Is everything we hear true?

I am wanting/hoping to teach in the primary years. Children are very impressionable at a young age which makes my job as an educator that much more important. I need to teach children about how to identify what it true and what is false on the online world as well as how to detect what fake news is. I took a deeper look at the Grade 2 curriculum where children are taught critical and powerful learning strategies. They can apply their new knowledge and learnings into the real world. Many goals that were given by the NCTE framework apply to what is being taught in school. One main takeaway for myself was, developing critical thinking for children. Critical thinkers will be able to decipher what is fake and what is not. They will also be taught where to find a reliable sources and to understand that online world can sometimes filter away from the truth.

https://ed.ted.com/lessons/how-to-choose-your-news-damon-brown#watch

Through the video How to choose your news it teaches someone how to find a credible source. Finding a credible source does not mean going through political leaders or even news outlets but it means going to the direct source. Students will be able to understand the difference between fact and opinion. This type of learning can be applied throughout life too, it is not strictly school based.

In the article How do we teach students to identify fake news?  states, “fake news is often meant to do harm, by tricking us into believing a lie or unfairly discrediting a person or political movement.” This is when the process of critical thinking must come into play. Students will learn the many different types of ways people can deliver fake news. 

After learning more about fake news and the reason why people chose to spread it, it made me realize there is more than just one answer. It could be for money, fame or simply someone has not gone to the direct source therefore they believe what they are reading or watching is true. Why do people fall for fake news? says that fake News is easy for people to fall for;

• a growing decline in trust of the media and government
• people can now create content unburdened by the layers of editing and fact-checking that news organizations adhere to
• content is aggregated into a single “news” feed – mixing updates from friends and family with identical-looking links to stories across the web
• lower attention spans
• fake news stories appeal to our emotions
• proliferation of internet bots 

Sometimes fake news can spread like rapid fire within a school. Things like gossip can be extremely popular within a school. Children need to be taught the importance of spreading something that may not be true. In addition to being able to identify fake news, it is also important to be aware of what is NOT fake news. If you do not agree with something  that does not make it fake news. Children are aware and understand the difference between opinions and fake news.