can also trade details on newsroom practices that may—or may not—be effective, including the role of Web 2.0. And ideally, everyone will help craft talking points for the presidential candidates on the idea of how civic education needs to grow, as well as help to lay the groundwork to launch a news-literacy initiative, expected to take off in 2009.
Ellen Hume from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Center for Future Civic Media, along with Renee Hobbs, a professor with the Media Education Lab, are among the participants. So far, attendees include journalism professors, students, researchers, and news professionals in radio, online, and print.
For many students and K–12 teachers in the area, there’s almost no reason not to attend as teachers get a dramatically reduced rate of $50 for all three days, and high school students get in for free.
