Improving student motivation and media literacy — my conversation with Rae Hughart for the Teach Better Talk podcast is out now!
Literacy isn’t just about reading and writing — it’s also about speaking, listening and viewing
I had the best time speaking with my fellow educator Rae Hughart for the Teach Better Talk podcast. She and I are both passionate about ensuring that the next generation has what they need to meaningfully and thoughtfully engage with the media landscape we’re all swimming in. The key is to stay curious and be lifelong learners! I felt so energized and inspired after this conversation. Here are some highlights:
Literacy is empowerment
Literacy isn’t just about reading and writing — it’s also about speaking, listening and viewing. And improving literacy isn’t just about building these skills for their own sake — it’s about increasing our agency across the board.
Literacy helps us go from passive reading and scrolling to active learning and growing.
We can remove barriers to student motivation
As teachers, Rae and I know that all children have different learning styles.
We shouldn’t be afraid to ask our students directly about what gets in the way of their motivation to learn. Children might not have thought about it before, possibly because they might feel shame around the learning challenges they’ve faced. By starting a conversation with them, we can slowly start to figure out how to remove barriers to motivation together. You’ll never find out if you don’t ask!
We also shouldn’t be afraid to ask kids directly about what does inspire and motivate them to learn. It can be a lot of fun to ask yourself, “why do I find this interesting?” and “what is it about this that I find striking?”
A student might have a particular person in their life, a celebrity, or even a fictional character whom they look up to. Perhaps they’ve had a unique experience and the memory of it motivates them to learn and improve.
Teachers and parents can start open and honest conversations with their kids to figure out how to stay motivated to learn, and even become lifelong learners!
Media literacy for children is about active reading and viewing, critical thinking, and empathy
Once, when my daughter was little and we were watching TV together as a family, she turned to me and asked, “why do cleaning commercials only ever show women cleaning?”
This is what media literacy can look like for children: asking questions, being curious, and exploring feelings of empathy while reading, listening and viewing.
We all have to learn how to be better about not mindlessly, passively consuming whatever information is fed to us online, and children specifically need our help learning how to be critical and curious about what they’re reading or viewing. As teachers, parents, and grandparents, we should do what we can to lead by example and empower the children under our care to be critical readers, listeners and viewers, leading with curiosity and empathy.
If you’re curious and want to hear more about student motivation and media literacy, head over to Teach Better Talk and listen to the full episode!
