how to teach digital literacy and #fakenews

I am currently teaching grade 3/4 and we have just began to look at researching and making slideshows on the computer. Prior to this, my students, mostly my grade 3s have not done a ton of research or anything online for educational purposes – although they are all pretty in tune with YouTube channels and online games. We first did some research for Social Studies about where everyday things come from. It was quite interesting how the kids did research without any instruction. If it didn’t come up at the very top of the Google search, it didn’t exist to them. Often times a Wikipedia page would be the very top suggestion for them. It is interesting at such a young age, they automatically believe whatever pops up first, without thinking about it any deeper.

Now, I know that I can’t just assume that they know Wikipedia is not that reliable. They do not just have this knowledge of the internet. That really put it into perspective for me of how important it is to TEACH students these things and not just assume they will catch on. Obviously some students will have more knowledge about these sorts of things than other students, but that is the reason we should TEACH THEM these things.

When students are doing research for anything, they need to know how to combat fake news with true facts. I remember growing up, I didn’t learn about reliable sources until grade 8 or 9. That is just too late these days. Students need to be exposed to proper online etiquette EARLY, so they grow up knowing the good and the potentially bad of the online world. Because this was my first year of teaching, I did not really address these issues, so I hope to integrate these important ideas in the future.

As a new teacher, it is hard to know where to start with teaching such ideas such as digital literacy and fake news. This document is a great place to start. It has 3 example lesson plans to get teachers started on teaching about fake news.

This website also has great explanations and questions to ponder when you are planning on teaching students about digital literacy. It also gives ideas to teachers about what students should be able to do within the classroom to learn about the different elements of the NCTE’s Definition of Digital Literacy Framework. According to this framework, these are the elements that students require in order to live in a digital world:

• Participate effectively and critically in a networked world;
• Explore and engage critically, thoughtfully, and across a wide variety of inclusive texts and tools/modalities;
• Consume, curate, and create actively across contexts;
• Advocate for equitable access to and accessibility of texts, tools, and information;
• Build and sustain intentional global and cross-cultural connections and relationships with others so as to pose and solve problems collaboratively and strengthen independent thought;
• Promote culturally sustaining communication and recognize the bias and privilege present in the interactions;
• Examine the rights, responsibilities, and ethical implications of the use and creation of information;
• Determine how and to what extent texts and tools amplify one’s own and others’ narratives as well as counter unproductive narratives;
• Recognize and honor the multilingual literacy identities and culture experiences individuals bring to learning environments, and provide opportunities to promote, amplify, and encourage these differing variations of language (e.g., dialect, jargon, register).

Another great resource for teachers to integrate into their teaching of digital literacy, is this website. It explains why people fall for fake news in the first place as well as touching on characteristics of fake news, how to spot fake news, fact checking, and how to beat fake news. When I found this website, I was intrigued because I have never considered why people legitimately fall for fake news so easily. I instantly think of my dad and my grandparents when I think of fake news. My dad believes anything that comes from TikTok or YouTube to be reliable and trustworthy information. He also believes anything that his friends at work tell him without even blinking an eye. My grandma and grandpa used to read BuzzFeed everyday and 100% trust what was posted on there. This just puts into perspective how you need to be TAUGHT things in order for you to actually be able to use media and online sources properly for your own good. I think that this would be pretty similar to my students in grade 3/4. At this point in their lives, they know about the online world, but aren’t yet equipped to navigate it 100% yet. They are still young and they are learning new things everyday, but I think it’s important that they begin learning these safety things early to combat any potentially dangerous situations in the future.

All in all, STUDENTS NEED TO BE TAUGHT THINGS ABOUT THE ONLINE WORLD IN ORDER TO BE PROPERLY EQUIPPED TO DEAL WITH ONLINE SOURCES. It is obvious that if we teach students things explicitly, they will more likely be smart about their actions.