Helping Teachers Navigate Today’s Media Landscape

Teachers from Koprivnica and the surrounding area took part in Gong’s media literacy training on 8 and 9 May, during which they explored how today’s media landscape functions and why media literacy is more important than ever.

Participants emphasized that it is extremely important for education professionals to stay regularly informed and keep up with changes in the field of information, as students often turn to them for answers, explanations and support in understanding media content.

During the training, they learned about different types of media and media content, actors in the media sphere, and the changes that have contributed to the crisis of journalism and the growing influence of social media on how people access information. The programme also addressed disinformation, which spreads rapidly through social networks and the media, as well as artificial intelligence, which can now easily generate content that appears convincing but is not authentic.

Dušanka Vergić, a teacher from Đurđevac, highlighted that the training was useful not only for teaching, but also for the personal and professional development of teachers. As she explained, the training empowers teachers to help students develop critical thinking, recognize manipulation and understand the role of the media in everyday life, society and democracy. As a school librarian, she added, it is particularly useful in evaluating sources of information. She also emphasized that she found it especially valuable to hear the journalistic perspective, as well as to receive examples and activities that can be used in the classroom.

The importance of topics such as media manipulation, fake news and artificial intelligence was also emphasized by Saša Kresojević, a teacher from Koprivnica. According to him, the need for teacher education in the field of media literacy does not need to be explained further. “We had a lot to learn from Gong’s excellent trainers, and when we add to that the opportunity to share our own experiences, compare them with the media habits of Croatian citizens and try out practical activities that we will be able to use in teaching, it is clear how valuable this workshop was,” said Kresojević. He added that he would recommend the training not only to teachers of Croatian language and media culture or school librarians, but to everyone involved in education.

Mirta Topljak, a teacher from Grubišno Polje, pointed out that, given how immersed students are in media content, it is extremely important for education professionals to continuously develop their media literacy skills. She said the training reminded participants of the basics of how the media function, while also opening up many new perspectives and insights. She sees particular value in the examples of activities that can be implemented with students, as well as in the materials provided to participants. She described the atmosphere at the workshops as encouraging, helping participants become more aware of their own weak points in navigating the media space, while also creating space for exchanging experiences from working with students.

Media literacy is one of the civic literacy education programmes that Gong, as part of the ADMO hub, continuously organizes for teachers in order to support their professional development and strengthen their knowledge of topics relevant to educating young people.