In today's world, teens and pre-teens need to be "smart" consumers of media messages and this calls for the support of their teachers, parents and other trusted adults to help them make sense of what they are hearing and seeing. Media influence on young people may be direct and deliberate, such as advertisements that want them to become familiar with a particular brand. Or media influence may be indirect (though often still deliberate) such as sexualized images and content on social media or in the programs they stream, violent imagery on video games or song lyrics that promote substance use.
So how do we, as trusted adults, help young people navigate the media's messages and make accurately informed decisions about their health and well-being? The key is media literacy. Media literacy is the ability to access, analyze and evaluate all forms of media. It encourages critical thinking skills and helps students to evaluate the quality, quantity and underlying messages in the media they consume. In July of 2021, Illinois became the first state to require high schools to teach media literacy as a means to help students "develop 21st century skills for inquiry and critical thinking to better navigate the current information landscape." Today, 19 states require some instruction in media literacy, some having requirements all the way from K-12, which makes a great deal of sense. Media literacy should begin when young people begin using devices, including video gaming.
One of the best ways to teach media literacy is to integrate it throughout the curriculum. An area where media literacy instruction is a natural fit is health education. Health teachers can pull countless examples from television programs, music videos, social media and advertisements that message expectations around beauty standards, gender expectations, and social expectations around sex and substance use, and then work with students to critically evaluate them by asking some basic questions:
• Who is behind it?
• What is the motivation and what do they want from you?
• How does it make you feel and is that what they want?
• What messages does it send about what to wear, eat or how to behave?
• Is anyone being left out?
• Who has the power?
Media literacy is not just a skill to be taught at school. Parents should also be partners in this effort by discussing these questions when watching television or listening to music at home. The more consistently young people learn to think about the messages that are coming at them, the more likely they are to apply this lens when coming across new content, including explicit song lyrics, unchecked social media influencers or pornographic content.
The impact of media literacy is beginning to be studied more closely as more and more schools and parents require that students learn and practice it. One example of how we are starting to see the benefits of media literacy is with young women and body image. Recent studies have shown a connection between social media use and low self-esteem and poor body image, impacting all teens, but particularly females.
The good news is that preliminary evidence suggests students who develop strong media literacy skills do develop some protection against social media's potentially negative influences. These early results on the impact of media literacy are promising. Together, let's arm young people with necessary tools, such as media literacy, to combat messages that provide misinformation, or work to erode their self-confidence.
- Katie Gallagher is director of education at Candor Health Education in Hinsdale.
