by Evelyn Pittas

What Is The Impact Of Media Literacy And Why Is It Significant For Teenagers Of The 21st Century?

by Evelyn Pittas, Academy Vice Principal

dia culture. It prepares them to become knowledgeable media users. The media brings the universe into the classroom, reinforcing and adapting general subjects, for example, the Arts, History, English, Science, and Mathematics. It constitutes an excellent bridge for the integration of subjects and multidimensional studies. Media education shapes and travels beyond the existing school curriculum, with an emphasis on student-cantered education. It recognizes a great deal of intelligence, analysis, and discipline, rather than just storing information. According to an article by Geraee, Kaveh, Shojaeizadeh, & Tabatabaee, ‘’Media literacy training increases the individuals’ doubt about the media content. After all, existence of the individuals with high media literacy leads to increase in the media quality because such individuals require more realistic messages of higher quality’’ (2015). The media form a shared context and therefore are a catalyst for knowledge. Media education also inspires youngsters to utilize multimedia devices creatively. This strategy assists learning by doing, and prepares them for the increasing need to use complex forms of communication in the workforce.

In a country that fears that young people are becoming increasingly indifferent to political rule, media literacy enables youngsters to participate in real-world affairs. It encourages them to become potential contributors to active politics and public debate. Media literacy benefits teenagers because it teaches them how the image of the media affects their own perception of diverse communities in every society. In short, media literacy heightens teens’ knowledge of distinction, identity, and diversity, as it contributes to their self-development and social improvement by examining the links within pop culture (such as fashion, films, shows, music, etc.).

Overall, we embed a world full of media, from icons to feature films. By preparing youngsters to question, we advise them to be better learners and more keen to the knowledge of the specific and absolute content they are exposed to. Based on this understanding, teenagers will be able to better connect with information that matches their values and self-awareness, and resist fallacies. In a broader context, media literacy promotes collaborative skills, as it helps courteous communication and improves citizenship skills. Media literacy has a profound impact on teenagers and plays a fundamental part in developing a generation that sustains critical thinking skills!

The ability to recognize several types of media and retrieve the information each type passes on is known as media literacy. Teenagers today receive countless information from different sources, far from traditional media like television, radio, newspapers, and publications that most parents used when they were young. Understanding the purpose of why media was created is the foundation of media literacy.

Teenagers who know the media do not have difficulty understanding similar information because they grasp the universality of the media. Teenagers improve their analytical thinking skills and make intelligent decisions through media literacy courses, which help establish the difference between reality and fantasy. Today, youth effortlessly examine the directions provided to them through the media which makes them more knowledgeable regarding politics and culture, society, etc. Youngsters nowadays understand that media represent the political arena only from one perspective and that there is much more to the real story; thus, believing in anything without knowing the entire story is not a wise choice.