UKLA: Media Literacies Special Interest Group

On Nov 29, the Media Education Conference at the British Film Institute in London included the first workshop of the United Kingdom Literacy Association's new Media Literacies special interest group, with the following outcomes:

The Centre for Excellence in Media Practice presented findings from a pilot study investigating the media literacy of students in the UK with a Media Studies qualification. This research will be submitted to the Journal of Media Literacy Education and, on publication, shared with the SIG.

SIG members, Sonia Livingstone (critical friend) and other interested parties in attendance discussed the future work of the SIG with the following proposals for the group's objectives:

Identify the research and practice of UKLA members that meets the objectives of the UNESCO declaration on media and information literacy;
Connecting media educators with UKLA opportunities such as small grants for classroom research / practice and publishing / presenting outcomes at UKLA conferences / in journals;

Increasing the number of media educators joining UKLA;

Seeking a productive relationship with OFCOM for the furthering of educational / pedagogical media literacy research;

Running an event which brings together literacy specialists in primary education with film and media educators in secondary, further and higher education – to share existing practice in media literacy education and a dialogue between literacy education and media education;

Produce a media literacy education resource for UKLA

Explore the possibilities for a collaboration between MERJ and the UKLA – future special issue / event / subscription deal or other;

Please contact me (julian@cemp.ac.uk) to join the group and / or with other suggestions / ideas on collaborations relating to these objectives.

Thanks
Julian