Jeff Sigmund
NAA Director of Communications, (571) 366-1088
Jeff.sigmund@naa.org
www.naa.org
September 8, 2009
NAA FOUNDATION CELEBRATES LITERACY DAY WITH “HIGH FIVE” CURRICULUM DESIGNED TO IMPROVE MEDIA AWARENESS
Arlington, Va. – As the world celebrates International Literacy Day, the Newspaper Association of America Foundation today announced the development of "Understanding Media: The Five Principles," a new online, interactive course designed to help students of all ages develop skills that will help them understand the media's role in a Democracy, as well as its influence on citizenship and decision making. This free e-learning course is being developed in partnership with Poynter's News University, the innovative journalism training site with more than 85 courses and 115,000 registered users.
"In today's media landscape, achieving media literacy goes well beyond just reacting to or criticizing media," said Margaret Vassilikos, senior vice president and treasurer of the NAA Foundation. "This interactive course will prepare students to access information they need to make decisions in their lives; analyze media messages that are designed to inform, entertain or persuade them; evaluate the content, accuracy and purpose of media messages; and create media messages themselves."
The self-directed media literacy course, currently under development and scheduled to launch in mid-November, is based on the Foundation's "High Five" curriculum, a three-unit integrated language arts and journalism curriculum developed with funding from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.
The lessons in the learning module are designed around five principles, with an emphasis on teaching students to examine how message creators attempt to influence media consumers, as well as the sometimes hidden intent and unstated purpose of different messages. The principles are:
- All messages are constructions
- All messages are representations of a reality
- Messages are created for different purposes - social, political, economic, historic and aesthetic
- Different people interpret the same message differently
- Messages have their own language, forms and symbol systems
Howard I. Finberg, director of Interactive Learning at Poynter's News University, discusses the online course in the latest NAA Podcast.
About Poynter's News University
Poynter's News University (www.newsu.org) is the e-learning home for more than 115,000 journalists, educators and students in 200 countries around the world. As the e-learning project of The Poynter Institute, NewsU extends Poynter's mission as a school for journalists, future journalists and teachers of journalism. NewsU is funded by a grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.
About the NAA Foundation
The Newspaper Association of America Foundation strives to develop engaged and literate citizens in a diverse society. The Foundation invests in and supports programs designed to enhance student achievement through newspaper readership and appreciation of the First Amendment. The Foundation also endeavors to help media companies increase their readership and audience by offering programs that encourage the cultivation of a more diverse work force in the press. Information about the Foundation and its programs may be found at www.naafoundation.org.