|
|
 Ratings
|
|
|
| Reviewed: |
Jun 19, 2006 by Teacher Education |
| Overview: |
The Center for Media Literacy (CML) is a website with resources provided to
assist children and adults in becoming "media literate". According to the
website, CML is "a nonprofit educational organization
that provides leadership, public education, professional development and
educational resources nationally." CML's focus is to promote and support media
literacy through education, resources and consulting. This extremely rich site
should serve as a starting point for any one interested
in teaching or learning about media literacy. Components of this site include,
but are not limited to, a resource catalog on media literacy materials, an
online reference center of readings on media literacy (including a selected
archive of articles from Media&Values), and Best Practices that showcase
classroom activities that integrate media literacy into the curriculum. The
inclusion of four special projects developed by CML is another valuable feature
of this resource
|
| Learning Goals: |
The Center for Media Literacy (CML) website is intended to put the media
literacy puzzle together by providing a conceptual framework and consistent
definition of media literacy, by focusing on the interrelationships between
teaching and educational resources,
and to provide a chronicle of the
development of media literacy in the United States.Its goal is to provide
resources, training, consulting and tools to assist children and adults to
communicate using all media forms and develop skills to analyze,
evaluate and understand the use of multiple media, i.e. media literacy.
|
| Target Student Population: |
Teacher educators, teacher education students, inservice teachers and students
in preK-12 classrooms
|
| Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills: |
Ability to access the web and navigate a webiste.
|
| Type of Material: |
CML offers a variety of resources and materials for teaching media literacy.
materials include: books, videos, CD-Roms, and curriculum programs. The website
includes links to resources, lesson plans, professional development
opportunities, newsletter, FAQ, and best practices. Consulting and speaking
engagements with national experts are also available.
|
| Recommended Uses: |
This site can be used to provide an overview of media literacy, identify
professional development and consulting resources, and locate sources for
intergrating media literacy into numerous curricular areas.
discriminating users of multimedia.
|
| Technical Requirements: |
Internet access
|
|
|
|
| Strengths: |
Well designed site with access to a wide range of materials. The drop down
menus for identifying resources are easy to use. The site is diverse and
comprehensive in content and has a wide range of audience appeal. Multimedia
Literacy is critical for success in the 21st Century. This website provides an
abundant source of materials to assist in developing skills in media literacy.
|
| Concerns: |
Educational resource links are to information on ordering resources rather than
to the materials themselves. It is also ironic that a site devoted to media
literacy provides almost all information in text rather than by incorporating
media. Prerequisite knowledge of media literacy would be beneficial.
|
|
|
Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool |
Rating:     |
|
| Strengths: |
With such a wide variety of options, the choices that are available provide the
ability to mix and match depending on teacher and/or student and age/ability.
CML founders have a long history with extensive experience in the field of media
and education. As a result, the website and resources have been thoughtfully
and carefully developed. The explanation of media literacy and the MediaLit
framework will be especially valuable for teacher educators.
|
| Concerns: |
Needs evaluation will assist in decision making regarding what tools to use and
how to use them. This is an important step to perform before deciding on
teaching tools to
use.
|
|
|
Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty |
| Rating: |
|
| Strengths: |
Older students and faculty/teachers will find the website and resources easy to
use. The website is well organized and easy to navigate. Resources and materials
are easy to access. All links were operable and there was no excessive clicking
to reach desired items. Drop down menus and a well-developed site map provide
ease of access to all resources on the site.
|
| Concerns: |
Website and materials are more appropriate for older learner and/or faculty and
teachers.
|
|
|
| Other Issues and Comments: |
Media literacy has never been so critical as it is in today's high technology
world. It is imperative that students in develop skills to better evaluate
images, words and sounds and use them effectively.
|
|
