assessing media literacy in flanders @mediawijs.be flemish knowledge centre for media literacy...

Assessing media literacy in Flanders @Mediawijs.be

Flemish Knowledge Centre for Media Literacy(Flanders/Belgium)

Katia Segers, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, CEMESO

Established in January 2013Flemish Knowledge Centre for Media Literacy

Consortium partnership of 13 organizationsLeading Flemish media literacy organizationsRelevant research centres linked to different Flemish Universities and University colleges

Media literacy, e-Inclusion and media useUser and policy research

Hosted by iMinds MediaiMinds – Independent research institute / hub FlandersOver 1.000 researchers in 5 overarching departmentsFocus on stimulation of ICT innovation

Founding of Mediawijs.be

Cemeso - Centre for Media and Culture Studies• Vrije Universiteit Brussel

eSocialWork• Katholieke Hogeschool Limburg

ICRI – Interdisciplinary Centre • KU Leuven

ICTO – ICT in Education• Provinciale Hogeschool Limburg

MICT – Media and ICT • Universiteit Gent

MIOS – Media and ICT in Organisations and Society• University of Antwerp

SMIT – Studies on Media, Information and Telecommunications• Vrije Universiteit Brussel

Thomas More• Lessius Mechelen & KH Limburg

Consortium Partners

Central Staff6 Experts in the field of media literacyFormally working for one of the partners

Hosted at iMinds MediaiMinds is the legal entitySupport in terms of infrastructure and servicesConsistent with social impact mission of iMindsForge bridges civil society - research - industryiMinds specialised in multi-stakeholder action

Organisation

Creating added value for civil societyOnline platform as a central point for the sectorAnalysis / exchange of knowledge and good practices Focus on Intermediary role (not public as such)

Encouraging new ways of cooperation Multi-stakeholder processes Multi-stakeholder projectsBridging civil society – private sector – public sector

Vision

•Mediawijs.be wants to enable all citizens - today and tomorrow - to move more consciously, critically and actively within our mediatised society. Mediawijs.be has a coordinating and inspiring role in the field of media literacy. The goal is to strengthen information literacy initiatives by bringing together partners from the professional field, the private sector and the public sector to consult and collaborate. Mediawijs.be plays an active role in vision and policy development with and for the media literacy sector. Through the development of knowledge and practice, mediawijs.be contributes to innovation at the level of content, project formulation and operation.

Mission

Consulting and CoordinationConsulting groups: competencies, copyright, advertising literacy,…

Innovation and SynergyMulti-stakeholder projects

Practices and methodsMonitoring the media literacy field, tutorials, best practices,…

Knowledge acquisition and sharingOnline platform: dossiers, good practices, mapping the sector,

Vision and policy developmentPolicy documents, advice,…

Central Goals

Monitoring instruments

@iMinds & Policy Support Centre Media

1. Participation In Flanders (PaS 2014)3th edition (earlier editions 2003 and 2009)Flemish populationParticipation in culture, sports, youth and mediaQuestions on media use and functional dimension of media literacy (new questions)

2. Media Literacy Field Monitor in 2012 Carried out by Cemeso and HIVA

Financed by ministry of MediaIn 2013 Carried out Cemeso and Mediawijs.be

Financed by Mediawijs.bePart of central working Mediawijs.be

Monitoring instruments

3. DigimeterAnnual survey of media- and ICT access and use1.000 respondents in Flanders – longitudinal panelFinanced by iMinds iLab.o

•4. Media literacy of children and youngsters related to consumption of news

Conducted within the Policy Support Centre for Media (interuniversity consortium)Quantitative and qualitative researchFindings expected end 2014 – beginning 2015

5. EMSOCUser Empowerment in a Social Media Culture (University Consortium)Quantitative researchIWT-SBO

Monitoring instruments

Large-scale study ordered by the Flemish Government, department of Culture, Sports, Youth & Media

Quantitative assessment of “participation” in Flanders

Participation: all the ways in which people take part in various forms of community life, active or passive, online or offline, physical, remote or digital

Consortium:Inter-university (KUL, UGent, UA, VUB, HUB)Over 15 associated research groups (cross-domain)Multi-disciplinary (sociology, pedagogy, law, sports, communication science, economy, …)

1. Participation in Flanders (PaS 2014)

Third wave: (2003 / 2009 /) 2014 (runs full year)

C(omputer) A(ssisted) P(ersonal) I(ntreview)On 4 main topics (Media, Culture, Sports, Youth)+ Sociodemographic information

Representative sample of Flemish populationn= ± 4000Ages 16 ≤ x ≤ 85

Questions on media literacyMedia as 1) industry, 2) news, 3) content, 4) deviceRepertoire and preferencesPassive/active consumption & creationMedia habits and attitudes

1. Participation in Flanders (PaS 2014)

Mapping of the media literacy field in Flanders in order to improve and stimulate partnerships

132 national organisations and 90 local organisations (= 222 actors)

Interactive map on Mediawijs.be

Policy:Support the development of the fieldIdentify gaps

2. Media Literacy Field Monitor

2. Media Literacy Field Monitor

Media literacy field:Very broadDifferent policy fieldsMedia Literacy is not always central in the organisation

Nevertheless, no significant gaps regardingGeographical distributionGoals

2. Media Literacy Field Monitor

2. Media Literacy Field Monitor

However some gaps Particular focus on digital mediaFew attention paid to people with disabilities

Methodologies based on classical methods Training

Especially non-profit organisations are depending on subsidies

one third of the organisations can only count on project subsidies and have no structural public funding

