Page 340 - Štremfel, Urška, and Maša Vidmar (eds.). 2018. Early School Leaving: Contemporary European Perspectives. Ljubljana: Pedagoški inštitut.
P. 340
ear ly school leaving: contempor ary european perspectives
and employment of a media system’s codes and operative skills required
to properly use the technology on which these codes are based. Moreover,
media literacy, as UNESCO understands it, should also encompass the ca-
pacity to access, analyse and evaluate the power of media messages and the
capacity to communicate using all forms of media (television, film, radio,
recorded music, press, Internet and other digital communication technolo-
gy) (Perez Tornero & Varis, 2010). Hobbs (1996) defines media literacy as a
process of accessing and critically analysing media messages and creating
new messages using media tools, whereas Rubin (1998) argues that media
literacy means understanding sources of communication technology, the
codes used, the messages produced and the selection, interpretation and
impact of these messages.
As evident, two components of media literacy definitions are the most
common – first, the awareness of the multitude of media messages and,
second, a critical ability to analyse and question these messages (Hobbs,
2001; Silverblatt, 1995; Singer & Singer, 1998).
Kellner and Share (2007) define four different approaches to under-
standing media literacy:
- The first approach is the so-called protectionist approach, which
sees media audiences as passive victims and values traditional
print culture over media culture. It tries to prevent addiction to
media by cultivating an affection for high culture and its values
and thus displaying all aspects of media and computer culture in
a bad light.
- The second approach is media arts education, which assumes that
learning how to construct media messages implicitly teaches me-
dia literacy.
- The third approach called media literacy movement defines me-
dia literacy as a series of communication competencies, including
the ability to access, analyse, evaluate and communicate, and ex-
pands the notion of literacy to multiple forms of media.
- The fourth approach – the critical media literacy approach – in-
cludes aspects of all three approaches stated above, but puts em-
phasis on the critical analysis of the dominant ideology used in
the media and highlights the importance of detecting prevailing
dominant representations of gender roles, race, class and sexu-
ality. Moreover, it expands the analyses to include social issues,
340
and employment of a media system’s codes and operative skills required
to properly use the technology on which these codes are based. Moreover,
media literacy, as UNESCO understands it, should also encompass the ca-
pacity to access, analyse and evaluate the power of media messages and the
capacity to communicate using all forms of media (television, film, radio,
recorded music, press, Internet and other digital communication technolo-
gy) (Perez Tornero & Varis, 2010). Hobbs (1996) defines media literacy as a
process of accessing and critically analysing media messages and creating
new messages using media tools, whereas Rubin (1998) argues that media
literacy means understanding sources of communication technology, the
codes used, the messages produced and the selection, interpretation and
impact of these messages.
As evident, two components of media literacy definitions are the most
common – first, the awareness of the multitude of media messages and,
second, a critical ability to analyse and question these messages (Hobbs,
2001; Silverblatt, 1995; Singer & Singer, 1998).
Kellner and Share (2007) define four different approaches to under-
standing media literacy:
- The first approach is the so-called protectionist approach, which
sees media audiences as passive victims and values traditional
print culture over media culture. It tries to prevent addiction to
media by cultivating an affection for high culture and its values
and thus displaying all aspects of media and computer culture in
a bad light.
- The second approach is media arts education, which assumes that
learning how to construct media messages implicitly teaches me-
dia literacy.
- The third approach called media literacy movement defines me-
dia literacy as a series of communication competencies, including
the ability to access, analyse, evaluate and communicate, and ex-
pands the notion of literacy to multiple forms of media.
- The fourth approach – the critical media literacy approach – in-
cludes aspects of all three approaches stated above, but puts em-
phasis on the critical analysis of the dominant ideology used in
the media and highlights the importance of detecting prevailing
dominant representations of gender roles, race, class and sexu-
ality. Moreover, it expands the analyses to include social issues,
340
