Beyond Media Literacy

New Paradigms in Media Education

This handbook is for anyone interested in breaking away from the antiquated models of media literacy that are promoted in school curriculums everywhere. It attempts to flip the script by explaining that young people may have more to teach us about media literacy than we do them. Young people are hungry to explore, understand, and repurpose media to make it relevant to their lives and their understanding of the world. As parents, teachers, community workers, and allies, we need to change the way we approach media education by working with young people rather than talking at them.

The first seven chapters lay out the need for a paradigm shift in media literacy and suggest an alternative approach. The next section provides twenty possible activities to facilitate students working together, where the development of student leadership and group cohesion are outcomes as important as the acquisition of key media skills. The final section suggests nine options for long-term culminating projects. Altogether, the handbook provides a complete orientation and practical program for anyone wishing to work with youth to achieve a more comprehensive, active, and socially responsible media literacy