Teaching Critical Thinking: Media Literacy and Document-Based Historical Inquiry (S1E7)

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Arming students with critical thinking skills is essential in this digital era when screen time dominates and the dissemination of information (and misinformation) is constant. But how, exactly, do we do that?

In this episode of the Educator’s Playbook podcast, host Kimberly McGlonn taps into two experts to help empower K-12 students and educators to discern, analyze, and evaluate content and information in a never-ending news cycle.

She speaks first with Megan Fromm of the National Association for Media Literacy Education, an organization at the forefront of raising awareness about the importance of media literacy. Together, they unravel some of the complexities around teaching students to view the digital landscape through a critical lens until dissecting and discerning the content they encounter becomes reflexive. Then Kimberly is joined by #PennGSE associate professor Abby Reisman, who provides additional insight and effective strategies for instilling these essential skills in students. Abby focuses on document-based historical inquiry, a way of studying history where you look at original documents, like letters, diaries or newspaper articles from the past, to better understand and explore historical events and the people involved in them.

This episode is a deep dive into the intersection of education, critical thinking and the digital world, offering educators tangible strategies and insights to empower the next generation of critical thinkers.

GUESTS:

• Megan Fromm, Education Manager, National Association for Media Literacy Education
• Abby Reisman, Associate Professor, University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education

NEWSLETTER:

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RELATED PLAYBOOKS:

• No. 49: How to make the most of teaching history online
• No. 13: Teaching students to think like historians

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

• National Association for Media Literacy Education (NAMLE)
• News Literacy Project
• Project Look Sharp
• Media Education Lab at the University of Rhode Island
• Stanford History Education Group
• History-Social Science Project at UC Berkeley
• UCLA History-Geography Project, part of the California History Social Science Project

The Educator's Playbook podcast is produced in Philadelphia with partner RADIOKISMET.

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