The introduction of media literacy in the primary education curriculum and the following plans for inclusion of the concept in the secondary education were some of the topics elaborated at the conference "Media Literacy in Education", organized by the Macedonian Media Institute and IREX as part of the USAID Media Literacy Project "YouThink".
MIM and IREX have been cooperating with educational institutions in the past three years in purpose of inclusion of media literacy in the formal education. As a result, media literacy became part of the curricula of grades I-IX in 2021, and over 8,000 teachers from all schools in the country were trained how to organize lessons in this part of the curriculum.
The Minister of Education and Science, Vesna Janevska, spoke at the conference and indicated that "media literacy education empowers students to independently make decisions and judgments based on facts. Students acquire skills to critically analyze the content they receive from different sources, to understand it according to the context, to connect it with other information and to be able to assess its quality". According to her, it is important to encourage activities that aim at further improvement of the educational system in the field of media literacy.
The USAID Country representative for the Republic of North Macedonia, Jeri Dible, referred to disinformation as a threat that can undermine trust in institutions and democratic values. "Young people who are media literate have the potential to be more engaged, empathetic and responsible citizens. Let's continue to support the development of these important skills and help young people make a positive impact on their communities and on the future of the country”, Dible said.
Representatives from Bureau for Development of Education, the State Examination Center and the Macedonian Institute for Media presented the activities implemented in the primary education so far. Ayshe Airulai from the Bureau for Development of Education indicated that students develop critical thinking, communication and digital skills in media literacy classes and learn how to use media content responsibly. She emphasized that it is necessary to continuously strengthen the knowledge and skills of teachers, including the preparation of resources for delivery of classes. Macedonian Institute for Media representative, Vesna Nikodinoska, added that manuals for media literacy are being prepared for teachers, which should help them organize classes in efficient manner. She informed that, with the support of the Project, 80 media clubs were established in primary and secondary schools, where students can learn about journalism and create media products.
Beti Lameva from the State Examination Center presented the findings of the national tests of students from 3rd and 5th grades, which indicate that the students should learn how to discern, understand and value media contents, but also to create media messages. "We need to encourage students to think critically, solve problems, apply knowledge in real situations," added Lameva.
The research on the level of media literacy among high school students from 1st and 2nd year was presented by the Director of the Agency for Audio and Audiovisual Media Services, Zoran Trajchevski. According to the findings, students used a moderate level of critical thinking, with many of them being able to identify disinformation, but lacking the skills to verify the origin of the online content; they were also proficient in using digital devices but had a limited understanding of the data privacy and security issues. "There is a need for a more thorough integration of media literacy in the educational system, with a focus on practical skills and critical thinking, teacher training, as well as implementing awareness campaigns," Trajchevski pointed out.
Dejan Dokuzovski, Director of the "YouThink" Project, spoke about the next steps in terms of inclusion of media literacy in secondary education. He emphasized that this will include media literacy in all levels of formal education, taking into account that eight faculties are already developing modules or electives in this area via the activities implemented by IREX and the Institute for Communication Studies.
This Conference is part of the global manifestation of UNESCO Media Literacy Days, which is organized this year under the motto "Media and information literacy for informing in the public interest".