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Description
Development of media literacy (ML) has been set as a priority by the European Union and the institutions in Bulgaria, namely the Ministry of Education and Science (MES) and the Ministry of Culture (MC). A major problem is the lack of common understanding about what media literacy is, how to measure it among Bulgarian school students and how to adapt the lessons to address the identified deficits. In 2020 the Media Literacy Coalition developed an index and a methodology to measure ML skills in school. Both tools were supported by MES and MC and passed an appraisal in schools under the supervision of the two ministries. The measurement methodology can pass to the next stage, that is a national survey of the ML skills that can identify the shortcomings and focus efforts to address them. Based on the preliminary study and the skills set in the index, the project will develop the methodology for teaching ML in the school curricula and training for teachers will be organized. The goal is to let ML skills develop as an integral part of the overall education process regardless of the subject taught. The project will prepare the methodology for teaching media literacy throughout the overall education process, that is regardless of the chosen subjects, based on which at least 200 teachers will be prepared. In the long term the project will contribute to an overall change in the manner of teaching and will boost the ML of high school students, namely the young people who will soon become active members of the society. The project is implemented in partnership with the Centre for Assessment in the Pre-school and School Education with MES. This is the institution, which has the necessary competence and powers to carry out national representative evaluation of the schools across the country. Without its participation MES cannot integrate the findings of the survey in the programmes and strategies for the development of ML.
Summary of project results
The project addresses the problems of measuring the media literacy of students in Bulgaria; the way of teaching media literacy as a horizontal method throughout the whole educational process and the lack of preparation of teachers on using digital and media literacy skills in their work with high school students of different subjects.
A national media literacy survey was conducted among 4,300 students across the country - https://gramoten.li/2021/12/09/%d0%bc%d0%b5%d1%82%d0%be%d0%b4%d0%be%d0%bb%d0%be%d0%b3%d0%b8%d1%8f-%d0%b4%d0%bc%d0%b3-2021/.
As a results, the project promoter developed and piloted a methodology for teaching media literacy in every school subject. The teachers who were trained assessed the methodology as very user-friendly and easy to be applied in any class and subject. A special manual was designed to give them tools to use without the need to call for additional classes and teaching materials.
The Media Literacy Coalition developed an expert team of teachers who designed the methodology and then implemented it themselves and trained their colleagues. 236 teachers from all over the country were trained in the teaching methodology in two online and one face-to-face trainings. All questions regarding the application of the methodology were discussed in a real environment.
Thanks to the training of teachers on the created methodology of digital-media literacy, this tool will be multiplied throughout the country. The main results will be used by the teachers, regardless of the subject they teach, and by the students from the upper course, who will very soon graduate and join to form the Bulgarian society of active citizens.
The Preschool and School Education Assessment Center at the Ministry of Education and Culture is the institution with the authority and competence to conduct the national survey on media literacy among high school students throughout the country. Thanks to their inclusion as a project partner, a nationally representative survey was conducted with a representative sample of all districts and school profiles. Their participation was key to the active and effective involvement of the schools, which cooperated maximally in the implementation of the study.
The project was key to the NGO because it helped to develop a team of highly professional teachers and methodology experts, with whom they will work in the future to train more teachers from all over the country. The coalition was once again recognized by the teachers as an organization that supports them with expertise, knowledge and with ready-made tools for their work. The project prepared a very strong team of teacher-trainers who are yet to organize teacher trainings throughout the country and work to renew and enrich the organisation’s teaching materials.