The Value Of Being A Media & Information Literate Individual

Media & Information Literacy Recognizes The Primary Role f Media & Information In Our
Everyday Lives.The Purpose Of Information & Media Literate Is To Engage In A Digital
Society; One Needs To Be Able To Use,Understand,Inquire,Create,Communicate And Think
Critically. It Is Important To Have Capacity To Effectively Access,Organize,Evaluate, And
Create Messages In A Variety Of Forms.Information & Media Literacy Enables People To
Interpret And Make Informed Judgement As Users Of Information & Media As Well As To
Become Skillful Creators & Producers Of Information & Media Messages In Their Own Right.

To Become A Media Literate Is Not To Memorize Facts Or Statistics About The Media But
Rather To Learn,To Raise The Right Questions About What You Are Watching,Reading,Or
Listening To And To Be Information Literate A Person Must Be Able To Recognize When
Information Is Needed & Have The Ability To Locate,Evaluate,And Use Effectively The
Needed Information.Students Are No Longer Limited To The Desktop Computer.Students
Use Mobile Technologies To Graph A Mathematical Problem,Research A Question For Social
Studies,Text Message An Expert For Information As Well As Send Homework To A Drop
Box.Media & Information Literacy Therefore Is About Helping Students Become Competent,
Critical, And Literate In All Media Forms So That They Control The Interpretation Of What
They See Or Hear Rather Than Letting The Interpretation Control Them.

http://marielandoy.blogspot.com/

Chapter 1. What Is a Literate Individual?

Being a literate person today means more than being able to read and write. In a world diverse
with cultures, print texts, media, and technologies, a literate person needs to possess certain
specific capabilities.

Let's think about the daily literacy-related practices of a typical adolescent (we'll call him Paul).
Paul wakes up to the sound of his smartphone's alarm. He picks it up and checks the time. Then
he reads and responds to any e-mails and text messages that came in overnight. A game or two
on his screen may tempt him to stay on his phone a bit longer. Paul goes on Facebook, scrolls
through his friends' statuses, "liking" and commenting, and then posts a status of his own.
Instagram is next, where he looks at his friends' pictures, comments, and maybe posts a picture
or two saved on his phone. Then Paul fires up his tablet, drops in on a few different websites, and
scans the day's headlines to catch up on the news and last night's scores.

Both in school and while doing his homework, Paul uses digital tools and devices to complete
assignments. He navigates the Internet to locate reliable websites for information and reads a
diverse variety of online textssome that he finds or chooses himself, and others that are
provided or curated by his teachers. As his teachers require, Paul synthesizes the information he
finds, identifying text-based evidence that he'll go on to cite, and he selects the product format
best suited for his goals (e.g., a multimedia presentation, a short digital movie, a wiki, role-play,
a discussion, an essay). He shares his work with an audience of diverse peers, some of whom are
just learning English, some of whom come from cultural backgrounds very different from his
own, some of whom seem to learn much more easily than he does, and some of whom are
pursuing goals set out for them in individual education plans. Paul and his classmates give
feedback on one another's work and share their takes on classroom content in all kinds of
learning arrangements, from partner work to small groups to the whole class. His after-school
circle is similarly diverseall kinds of kids meeting up in person or online to explore and pursue
expertise in sports, music, gaming, and other areas of interest. Paul's life is all about taking in
information, reflecting on it, sharing it, connecting with others, and communicating about what
he's seen, read, thought about, experienced, and felt.

How does this portrait connect with what it means to be a student who meets rigorous academic
standards and is college and career ready? An expanded overview of the seven capacities of the
literate individual (CLI), paraphrased from their presentation in the Common Core State
Standards (CCSSI, 2015), will shed some light on how Paul exhibits next generation literacy.

1. Literate individuals demonstrate independence with text. They can, independently,

with little guidance from teachers and peers, comprehend varied, complex print and
digital texts, communicate and build on others' ideas, and understand and apply academic
and discipline-specific vocabulary and conventions of English. They know how to use
strategies and employ them when necessary to comprehend texts and apply literacy
knowledge and skills.

2. Literate individuals build strong content knowledge. They acquire and share
knowledge of subject matter through reading, writing, and speaking as well as research
and study. They read and understand discipline-specific texts and become experts in the
content.

3. Literate individuals respond to varying demands of audience, task, purpose, and

discipline. They set and adjust their communication in relation to audience, task,
purpose, and discipline. They understand how words affect meaning in writing and in
 speech, depending on the audience and the purpose, and how different disciplines call for
providing different types of evidence.

4. Literate individuals comprehend as well as critique. They understand and can explain
what writers, speakers, and visual and mixed media creators are saying through their
texts, but they also know how to analyze and examine these texts critically. They question
an author's assumptions and biases and evaluate the veracity and logical reasoning of the
claims.

5. Literate individuals value evidence. They can cite evidence to support their
interpretation of text, both verbally and in writing. They also communicate their
reasoning effectively and know how to evaluate the reasoning and arguments of others.

6. Literate individuals use technology and digital media strategically and capably.
They employ technology thoughtfully and effectively and can determine which media are
best suited for their communication goals. They also synthesize information found
through various media and technologies.

7. Literate individuals come to understand other perspectives and cultures. They

encounter perspectives and ways of life that are different from their own through reading,
writing, and listening, and they are able to work and communicate effectively with peers
of diverse backgrounds. Through reading multicultural literature, they have new
experiences that expand their cultural understanding and sensitivity.

