Promoting Media Literacy and Youth Civic Engagement

This course focuses on ways that civic learning and participation have changed in the digital age, and can be taken for 4 credit units through the University of California Riverside Extension. Next Cohort: February 17, 2020 - March 29,2020.

course duration icon 41 Hours, 40 Minutes
course cost icon Free
course certificate icon Certificate of Course Completion

Participants will learn about the range of civic and digital knowledge, skills, and literacies that are needed to navigate this new landscape.

They will also learn about how to support youth in enacting core participatory practices such as researching issues of concern, determining the accuracy and credibility of information found online, engaging in dialogue on- and offline with people who have multiple perspectives, creating and publishing media, circulating your perspective to a multitude of audiences, and taking informed action. In addition, participants will reflect on how traditional civic learning and media literacy learning experiences must adjust to attend to the complexities of the current political and digital environment, as well as explore the role that educators can play in doing this across content areas and grade levels.

Finally, educators will design a civic media project that they can implement in their own educational setting with their students. The course is designed to draw on cutting edge scholarship as well as practical application to enable students to explore 21st century civic education by learning in a 21st century format.

Participants have the option of enrolling for four credit units through the University of California Riverside Extension. This option will involve a fee of $260 and additional registration through the UCR Extension website. Details will be emailed to all course participants who have enrolled on KQED Teach closer to the course start date.

The course will be led by:

Erica Hodgin, the co-director of the Civic Engagement Research Group at the University of California, Riverside.

Jordan Stewart-Rozema, who provides media literacy professional development at KQED.

Participants will:

  • Explore the role educators can play in promoting media literacy and youth civic engagement

  • Examine the ways in which civic participation has changed in the digital age and how democratic education must also change to attend to these new opportunities and challenges

  • Learn how to use a variety of digital tools and platforms to support youth in researching issues of concern, determining the accuracy and credibility of civic and political information found online, engaging in civic dialogue on- and offline with people who have multiple perspectives, creating and publishing civic media, circulating one’s perspective to a multitude of audiences, and taking informed action

  • Identify avenues in their own teaching and work with youth to implement digital civic learning curricula and programming

  • Engage in the intersection of intellectual rigor, practical application, and action oriented learning

Instructional methods

This course will be taught online in an asynchronous format. Participants will engage with the content, the professor and one another via the following activities:

  • Watching recorded lectures and webcasts

  • Watching various forms of media including examples of classroom practice

  • Reading articles and information

  • Exploring educational resources  

  • Posting responses, reflections, and assignments on the course platform

  • Producing and sharing various media projects

  • Commenting on fellow classmates’ posts

There will be two synchronous virtual meetings that will take place during the course. More details to come. 

  • Week 1: Welcome & Introduction to New Media Literacies
  • Week 1: Assignment
  • Week 2: Investigation and Research — Credibility, Misinformation
  • Week 2: Assignment
  • Week 3: Online Civic Dialogue
  • Week 3: Assignment
  • Week 4: Production and Circulation — Make & Share, Voice
  • Week 4: Assignment
  • Week 5: Taking Informed Action, Mobilizing Others
  • Week 5: Assignment
  • Week 6: Final Project

What is KQED Teach?

We offer a collection of free, hands-on professional learning opportunities focused on Digital Media. Educators can build skills in digital storytelling, data visualization, and critical media use to support all curriculum areas. These skills allow educators to facilitate learning environments where their students can create digital content, develop their communication and technology skills, and engage in deeper learning that encourages critical thinking.

Have a question? email us at teach@kqed.org or check out our FAQ.