Author:
Lesley James, Lesley James
Subject:
Information Science
Material Type:
Unit of Study
Level:
Lower Primary, Upper Primary, Middle School, High School
Tags:
  • digital citizenship
  • digital-citizenship
  • media literacy
  • media-literacy
  • wa-dcml
  • License:
    Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike
    Language:
    English

    Education Standards

    A K-12 Media Literacy & Digital Citizenship Framework

    A K-12 Media Literacy & Digital Citizenship Framework

    Overview

    The goal of this Framework is to organize the complex and interrelated content areas of Media Literacy & Digital Citizenship into manageable chunks. This is just one way to do it since there is no “official” way!

    The Framework project was initiated by the Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction Media Literacy & Digital Citizenship Program in 2022. 

    For more information, contact Program Supervisor, Lesley James, lesley.james@k12.wa.us.

    Overview

    The goal of this Framework is to organize the complex and interrelated content areas of Media Literacy & Digital Citizenship into manageable chunks. This is just one way to do it since there is no “official” way!

    The Framework project was initiated by the Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction Media Literacy & Digital Citizenship Program in 2022 

    For more information, contact Program Supervisor, Lesley James, lesley.james@k12.wa.us

     

    About this Framework

    The original version of the Framework was published October 2022.

    The current version was published August 2023, then updated November 2023.

    There are three components that meet different needs:

    • Collections of instructional resources,* one for Media Literacy, one for Digital Citizenship, on Google Sites. Use this component:

      • If you know what you want to teach and need lessons, activities, videos, etc., to help you do it

    * Please review any instructional resources before using them to make sure they’re appropriate for your students!

     

    • A prototypical Scope & Sequence for Media Literacy & Digital Citizenship in a Google Sheet. Use this component:

      • If you’re not sure what to teach or where to start and want to get an overview of potential learning objectives in a spreadsheet

      • If you want a starting point for creating a Scope & Sequence that meets your needs

     

    • Mind maps of learning objectives on Miro.com (links below). Use this component:

      • If you’re not sure what to teach or where to start and want to get an overview of potential learning objectives in a non-linear graphic

      • If you want to explore what students need to be able to do in order to do other things you want students to be able to do

    Digital Citizenship 

    Media Literacy: Communicate ideas effectively & responsibly

    Media Literacy: Participate in the information ecosystem

    Media Literacy: Investigate the credibility of information sources

    Media Literacy: Make sure information is accurate

    Media Literacy: Search the internet

    Media Literacy: Use others' creative work ethically 

     

    In addition, this slide deck might be a useful starting place for explaining what Media Literacy and Digital Citizenship are to folks who are new to the field. 

     

    How to use the Framework

    This Framework IS NOT PRESCRIPTIVE. 

    You will find other Frameworks that include different learning objectives, that organize them differently, and that use different terminology. This is just one way of organizing things, and we would never claim everyone should do it this way!

    This Framework IS ADAPTIVE.

    Think of the components as Lego bricks that you can put together as the instructions direct—or build your own creation using the bricks you want to keep, discarding the ones you don’t need, and adding bricks from different sets. 

    This Framework IS NOT COMPREHENSIVE.

    We tried to find a balance between bounteous and overwhelming, so we may have left out learning objectives or instructional resources you consider essential. 

    This Framework IS EVOLVING.

    Any resource related to Media Literacy & Digital Citizenship has to be prepared to evolve as new technology comes along and as society changes. Stay tuned for future updates.  


    If you ever start to feel overwhelmed: Don't panic! Just try one thing. 

    Try one thing you feel comfortable with and get even more comfortable with it. Then, when you're ready, try another thing. Don't feel like you have to do everything at once. That one thing you're trying is a great start!