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While the term “boomer” encompasses a wide variety of people of a large age range and with various identities, we acknowledge some commonalities are relevant, such as years people have been out of structured school environments, time spent in professions or households where media use is ubiquitous but not examined, and the challenges faced especially by people who may not be “digital natives” but nonetheless live in media-saturated environments and need diverse competencies. In this strand, we will focus on ways to address the social, cultural, educational, and practical questions we face when understanding the information and media literacies of adults.
This strand contains four sessions. We have planned a summary of research on the MIL attitudes, experiences and needs of adults in Australia, and a presentation about promoting media literacy among older people in Lapland (Finland). We also will celebrate the 40th anniversary of the StoryCenter, a founding organization in the global digital storytelling movement that uses innovative, participatory media methods to support people with a wide range of backgrounds to become digital storytellers and share personal narratives rooted in their own life experiences. We round out the strand with a conversation between two scholars with contrasting views regarding the potentials of MIL to foster or challenge democratic engagement, and nurture or limit critical thinking regarding important contemporary issues in contemporary times.
The purpose of this strand is to bring us together to discuss our interests and to find ways to learn from each other. Through presentations and discussions with the speakers and conference-attendees, you will be invited to reflect on your work. You will consider the motivations, strategies, and activities of local and global colleagues. We raise questions about the nature of knowledge, the skills needed to be media literate; the ways we can support empowering our communities and classrooms in interdisciplinary/ extra-disciplinary settings.
Friday, January 10, 2 pm PST | 5pm EST | 10pm GMT | (on January 11) 3:30am IST - StoryCenter with Janet Ferguson & Walt Jacobs
Friday, January 10, 4pm PST | 7pm EST | (January 11) GMT 0am | 5:30am IST| 10am AEST- Addressing everyday experiences with misinformation with Tanya Notley, Aimee Hourigan & TJ Thomson
Saturday, January 11, 6am PST | 9am EST | 2pm GMT | 7:30pm IST- Promoting Older People’s ML with Päivi Rasi-Heikkinen
Saturday, January 11, 10am PST | 1pm EST | GMT 6pm | IST 11:30pm - MIL for the Current Era with Faith Rogow & Phil Nichols
Strand Facilitator: Dr. Barbara Burke
Barbara is an Associate Professor at the University of Minnesota Morris. Her research explores online community building, and the reciprocal nature of media messages and ideas about identity. She earned her MA in Telecommunication Arts from the University of Michigan, and her MA and PhD in American Studies from Purdue University. In addition to working in mass media, she has taught at Ivy Tech Community College (Indiana), has been a Guest Instructor at the University of Iceland, and a Fulbright Scholar at Vidzeme University of Applied Sciences (Latvia).
STRAND THEMES AND SPEAKERS
STRAND THEMES AND SPEAKERS
Session 1: StoryCenter: 40 Years of ML Work
Session 1: StoryCenter: 40 Years of ML Work
Friday, 10 January, 2 pm PST | 5pm EST | 10pm GMT | (on January 11) 3:30am IST
Storytelling is a tool for preserving memory, writing history, learning, entertaining, organizing, and healing. Digital stories are short, first person video-narratives created by combining recorded voice, still and moving images, and music or other sounds. Digital storytellers are those who have a desire to document life experience, ideas, or feelings through the use of story and digital media. StoryCenter (formerly known as the Center for Digital Storytelling) is a founding organization in the global digital storytelling movement that uses innovative story development practices and participatory media methods to support people with a wide range of backgrounds become digital storytellers and share personal narratives rooted in their own life experiences. In this session, the presenters will discuss StoryCenter’s 40 year history in this movement, and outline future possibilities.
Storytelling is a tool for preserving memory, writing history, learning, entertaining, organizing, and healing. Digital stories are short, first person video-narratives created by combining recorded voice, still and moving images, and music or other sounds. Digital storytellers are those who have a desire to document life experience, ideas, or feelings through the use of story and digital media. StoryCenter (formerly known as the Center for Digital Storytelling) is a founding organization in the global digital storytelling movement that uses innovative story development practices and participatory media methods to support people with a wide range of backgrounds become digital storytellers and share personal narratives rooted in their own life experiences. In this session, the presenters will discuss StoryCenter’s 40 year history in this movement, and outline future possibilities.
Speakers: Janet Ferguson & Walt Jacobs
Janet Ferguson is an independent consultant. Prior to her current role she was the Executive Director of the Lifelong Learning Centre, (LLC) Bermuda College. In addition to providing advisory and consulting support to educational and non-profit organizations she continues to teach, facilitate, and learn. With over 30 years of adult education experience Ferguson designs and hosts strategy development interventions and learning labs in non-profit settings. She is a board member of StoryCenter and fulfills the role of Trustee at the National Museum of Bermuda, where she leads the Education Committee in developing educational initiatives that support the participatory turn and community outreach that is underway.
Walt Jacobs is StoryCenter’s Interim Operational Co-Executive Director, and a member of the Board of Directors. Jacobs also is a Professor of Ethnic Studies at California State University East Bay. From July 2022 through October 2023 he was the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at California State University East Bay. Previously he was the Dean of the College of Social Sciences at San José State University from 2015 through 2022, and Board of Directors member of the Council of Colleges of Arts and Sciences (CCAS), a professional organization for university deans. In May 2022 Jacobs became a Hudson Certified Life/Executive Coach.
