Discussion Starters
1. Discuss the word “media”. List types of print and electronic media.
2. Think about your daily media “diet”. Which form of media is the most important in your life? How do you use computer technology in your daily life?
3. Who holds the media accountable?
4. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of online classes. Would you like to be involved in this type of learning environment?
5. Discuss whether reviews of books, movies, and videogames affect your personal choices.
6. Brainstorm new types of technology that will impact your home and the classrooms of the future.
7. Discuss the statement, “all people are equal online.”
8. What makes Wikipedia different from other encyclopedias? Is this always a reliable source?
9. There are many concerns about privacy and security online. What is identity theft? What steps can you take to prevent it?
10. How has e-commerce changed shopping options?
Fast Facts
“Toyota sells virtual cars in Whyville, building brand loyalty among kids growing up in a world of cell phones, the Internet and instant messaging.” www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/05/15/eveningnews/main2808272.shtml
“In its opening weekend, Spider-Man 3 raked in $151.1 million domestically and $382 million worldwide. This equates to 22.5 million people in its first three days, based on an average ticket price of $6.70.” box-office tracker, Media By Numbers
According to statistics posted by the National Institute on Media and the Family, by age 13, some 53 percent of American girls are unhappy with their bodies; that figure grows to 78 percent by the time girls reach 17. In another study on fifth graders, 10-year-old girls and boys told researchers they were dissatisfied with their own bodies after watching a music video by Britney Spears or a clip from the TV show Friends. And adolescent girls who viewed commercials depicting unrealistically thin models felt "less confident, more angry, and more dissatisfied with their weight and appearance." www.christianitytoday.com/tc/2004/006/6.18.html
The Simpsons' 400th episode aired May 20 on Fox. The animated sitcom has been on TV for 18 seasons now, winning 23 Emmy awards along the way. According to E! Online, it's only the fourth scripted prime-time series in history to reach the 400-episode mark, and the franchise has generated a reported $1 billion in revenue. In 2007, the first Simpsons movie hit the theater screens. www.eonline.com, 5/18/07 stats
Entertainment
#1 TV reality/game show: American Idol (Fox) in 18.8 million homes (17th week at #1) www.realitytvworld.com
Teens and Social Media
Content creation by teenagers continues to grow, with 64% of online teenagers ages 12 to 17 engaging in at least one type of content creation, up from 57% of online teens in 2004.
Girls continue to dominate most elements of content creation. Some 35% of all teen girls blog, compared with 20% of online boys, and 54% of wired girls post photos online compared with 40% of online boys. Boys, however, do dominate one area - posting of video content online. Online teen boys are nearly twice as likely as online girls (19% vs. 10%) to have posted a video online somewhere where someone else could see it.”
Teens and Social Media, www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/230/report_display.asp
Pew "Teens & Social Media" Study
• Nearly two-thirds of teens - 63 percent - have a cell phone.
• 35 percent of all online teen girls blog, compared with 20 percent of online teen boys.
• 32 percent of girls ages 12 to 14 blog, compared to 18 percent of boys age 15 to 17.
• YouTube and other video sharing sites tend to be the domain of boys. Online teen boys are "twice as likely" as girls to post video files online, by a 19 percent to 10 percent margin.
• Fully 41 percent of teens who use MySpace, Facebook or similar sites say they send messages to friends via those sites every day.
• More than half of teens - 55 percent - reported having a profile on sites like MySpace or Facebook, and 42 percent of those teens said they also blog, while 70 percent said they read the blogs.” www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/230/report_display.asp
Media use by toddlers
• One-fifth of infants and toddlers under age 3 have a television in their bedrooms.
• 43 percent of 3- to 4-year-olds have TVs in their rooms, potentially setting up an unhealthy habit.
Pediatrics: Digital Childhood: Electronic Media and Technology Use Among Infants, Toddlers, and Preschoolers
• Kids between the ages of 2 and 12 years old spend more than a quarter of their leisure time doing two or more activities at the same time.
• Kids today have plenty of leisure time, with 2-to-11-year-olds averaging roughly 68 hours a week, and 5-to-12-year-olds averaging 58 hours.
www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?id=1004799
Dissect a URL
AGE OF INTERNET USERS
Age Percentage of Americans Online (In Age Groups)
12-17 87%
18-24 82%
25-29 85%
30-34 83%
40-44 76%
45-49 73%
50-54 68%
55-59 68%
60-64 55%
65-69 57%
70-75 26%
76+ 17%
Washington Post 2/6/06 quoting Pew Internet & American Life Project surveys
Video games
• 87% of 8- to 17-year old children play video games at home.
• Only 26% say that a parent has ever stopped them from getting a video game because of its rating (28% boys, 23% girls).
• Seven out of 10 children report playing M-rated games.
