Quarter: 1 Week: 2

Knowledge: (Engage, Explore, Explain) Remember, Understand

Identify and recall the similarities, and differences between and among media literacy, information literacy, and technology literacy;

Skills: (Elaborate) Apply, Analyze

Break down information of media literacy, information literacy, and technology literacy;

Values/Attitude: (Evaluate) Evaluate, Create

Evaluate the information, ideas, situations, and technology.

Guide Questions:

Can you identify media literacy, information literacy, and technology literacy?

Guide Question or Statement:

Readings/Discussions:

Directions. Engage in recognizing and recalling facts. Please read the selection and abstract of the article.

Media Literacy and Information Literacy: Similarities and Differences

Alice Lee and Clement So

In knowledge society, there is currently a call for cultivating a combination of media literacy and information literacy. This, however, requires cooperation from these two separate fields of study, and uncertainty regarding their boundaries hinders a smooth merger. It is unclear whether they are subsets of each other or separate entities. In this study, we have explored the relationship between these two fields by empirically mapping out their territories and discussing their similarities and differences. We have made use of the Web of Science database to delineate the content and boundary of these two fields. Our findings from 1956 to 2012 show that the two fields have different authors, university affiliations, and journals; they also differ in terms of academic origin, scope, and social concern. Information literacy has a closer tie to library science, while media literacy is more related to media content, media industry, and social effects. Due to their different academic orientations, the two fields adopt different analytical approaches. We have found that media literacy is not a subset of information literacy as some scholars have suggested, although the two fields have similarities. They share the same goal, and their publications overlap in terms of subject areas, countries of origin, and titles. The two fields could find common ground by cooperating together to contribute to the promotion of new literacy in knowledge societies.

However, Technology Literacy helps one to communicate, solve problems, and enhance life-long learning skills for future progress. Technology Skills: Technology skills are gadgets and computer skills that one must possess to utilize technology effectively in any academic or non-academic setting.

Disclaimer: The statements stated above are borrowed from the online sources. The Department of Education does not claim or own the presented statements. Links for the sources are found in the reference part of the Self-Learning Home Task (SLHT).

Activity:

1. Do you have specific examples to recall the similarities and differences between and among media literacy, information literacy, and technology

Analysis:

1. Based on the presented article, what are the similarities, and differences between media, information, and technology literacies?

Abstraction:

How are media literacy, information literacy, and technology literacy applicable to education?

Applications:

Exercise 1

Writing Sentences. Directions. Write down 2 statements for similarities and 3 sentences for differences between and among media literacy, information literacy, and technology literacy. Write down your answers on a 1/4 size of intermediate paper.

Disclaimer: The statements stated above are borrowed from the online sources. The Department of Education does not claim or own the presented statements. Links for the sources are found in the reference part of the Self-Learning Home Task (SLHT).

Directions. Explore the similarities and differences between media, information, and technology by understanding what the facts mean. Please read the selection below: Similarities and differences

We can compare the two fields in terms of six aspects. The first aspect is their similar patterns of development. The two concepts have developed rather quickly in recent years. This acceleration is most obvious in the 2000s, especially from the year 2005 onwards. In the past two decades, the two fields have been young and upcoming academic areas in the literacy family (Google, 2012). As for affiliated countries, the United States is the most important place for both information literacy and media literacy research. Other countries that are active in both areas include England, Australia, Canada, Spain, China, and South Africa.

The second aspect is their different academic roots. While information literacy emerged from the library and information sciences, media literacy originated from the media, education, and social sciences. The top three journals that carry information literacy publications are library journals, while those carrying media literacy publications are communication and social sciences journals. Media literacy-related journals tend to have higher impact factors, while library journals are either non-Social Sciences Citation Index publications or have lower impact factors.

The third aspect is the difference between constituting members and institutions. Based on the article, in Table 3, of the 48 authors shown on both lists, only one of them is listed in both fields. The top three authors on each list, do not appear at all on the other list. This level of divergence is a good indicator that the two fields are being investigated by two entirely different groups of researchers. The institutional affiliations in Table 4 essentially repeat this finding. Of the 37 universities listed on both lists, most of them do not overlap. Of the 18 media literacy-related universities, 12 are ranked among the top 100 in the 2013 Shanghai Ranking of world universities. Of the 18 information literacy-related universities, the corresponding number is only 5.

The fourth aspect is their overlapping scopes and subject matters. Education is the common bond between the two fields (Table 5). This overlap forms a basis for the proposed integration and cooperation, but each field also has its own emphasis, as can be seen on Page 5 in their major title words. In fact, they also differ in terms of their targets of study. The objects of interest for information literacy scholars are mainly peer-reviewed publications. For media literacy, the attention is focused on mass media and media messages. In recent years, they have both focused on multimedia material and have been associated heavily with information and communication technologies. There is also an overlap between the two fields in terms of subject area. Both literacy concepts guide users to meet their information needs through locating, retrieving, evaluating, using, and communicating media and information. One is more concerned with research skills, while the other is linked with critical analysis of media products (Hobbs, 2010; Lau, 2013).

The fifth aspect is their divergent analytical approaches. Information literacy concentrates on analyzing information (Lau, 2013). Therefore, it mainly focuses on textual analysis and emphasizes the research value of finding the truth in documents. It is concerned with the critical assessment of research-related information quality but it does not examine information audiences and information effects (Lau, 2013). In contrast, media literacy has strong academic roots in media studies and social sciences. It addresses key facets of the mass media phenomena, such as media messages, media industries, media audiences, and media effects (Martens, 2010). Thus, media literacy adopts more analytical approaches. Apart from textual analysis, it also conducts institutional analysis, medium analysis, and audience analysis.

