The UNAOC High Level-Group Report recognizes that:
“The constant exposure of populations to media presents an educational challenge, which has increased in the electronic and digital age. Evaluating information sources requires skills and critical thinking and is an educational responsibility the importance of which is often underestimated. Separating fact from opinion, evaluating text and image for bias, and constructing and deconstructing a text based on principles of logic are teachable skills. Media literacy instruction is not widely recognized for its importance as an aspect of civic and peace education and therefore few instructional programs have been developed as part of basic modern education.”
The Report recommends that:
“Media literacy programs should be implemented in schools, particularly at the secondary level, to help develop a discerning and critical approach to news coverage by media consumers and to promote media awareness and development of Internet literacy to combat misperceptions, prejudices and hate speech.”
To that end, among other initiatives, the UNAOC has developed, in partnership with UNESCO, this clearinghouse. Aiming at supporting the global multi-language outreach of information and resources on Media and Information Literacy, providing these resources to educators who can include MIL topics in their formal and informal educational settings.
Registered users to this clearinghouse will be able to upload – in any language – information on MIL resources, organizations and events.