• Almost two-thirds (60%) of children list at least one M-rated game as their favorite (75% of boys and 35% of girls).
www.mediafamily.org/research/report_vgrc_2005.shtml
PTT 2008 Glossary
Banner Ad
An advertisement that is usually an inch or less tall and spans the width of a webpage; banner ads usually allow the user to link to the advertiser’s own webpage
Bookmark
A pointer to a particular website, generally chosen by the user and stored on the user’s computer
Construct
To construct is to intentionally create each element of a media message
Cookies
HTTP cookies, sometimes known as web cookies or just cookies, are parcels of text sent by a server to a web browser and then sent back unchanged by the browser each time it accesses that server. HTTP cookies are used for authenticating, tracking, and maintaining specific information about users, such as site preferences or the contents of their electronic shopping carts. Cookies have been of concern for Internet privacy, since they can be used for tracking browsing behavior. **
Deconstruct
To analyze all of the various elements of a media message, such as background, props, color, music, etc.
Digital Divide
The gap that distinguishes those who have access to high technologies, such as the Internet, and those who don’t
E-commerce
Business that is conducted over the Internet
HTTP
Hypertext Transfer Protocol; the protocol that computers on the Internet use to communicate with each other
Hyperlink
A link from one webpage to another, usually represented by a highlighted or underlined word, phrase, or image
Identity Theft
Identity theft is a catch-all term for crimes involving illegal usage of another individual's identity. The most common form of identity theft is credit card fraud. **
Interactive Media
Media that allow the users to interact with the providers
Mass Media
Communications media that reach large numbers of people and use some form of technology
Media Literacy
The application of critical thinking to the messages of the mass media
Medium (plural: media)
The mode by which a message is communicated, such as TV, radio, newspapers, or the Internet
Online Classes
Education in which the learner is physically separated from the faculty and the institution sponsoring the learning program, frequently over the Internet
Podcast
A podcast is a collection of digital media files, which is distributed over the Internet using syndication feeds for playback on portable media players and personal computers. ** A podcast is like a radio broadcast via the Internet.
Portal
A website that acts as a starting point for many other websites
Pop-up ads
Pop-up ads or popups are a form of online advertising on the World Wide Web intended to increase web traffic or capture email addresses **
PSA
A Public Service Announcement
Search engine
A search engine is an information retrieval system designed to help find information stored on a computer system. Search engines help to minimize the time required to find information and the amount of information which must be consulted. The most public, visible form of a search engine is the Web search engine which searches for information on the World Wide Web. **
Skype
Skype allows users to make telephone calls from their computer to other Skype users free of charge, or to landlines and cell phones for a fee. **
Social media
Participatory online media where news, photos, videos, and podcasts are made public via social media websites through submission. Normally accompanied with a voting process to make media items become "popular".
Social Media Expanded Definition: Social Media is the democratization of information, transforming people from content readers into content publishers. It is the shift from a broadcast mechanism to a many-to-many model, rooted in conversations between authors, people, and peers.
Social media uses the “wisdom of crowds” to connect information in a collaborative manner. Social media can take many different forms, including Internet forums, message boards, weblogs, wikis, podcasts, pictures and video. Technologies include blogs, picture-sharing, vlogs, wall-postings, email, instant messaging, music-sharing, group creation, and voice over IP. Examples of social media applications are Google (reference, social networking), Wikipedia (reference), MySpace (social networking), Facebook (social networking), Last.fm (personal music), YouTube (social networking and video sharing), Second Life (virtual reality), and Flickr (photo sharing). **
Soundbite
A portion of a speech, interview, or other type of communication that is taken out of context; frequently used by the news media
Stereotype
An idea or belief generally accepted about a person, a group, a culture, etc. that does not consider individual differences
Spam
An unsolicited e-mail message sent to a large number of people from a mailing list; frequently an advertisement or a scam
Target Audience
The audience that writers, producers, and advertisers have in mind when they create and distribute media messages
Teleconferencing
Conferencing between a number of people in different geographic locations, generally using computers, often with video cameras, or webcams, attached
Verbal Violence
The use of hate language, profanity, threats, or put-downs
Webisode
An episode of a television show that airs initially as an Internet download or stream as opposed to first airing on broadcast or cable television. A webisode is simply a web episode – collectively it is part of a web series, a form of new media that characteristically features a dramatic, serial storyline, and where the primary method of viewership is streaming online over the Internet. **
Wiki
A wiki is software that allows users to create, edit, and link web pages easily. Wikis are often used to create collaborative websites and to power community websites. **
Wysiwyg
Wysiwyg is an acronym for “What You See Is What You Get”, used in computing to describe a system in which content during editing appears very similar to the final product. **
** Source: Wikipedia © 2008, PTT
Activities
1. The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees free speech. Free speech is “the right to express any opinion in public without censorship or restraint by the government” (The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language). Have students debate whether this means the media can create and distribute any message they choose.
2. Have students go to the websites below. Ask them to compare and contrast the point of view, sponsorship, target audience, and reliability of each site.
www.youdebate.com/DEBATES/school_uniforms.HTM http://muse.widener.edu/~egrozyck/EDControversy/Eppinger.html
www.greatschools.net/cgi-bin/showarticle/ga/361, www.educationbug.org/a/public-school-uniform-statistics.html
Then ask each student to take a stand and write an essay using facts to support their viewpoint. Share the essays on the school’s or class’s website.
3. Ask students to work in small groups and locate, bookmark, and share with the class reliable websites that represent one of these topics: entertainment, education, job searches, advertising, shopping, news, research, finance, communication, and medical information.
