This article was an excellent follow up to the Freire
reading from last week. It was helpful to see a practical application of the
philosophical view proposed by Freire in Pedagogy
of the Oppressed.
I’ve been a fan of teaching students media literacy since
before I even knew that I wanted to be an English Teacher. For better or for
worse (as a tear rolls down my cheek), books are not where most people today engage
with literature. A vast majority of people consume information through sources
such as videos, ads, online articles, and social media posts. I therefore, have
been of the conviction that as a teacher of literacy, it is my job to present
my students with a variety of forms of literature, especially those with which
they will most likely be engaging.
What I hadn’t considered before reading this article are the
implications that this kind of instruction has on issues related to oppression.
Media of a variety of forms certainly plays a large role in shaping students’
ideas about the world and themselves, but the interaction between the influence
of media and oppression was something I hadn’t considered before. By neglecting
to include media literacy in our instruction, we as teachers are allowing the
power imbalance between media and consumers to persist.
I appreciate that the article made points with specific
regard to a number of different oppressed groups. One point from the article
that I think is important to note is the idea that ignorance perpetuates
oppression, and that by the very nature of being young and impressionable, our
students are an oppressed group. There are indeed many forms of ignorance (and
thus, oppression) that prevail in the presence of media illiteracy, and our
students should be in the practice of combatting that ignorance with critical
thinking. We do them a disservice by not including media literacy in our
curriculum.
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