The sixth aspect is their objectives. Information literacy and media literacy have the same objective – training people to access, understand, evaluate, communicate, use, and create media messages and information. Both highlight the importance of the ethical use of information, the critical analysis of content, the use of multimedia platforms, and knowledge production. There is a recent call for information literacy to extend its functions to build citizenship, guarantee the survival of democratic institutions, serve as a vital tool for lifelong learning, and to address the value of relevant information in a commercial world that is driven by a knowledge economy (Bawden, 2001). Media literacy scholars also propose that media literacy should Page 6 contribute to democracy, the knowledge economy, and lifelong learning (Livingstone & al., 2005).

Disclaimer: The statements stated above are borrowed from online sources. The Department of Education does not claim or own the presented statements. Links for the sources are found in the reference part of the Self-Learning Home Task (SLHT).

Exercise 2: Day 2

Enumeration. Directions. Write down your answers on a short-size bond paper or an intermediate paper.

Guide Question. What are the six aspects of Information Literacy and Media Literacy?

Directions. Explain and elaborate on the similarities and differences between Information Literacy and Media Literacy. Please read the article.

Discussion and conclusion

The empirical findings from the Web of Science database show that there are more differences than similarities between the fields of information literacy and media literacy. Information literacy is a much larger field than media literacy. It has a clear but narrow focus on library science and technology. On the other hand, media literacy has a broader scope and is more related to communication, health-related issues, leisure, effects, and culture. It is clear that these fields overlap to some extent, but media literacy is not a subset of information literacy, and information literacy is also not a subcategory of media literacy.

These two fields come from different academic traditions, have different concerns, and play different roles in the process of educating people and raising literacy levels. Information literacy is more related to information storage, processing, and use, while media literacy is concerned more with media content, media industry, and social effects. Despite their differences, however, they have a number of common concerns. Information literacy and media literacy share common goals and future directions. They overlap in the core skills they aim to develop. They both aim at cultivating literate individuals who can make informed judgments regarding the use of information in the digital age. Both emphasize the use of multimedia platforms and knowledge creation. While we recognize their differences, it is not difficult to find that the two fields are, in fact, linked and complementary.

The experts in these two fields should seek to learn from each other and to understand the specifics of the other field. In today’s world, neither information literacy nor media literacy alone is sufficient to equip individuals to deal with the huge volume of media messages and the abundance of information platforms. There is an urgent call to combine these two fields to develop a joint set of media and information literacy competencies needed in the new technological environment. Their integration could certainly facilitate individuals’ participation in the emerging knowledge societies.

Disclaimer: The statements stated above are borrowed from the online sources. The Department of Education does not claim or own the presented statements. Links for the sources are found in the reference part of the Self-Learning Home Task (SLHT).

Exercise 3: Day 3

Essay. Directions. Write an essay elaborating on the similarities and differences between information literacy and media literacy. Please refer to the Exercise 1 Guidelines in Writing. Write down your essay on a short-size bond paper or an intermediate paper.

Suggested title: Similarities and Differences of Information Literacy and Media literacy. Assessment / Application/ Outputs (Please refer to DepEd Order No. 31, s. 2020)

Assessment/Application: Day 4

Multiple Choice. Directions. Evaluate the information, ideas, and situations by answering the guide questions. Choose the letter that corresponds to the right answer. Write down your answers on a short- size bond paper or an intermediate paper.

1. Based on the article, what field of study is more related to social effects?

a. Media literacy

b. Technology literacy

c. Information literacy

2. Based on the reading material, what field of study has a closer tie to library science?

a. Media literacy

b. Technology literacy

c. Information literacy

3. Based on the selection, what field of study enhances a person’s ability to effectively use technology to access, evaluate, integrate, create and communicate information to enhance the learning process through problem-solving and critical thinking ?

a. Media literacy b. Technology literacy c. Information literacy

4. Who mentioned that information literacy concentrates on analyzing information?

a. (Lau, 2013)

c. (Martens, 2010)

b. (Livingstone & al., 2005)

5. Who mentioned that media literacy has strong academic roots in media studies and social sciences?

a. (Lau, 2013) c. (Martens, 2010)

b. (Livingstone & al., 2005)

6. Who mentioned that media literacy scholars also propose that media literacy should contribute to democracy, the knowledge economy, and lifelong learning?

a. (Lau, 2013)

c. (Martens, 2010)

b. (Livingstone & al., 2005)

7. When do people accomplish the objectives of information literacy and media literacy?

a. It is when the individuals are informed to browse, recognize, assess, talk, utilize and create news and comments.

b. It is when people are trained to access, understand, evaluate, communicate, use, and create media messages and information.

c. It is when people are aware to access, analyze, evaluate, communicate, and create media contents and contexts.

d. It is when the people are educated to browse, think, analyze, communicate, and develop media innovations and modalities.

8. When do people give importance to media literacy and information literacy?

a. It is when the individuals justly use messages, critically analyze the idea, justly utilize the media platforms, and knowledge production.

b. It is when people justly identify information, critically analyze the content, justly use the media platforms, and knowledge production.

c. It is when the individuals justly use media, critically analyze the content, justly utilize the media platforms, and knowledge production.

d. It is when the people rightly use information, critically analyze the content, justly utilize the multimedia platforms, and knowledge production.

9. In what particular fields did media literacy originate?

a. It originated from news, politics, and social media.

b. It originated from publications, learning, and career.

c. Media literacy originates from education, politics, business, and employment

d. Media literacy originated from the media, education, and social sciences.

10. Which among the given choices is not stated in the findings?

a. The Web of Science database shows that there are more differences than similarities between the fields of information literacy and media literacy.

b. Information literacy is a much larger field than media literacy.

c. We can compare the two fields in terms of six aspects.

d. a and b.