Only 10% are private (and public) companies

Media literacy field in Flanders:Broad network of actorsHighly developed practices and methodologiesMany partnerships

But:Underrepresentation of initiatives for people with disabilities Functional and critical media literacy most attention, less is been done on the creative dimension Need for sharing expertise and joint forces (Mediawijs.be)Need to develop a competency model

2. Media Literacy Field Monitor

Annual survey among 1.000 respondents (Flemish population)

Digital Media access, use and consumption (no traditional media)Longitudinal panel researchAllows mapping ICT and media trends

Media literacyNot part of survey questions yetOngoing negociations with Mediawijs.beNext survey possibility of inclusion of set of questions

Limited set in standard surveyMore extended set in subsequent wave

3. Digimeter

Research commissioned by the Flemish Government to the Policy Support Centre for Media (interuniversity consortium)

Qualitative and quantitative study on media literacy of children and youngsters

Measuring strategic and critical skills and attitudes applied to news media, new media and social media

Motivation: disproportional interest in research on operational and formal skills vs. strategic and critical skills

4. Media Literacy of Children & Youngsters

Test subjects:60 participants (30 boys, 30 girls, 12 groups of 5)4 Focus Groups / age, 3 age groups (9-11, 12-13, 14-16)

MethodsPre-Questionnaire (collectively)

SES, media access, use and preferences

Focus groups (semi- open interview)Based on “Mediawijzer (NL)” competence levels

Card-sorting tasksContent preferences on ≠ media devicesDevice preferences for accessing ≠ information and content

4. Media Literacy in Children & Youngsters

TopicsInternet access and use of (mobile) technologies:

Online / offline strategies for accessing information

Consultation of multiple and/or mixed media sources:balance between written, audio-visual and new mediaunderstanding of content reliability (e.g. editorial >< commercial)

Repertoire and activity:Interest, knowledge and attitudes for ≠ types of contentCommunication, content-sharing and -creation

Monitoring, restrictions and filteringParental mediation related to new(s) media useCritical attitudes and privacy awarenessNews and media education in the classroomAge-appropriate content (e.g. youth news >< regular news)

4. Media Literacy ofChildren & Youngsters

Results (I)Internet and mobile technologies:

9-11: access largely regulated by parents (dissolves afterwards) 12-13: all strategies geared towards increasing online presence14-16: prevalence of mobile technologies and apps“Content is (and should be) free”

Multiple and/or mixed media sources and filtering:12 <… : dominance of new media channels14 < … : constant media-multitasking (in an informal context)9 < 16: reliance on traditional written and audio-visual content for specific activities (e.g. newspaper lying around at breakfast, watching the evening news together with the whole family)Critical attitudes: basic understanding of content reliability, but little differentiation“Loss of privacy is something ominous, but little cause for concern”

4. Media Literacy of Children & Youngsters

Results (II)Repertoire and activity:

11 <… : rapid increase in media repertoire11 <… : constant focus on communication and sharing with peers14 <… : task-oriented selection of ≠ types of content & tools14 <… : high interest for content-sharing, limited for content-creation

Monitoring, limitations and restrictions9-12: parental directives are argued, but followed (no real mediation)13 <… : parental control dilutesNews and media education in class: on right track, but limited

Gender differences are limited(e.g. gaming patterns, preferences for news content,…)

4. Media Literacy of Children & Youngsters

Preliminary conclusions (I):Strategic competences

9-11: patterns of more traditional media use with digital additions12-16: rapid development of complex and varied media repertoire

Critical competences9-13: non-existent < basal realizations14-16: notions < comprehension (with little attention or concern)

Parental control and mediationConcerning news consumption: indispensable impact of parental news consumption habits (especially through classical channels)Concerning general media use: influence of parents on media repertoire and skills is assessed as ‘rather limited’; parental control is generally not regarded as a nuisance (rather as ‘evident’)

Media Literacy of Children & Youngsters

Preliminary conclusions (II):Communication

Emphasis on instant messaging (≠ devices, high frequency)

Simultaneous use of (digital) media (12 <…)Either: intentional (parallel primary & secondary media activities)Or: incidental (quick search or instant communication)

Use of social media (12 <…) From early on (9 < …) starting to go on networks ( >< age limits)Limited number of accounts, focused usage, limited networksLimited use of functionalities, various groups (e.g. for school)

AttitudesReflection on media use: realization of abundance and excess, little concern, little intent for fundamental changePrivacy: notions, no real interest and essentially little concern

Media Literacy of Children & Youngsters

Study of EMSOCUser empowerment in a Social Media Culture (IWT-SBO)Consortium: University of Ghent (UGent), University of Leuven (KUL), University of Brussels (VUB)

Quantitative research with focus on perceptions and experiences related to social media

Survey in May – June 2014

Focus on three aspectsInclusionSocial media literacyOnline privacy

Representative sample of Flemish population2332 participantsAges 16 +

5. EMSOC Survey

8/10 Flemish people have a Facebook accountMore than 50% is concerned about his/her privacyBut only 1/10 read the privacy policy and the Terms and conditions

1/3 of the participants have a Twitter accountOnly 16% of Twitter users are concerned about his/her privacyOnly 8% read the privacy policy and the Terms and conditions

People put more trust in Twitter than Facebook

5. EMSOC

5. EMSOC : 5 FB-profiles and 3 Twitter-profiles

Thank you for your attention!

Contact:

Katia Segers

ksegers@vub.ac.be