Think Critically, Act Ethically

National Media Eduation Week
November 3-7th, 2008

The purpose of this week is to raise awareness about media literacy. The Language of Media can be a difficult concept to grasp, so let's break it down:

Media is any means of mass communication;
pictures, videos, words, music -
individually or combined in any fashion.

The use of media in education is inevitable because it's tools are often up-to-date and easily engage a student's senses. On the other hand, media can also be very influential in the process of selling products, as well as relaying information from source to receiver as it can present information in a certain way to evoke specific responses. That is why it is very important to be able to analyze and deconstruct media messages and therefore, necessary to educate students about media in this day and age. The ability to think critically and question each piece of information they are presented with is the best way to avoid being manipulated.

Throughout the week, there have been many media related events planned for students across the country, specific information about which can be found here and here.

The theme for this year's Media Education Week is "Think Critically, Act Ethically." An important issue faced by most students is cyber-bullying. Cyber-bullying is the use of digital information communication technology for the purposes of bullying. For example, using Facebook, MSN Messenger, e-mail, YouTube videos, etc. to harm or intimidate others.

Check out this Public Service Announcement from the N.M.E.W.

Just when I thought bullies were on their way out, they found out how to use the internet. It is said that every person in an elementary or middle school is either a bully or the victim of one. If it's not your clothes, it's your hair. If not you hair, your shoes or the way you walk, talk. You can be too fat, too skinny, too smart, not smart enough. Regardless of what another person thinks of you, bullying has very little to do with the victim and more so to do with the bully. The only way they can deal with their own insecurities is by bringing everyone else down to their level. I personally was bullied throughout the majority of elementary school. Clothes, weight, you name it. By the end of it, I'd had enough and I was able to confront my bullies. I got over it, went to high school and thrives while I watched my bullies make poor decisions with their lives. That is when I knew it had nothing to do with me.

The issue is that a lot of kids don't get over it. Not every victim can overcome their bullies and that's why special attention has to be paid to monitoring the devices kids can use to bully. Bullying is one of the worst crimes, in my opinion, and something has to be done about it.

Efforts have also been made to understand how well Media Education has translated from Secondary to Post-Secondary, which you can take a survey about here.