Achieving Next Generation Literacy

by Maureen Connolly and Vicky Giouroukakis

http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/116023/chapters/What-Is-a-Literate-Individual%C2%A2.aspx

The Importance of Being Information Literate

by Brandi Scardilli
Posted On March 1, 2016

In todays world of instant answers from Google, information literacy is a hot topic for
libraries. Credo has been evolving to become a prominent source for guidance in teaching
this important skill. Libraries that sign up with
Credo have access to reference content that serves as a starting point for research, along
with information literacy skills solutions that teach researchers how to interpret what
theyve found in their searches.

Originally called Xrefer, Credo was founded in the U.K. in 1999. Now, with an office each in
Boston and the U.K., it helps colleges, universities, and public libraries around the world
educate their patrons. In late 2015 and early 2016, the company has begun to ramp-up its
content collections, and it most recently announced the re-launch of its Mind Map visual
search tool.

Credos management team takes a long-term view of developing products that support its
mission of building information skills for lifelong learning, says Ian Singer, Credos chief
content officer, who started at the company in August 2015. Its commitment to supporting the
management team around that mission was very appealing to me as a senior executive, he says.
What is also appealing within that is the ownerships commitment of enabling management
to reinvest profit on innovation, which can include partnerships with others, he says. Because
we are not a large, dominant industry player, we do mean something in the library market in a
different way.
http://newsbreaks.infotoday.com/NewsBreaks/The-Importance-of-Being-Information-Literate-
109481.asp

Because being media literate means being able to access, analyze, and evaluate information,
which we receive through media. Being media literate means being able to create media
messages and to use the technology tools available to us. It means being able to think critically
and speak confidently.

Remarks at CML's Friendraising Breakfast, November 14, 2000.

Why is Media Literacy Important? A Personal View

By Tessa Jolls
Looking at this audience full of my friends and of supporters of the Center, and I feel very humble. And
grateful to be here with you, and to know that you are here because you want to see the Center succeed
with our very important mission of spreading the message of media literacy.

I've become impassioned about that mission, to the point where my children are saying, "Oh Mom! All you
can think about is media literacy!" And my friends are rolling their eyes. So in reflecting about what to share
with you today, I decided to step back and ask myself, "Why is media literacy so important to me? Why do I
care so much, and feel so strongly about it?"

Several themes came up for me, that I connect with very deeply.

The first is that I believe in freedom, and my experiences tell me that freedom is fragile, and can come at a
very high price. When I was growing up, the men that I loved were all war veterans and working men. I am
the daughter of a World War II veteran. My father served in the Pacific fleet, and I still remember how he
jumped violently if I touched him as he slept, and how his nightmare cries sometimes woke me up at night.

Second, I believe in equality. I know what it is to feel less than equal because I was born a girl child - and
though I decided long ago that, like the 1950's song said, "I Enjoy Being a Girl," it wasn't always that way.

Third, I believe in taking responsibility. I am a working girl, and always have been, since I was 13 years old,
when I started babysitting for 50 cents per hour. Do some of you remember that pay scale? I've found that
being responsible is a challenge. And yet it's part of life's blessings. It's taking care of ourselves while
extending ourselves toward our family, friends and community.

And finally, I believe in education. Education was my ticket, as I'm sure it was for many of us here today. I
am standing here because I was a full-scholarship student to the University of Illinois in Champaign Urbana.

I've learned that knowledge is power, in the best sense of the word. A number of years ago I helped found
an investor club for a group of women here in Los Angeles. It has been one of the most rewarding
experiences I've ever had. None of us in the investor club had experience in the stock market. But today,
some of these same women are handling their own portfolios, and even the portfolios for their family. And
you've never seen a group more proud of the money we've earned!

Some of my partners are here today, and I can't begin to thank them enough! Girls, I would never have
studied the financial pages alone!

Free Your Mind! Express your View!

So what has all this to do with media literacy? To my way of thinking-everything. Because being media
literate means being able to access, analyze, and evaluate information, which we receive through media.
Being media literate means being able to create media messages and to use the technology tools available
to us. It means being able to think critically and speak confidently.

If we have these media literacy skills, we are able to free our minds. We are able to make our own
judgments and choices. And we are able to express our own views creatively and effectively.

To me, having a media literate society is the essence of having a democratic society and a market-based
economy. It is the essence of having the ability to both enhance and protect our precious freedoms. It
presumes that we, the people, are smart and capable and responsible. It reinforces that expectation that, if
we are responsible, others should exercise responsibility, as well. It assumes that learning is a lifelong
process that doesn't just take place through textbooks or in certain demographic areas.

Media literacy is the gift that I hope we can give ourselves and pass to our children, as they seek to take
their place in our society. My husband Tom and I have two children 13 and 10. As I see them grow and
develop, I feel strongly that media literacy is something they need to live successfully in our world today.
Media literacy is something I want them to have - and that was what drove my decision to first get involved
with the media literacy program Fr. Bill Kerze started at Our Lady of Malibu school, and which ultimately
led to my joining the Center.

I believe that the various career and life experiences I've had have led me to this cause and to this day, and
I sincerely hope that I can contribute my small part to the success of this mission of media literacy. I'm
grateful for this opportunity to be of service. Thank you for your support. And thank you for your
generosity.

http://www.medialit.org/reading-room/why-media-literacy-important-personal-view