4. Some say the Internet will save our democracy; others say that the Internet will be democracy’s demise. Have each student take a stand on this topic, and write a persuasive paragraph defending his/her position.
5. Divide the class into two groups and pose the question, “On what date did Neil Armstrong walk on the moon?” Ask one group to find the answer in an encyclopedia and have the other group use the Internet. As soon as the answer is found, have students stop searching, and discuss whether the Internet is always the best reference tool. Ask them to list specific examples of situations where the Internet is not the best tool.
6. Have students find and read newspaper or magazine articles about the Internet. Ask them to categorize the described Internet use into “the good, the bad, and the ugly” regarding the impact on society.
7. Ask students to think of medical conditions or diseases that affect someone they know. Have them use the Internet to get information that could help that individual. How else does the Internet help with medical advancements?
8. Have students think of a current or upcoming movie and go to the official website for that film. Why do they think this website was developed? What other forms of advertising have they seen on the Internet? Why does advertising exist in the media?
9. Ask students to watch a local newscast and select news stories that interest them. Have them go to that TV channel’s website to find that news story online. Have them compare and contrast the news sources.
10. Ask students to list selection criteria for using an Internet source for research. Then have them share the most reliable and least reliable sources they have used.
11. Have students visit snopes.com, reference.com, and nasa.gov and explain why each of these sites is valuable to information consumers.
12. Have students read about “One laptop per child” (www.laptop.org). Think about the existing digital divide. Have students write an essay sharing their thoughts on this topic.
13. Have students download a photograph from the Internet. Use Adobe PhotoShop (or similar software) to manipulate the image. Ask: What implications does this have regarding the integrity of photo images? Have students show their created images to others and assess the reactions in terms of critical thinking.
14. Talk about the parental guidelines for movies and videogames. Ask: Should there be parental guidelines for Internet sites? Have students take a stand and research this topic. Hold a debate about this question.
15. Have students investigate the term “media literacy” online, and explain why they think critical thinking is essential for individual thinkers in today’s world.
PTT 2008 Web Resources
Websites related to Internet Literacy:
Report: More kids juggling TV, online media
Nearly two in three U.S. children ages 9 to 17 surf the Web and watch TV at the same time, with nearly half multitasking in this way anywhere from three times a week to many times per day, according to a study by Grunwald Associates. The report also found 73% of such children practice "active multitasking," in which they are driven by content on one platform to check out another platform. MediaPost Communications/Online Media Daily (3/10)
http://publications.mediapost.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=Articles.showArticleHomePage&art_aid=78118
Company Logo Quiz
http://money.aol.com/special/company-logos-brand-awareness
Wall Street Journal article: Thinking About Tomorrow
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120119369144313747.html?mod=hpp_us_inside_today
Sourcewatch is a resource to see who people in the news are as well as organizations:
http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=SourceWatch
PBS Frontline documentary: Growing Up Online
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/kidsonline/
• Critical Evaluation of Websites
http://school.discoveryeducation.com/schrockguide/eval.html
• Evaluating Web Pages
www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/Evaluate.html
• Fact, Fiction, or Opinion? Evaluating Online Information
www.educationworld.com/a_curr/curr194.shtml
• Guide to Critical Thinking About What You See on the Web
www.ithaca.edu/library/training/think.html
• Gullibility Test
http://museumofhoaxes.com/test2.html
• Imbee's free social network for teachers
www.imbee.com/teacher/lessons
• Internet/Information Literacy Resource Site for Teachers
www.frankwbaker.com/infolit.htm
• Jo Cool or Jo Fool - For Teachers (Canadian)
www.media-awareness.ca/english/games/jocool_jofool/teachers.cfm
• Jo Cool or Jo Fool - For Kids (Canadian)
www.media-awareness.ca/english/games/jocool_jofool/kids.cfm
• Kathy Schrock’s Guide for Educators
http://school.discoveryeducation.com/schrockguide
• Social networking article in “Year in Review: 2007”
www.news.com/Year-in-review-Social-networking-gets-its-geek-on/2009-1025_3-6223391.html
• Thinking Critically about World Wide Web Resources
www.library.ucla.edu/college/help/critical
• Web Awareness for Teachers (Canadian)
www.media-awareness.ca/english/teachers/wa_teachers/index.cfm
Media Literacy Websites:
• Center for Media Literacy
www.medialit.org/
• Don’t Buy It! Get Media Smart!
http://pbskids.org/dontbuyit
• Internet Safety – Teachers & Parents
www.wiredsafety.org
• Just Think!
www.JustThink.org
• Media Alert!
www.MediaAlert.org
• Media Literacy Clearinghouse: Resources for K-12 Teachers
www.frankwbaker.com
• Media Literacy Online Project
http://interact.uoregon.edu/medialit/mlr/home/
• PRIIME TIIME TODAY
www.primett.org
• Teaching Media Literacy
www.youthlearn.org/learning/activities/multimedia/medialit.asp
• Teaching Media Literacy in the Age of the Internet
school.discoveryeducation.com/schrockguide/pdf/weval.pdf
© 2008, PTT