Friday, 10 January, 4pm PST | 7pm EST | (January 11) GMT 0am | 5:30am IST| 10am AEST
Misinformation can harm democratic processes, social cohesion and public health outcomes. However, there has been limited research into how adults identify and respond to potentially harmful misinformation they encounter online, or how media literacy interventions can be designed to assist them. Our three-year research project addresses this research gap in the Australian context by partnering with national public cultural institutions.
Our research methods included testing the ability of more than 2000 adults to verify information online and a diary study which documented people’s everyday experiences with misinformation. Our partners are drawing on this research to ensure the adult media literacy learning initiatives they develop are: informed by credible evidence, aligned with people’s interests, and embedded within everyday media activities.
In this interactive presentation/workshop session we will share our research findings and present our evidence-informed, connected learning design workshop process. Participants will share their own research/project experiences and reflect on their own methods to identify misinformation.
Speaker: Tanya Notley, Aimee Hourigan & TJ Thomson
Dr. Tanya Notley (Western Sydney University) is internationally recognized in the field of engaged, practice-based media research, as well as for her work in areas of digital inclusion, media literacy, and human rights media. Tanya has worked extensively with a range of organisations to use media to address inequalities and has led 10 media literacy research projects since 2017, which includes two longitudinal national surveys and collaboration with more than 20 industry partners. Tanya is founding member and served as the Co-Chair of the Australian Media Literacy Alliance 2020-23. In 2024 her research team received the Marieli Rowe Award from the International Council for Media Literacy, which recognizes and supports projects that demonstrate innovative critical thinking and push the media literacy education field forward, by putting ideas into action or connecting people and ideas in new ways.
Dr. Aimee Hourigan is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow within the Institute for Culture and Society at Western Sydney University. Her research explores socioculturally grounded approaches to digital and media literacy development, with a particular emphasis on the experiences of marginalised, vulnerable, or excluded communities. Aimee has extensive experience in stakeholder and industry engagement, having worked in partnership with public cultural institutions and international advocacy bodies in various capacities for the last 10 years.
Dr. TJ Thomson is a senior lecturer in visual communication and digital media at RMIT University. A majority of his research centres on the visual aspects of news and journalism and on the concerns and processes relevant to those who make, edit, and present visual news. He has broader interests in AI and visual culture and often focuses on under-represented identities, attributes, and environments in his research.
Saturday, January 11, 6am PST | 9am EST | 2pm GMT | 7:30pm IST
Finland is considered one of the forerunners in promoting the media literacy of its citizens. However, the exclusionary effects of digitalization are also recognized by researchers and policymakers in Finland and beyond. It is evident that more research, support, and training is needed to help senior citizens navigate and fully benefit from the digitalized society. In this session, based on her recent article, Päivi Rasi-Heikkinen discusses how senior citizens’ media literacy is addressed and promoted in Finland through policy, practice, and research. She also suggests future research and development needs, and solutions to meet them. The session offers the participants opportunities to discuss the applicability of the presented actions and ideas in their own communities.
Speaker: Päivi Rasi-Heikkinen
Päivi Rasi-Heikkinen is Professor of Education, specializing in lifelong learning and various learning environments, at the University of Lapland, Finland. She has 20 years of experience working in and leading research and development projects in the field of media literacy education. She is a leading expert in older people’s media literacy education in Finland and internationally.
Saturday, January 11, 10am PST | 1pm EST | GMT 6pm | IST 11:30pm
The invited guests for this interactive session are: Faith Rogow, the author of Media Literacy for Young Children: Teaching Beyond the Screen Time Debates (NAEYC, 2022), and the creator of numerous discussion guides, lesson plans and documentaries related to teaching media literacy in grades K-16; and Phil Nichols, who publishes scholarship in Post Humanism and Literary Studies (Language Arts, 2017), Assembling “digital literacies” (Media and Communication 2019); and The racializing forces of/in AI educational technologies (Learning, Media, and Technology, 2020).
Our conversation with the speakers and the session audience will address concerns regarding the definitions of MIL, the possible uses/ users of MIL, and the challenges educators, practitioners, and citizens face while obtaining, applying, and teaching relevant skills. In this structured discussion, Rogow and Nichols will also share their evaluations concerning ways current instruction and uses of MIL foster or challenge democratic engagement, and nurture or limit critical thinking regarding important contemporary issues. Your questions and engagement are encouraged.
Speakers: Faith Rogow & Phillip Nichols
Faith Rogow, Ph.D. is an independent scholar, organizer, strategist, curriculum designer, and the Media Literacy Education Maven at InsightersEducation.com, which she founded in 1996 to help people learn from media and one another. She has taught thousands of teachers, students, childcare professionals, media professionals, parents and guardians to understand and harness the power of media.
T. Philip Nichols, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor of Education at Baylor University. He studies how technology conditions the ways we practice, teach, and talk about literacy. He is the author of Building the Innovation School (Teachers College Press, 2022) and co-editor of Literacies for the Platform Society (Routledge, forthcoming).
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