Today’s day and age, fake news is literally everywhere! There are lots of reasons for this like clickbait, rage bait or trying to make money off of people. This is so harmful and I see it all the time. One of the worst places I’ve seen it is on the social media app Threads. There is always something on there about a celebrity who “did something.” And it is always fake, just trying to get you to click on it so they can get your information, at least that’s what the comments say. So scary. For someone who is not educated in digital literacy, they may fall for that kind of thing very easily.
I think in today’s world, it is super important to teach about fake news not only through websites, but through social media as well. It is one of the top places that I hear about world events, so there will be a lot of people like me who rely on social media to stay informed and updated. Although this is true, I still think there are good website based resources available. I actually really like the tree octopus website. Especially for the age of kids who are just starting to practice researching online. I plan on teaching middle year students, and think this is a great start. It is dated though, so I don’t think this should be the main source to rely on.
When it comes to middle year students, they are usually just starting to gain a social media presence. I believe 
that it is so important to teach about digital literacy in regards so social media. When we gathered last week, I really enjoyed the spot the troll exercise for this. I think this is a super fun and engaging way to practice digital literacy and learn what is fake on the internet. Beside this paragraph I have attached an image of what the spot the troll game looks like. I also really liked reading through The Smell Test resource as well. There was even a section with other resources for educators to use when teaching about digital literacy.
I just feel as educators, we will or already play a key roll in helping our students understand what is real or fake online. There are so many things to help us with this and this class has provided a lot of really great resources to use.
OMG I cannot agree with you more! I don’t even have the Threads app and yet I constantly feel like I have “click bait” popups from them all over my facebook and instagram and it drives me CRAZY! I definitely agree that it is a dangerous trap for anyone who does not understand how to spot a fake post!
I like the connections that you made to middle years students. It is definitely important to teach them both through websites but also social media since it is such a large part of people’s lives now!
Great post!