Cell Phones, Social Media, and Student Well-Being
Cell phone and social media use have shifted rapidly in the last few years, raising urgent questions about school cell-phone bans, cyberbullying, psychological impacts, and academic performance.This webinar reframes the conversation through a digital empathy lens, blending media literacy practices with trauma-informed approaches that support student wellness and mental well-being. We’ll explore…
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Vibe Coding with AI
As AI tools make it possible to create apps, games, and interactive experiences without ever writing a line of code, a new practice called “vibe coding” is raising big questions for educators, technologists, and learners alike. Popularized by New York Times tech columnist Kevin Roose, vibe coding invites anyone with an idea to build software by describing it in plain language, but it also stirs…
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Favorite Podcast Share Out
What are your favorite podcasts and who are your favorite podcasters? How do you share these with others? Finding, sharing, and filtering high quality podcasts is a valuable activity, especially when we engage in this process with others who share common interests like “media literacy.” But it can also be inspiring and invigorating to share favorite podcasts about our personal hobbies and niche…
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The Cure That Endures
Renee Hobbs addresses the South American Business Forum in Buenos Aires, Argentina In today’s media-saturated world, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed, misled, or emotionally drained. With AI-generated content, influencer marketing, and algorithmic persuasion shaping our daily experiences, many of us struggle with confusion, cynicism, and disconnection. In this compelling keynote, media literacy…
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Searching With AI
With AI chatbots like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude reshaping how people search for information, traditional search engines like Google face new competition—and new scrutiny. But as more users turn to generative AI for answers, critical questions arise: How reliable are these AI "searches"? What happens when algorithms hallucinate facts, reflect hidden biases, or omit information entirely? Join the…
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Media Literacy in Massachusetts: A Landscape Scan
Many educators believe that Massachusetts could be a national leader in K-12 media literacy education. In interviews, educators shared the sentiment that leadership from DESE, superintendents, and community leaders are all essential. But mandates without funding are not effective and need to be accompanied by funding, guidance, and incentives. One teacher shared her perspective that “even with…
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Media Literacy in Action, 2nd edition 2025
The blurring of entertainment, information, and persuasion is reshaping work, life, and citizenship. As a result, our relationship to media has never been so important nor so complex. By asking critical questions about what they watch, listen to, read, and use, students can be better prepared to be responsible communicators who can use a variety of formats and genres for self-expression and…
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The Routledge Handbook of Media Education Futures Post-Pandemic.
Our team from the Media Education Lab is proud to announce the publication of The Routledge Handbook of Media Education Futures Post-Pandemic.This handbook showcases how educators and practitioners around the world adapted their routine media…
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Teachers Guide, Media Literacy in Action
 This Teacher’s Guide will help you get the most out of the new textbook by Renee Hobbs, as it offers practical guidance on using this textbook in the classroom. Whether you are an experienced teacher or teaching media literacy for the first time, this guide…
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Set Your Motivation
The Digital Learning Horoscope is a 48-item Likert scale instrument that assesses teachers’ perception of the value and relevance of six conceptual themes, namely: attitudes toward technology tools, genres and formats; message content and quality; community connectedness; texts and audiences; media systems; and learner-centered focus. …
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Internet: Indispensable or Evil?
OverviewIn these four lessons, students use the episode Adam Ruins the Internet (Season 2, Episode 12) as a starting point to discuss the role of the Internet in modern culture and learn about media policies that shape people’s online…
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All About Media
It's never too early to be smart about media!Give emerging readers the tools to learn about media, evaluate it, and understand it. Readers will learn essential critical thinking concepts along with important topics such as understanding how to find sources and how to properly source, privacy and Internet safety, evaluating ads and news reports, and determining the differences between facts,…
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