WhyNewsMatters.org catches up with Poynter’s Wendy Wallace, faculty, grants manager, about the upcoming News Literacy Summit taking place September 14-15, 2014, in Chicago, Illinois.

 

What’s the goal of the Because News Matters news literacy summit?

Wendy Wallace: The News Literacy Summit is a landmark convening to advance the cause of news literacy, teaching young people to think critically about the reliability of the news and information they consume every day.

The goal of the summit is to develop a plan to embed news literacy in the school curriculum or find an even better means to ensure that the best news literacy programs and ideas find the broadest possible audience.

I want young people to grow up knowing how to be informed citizens and why that’s an important life skill.

What are some of the highlights to look forward to?

Wendy Wallace: I’m looking forward to hearing Poynter President Tim Franklin interview a few teenagers about the news, how they know what they know, and why it matters to be smart news and information consumers. I’m eager to expose top education officials from groups like the National Council of Teachers of English and the National Council for the Social Studies to the best ideas in news literacy and explore with them how to incorporate these lessons into the school day.

I want to hear smart people from universities, new media companies and the technology world think out loud about trends in media consumption among young people. We’ll have an unprecedented collection of people and viewpoints on this topic in the room. If even half of them share with the group a single clear thought we haven’t heard before, or an idea or perspective that shapes our work, we’ll have accomplished a great deal.

 

What are the top things you hope participants take away from the event?

Wendy Wallace:We’ll write a white paper the final morning of the summit where we’ll collect our best ideas on five key issues we’ve identified.

Most of all, I want to leave the event with a plan for embedding news and information literacy in school curriculum. But individually, I want participants to leave the summit with new connections.

I want people to meet others and continue those relationships after the summit so that, together, we accomplish more than we could have otherwise.  I want media organizations and news literacy programs to leave with ideas for how to do their important work.

I want educators to be inspired by new ways to teach news and information literacy. And I want the teenagers in the room to feel that their voices were heard and that they were part of creating something that will have an impact on their generation and those that follow.

What are the five key issues?

• What is news literacy and how do we measure it?
• How do we embed news and information literacy in the curriculum, particularly in middle and high school?
• What are best practices in teaching news literacy?
• What role does technology, and disruption, play in news literacy, and how can news organizations and others use technology to ensure that young people receive the credible, reliable information they need to inform their lives?
• How can we gather and share news literacy resources, including lesson plans or curriculum?

For details, .

Who’ll be there?

Wendy Wallace: This will be a robust and productive gathering of about 100 people, including news industry leaders, scholars, education and curriculum experts, news literacy program leaders and young news consumers.

Also attending will be funders who shape and support this important work, including lead funder The Robert R. McCormick Foundation.

Supporting this event with travel grants are the Ford Foundation, MacArthur Foundation and John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

Participants include leaders at the Stony Brook Center for News Literacy, the News Literacy Project, the 2013 Superintendent of the Year, representatives from the National Council of Teachers of English and National Council for the Social Studies, news and media literacy academics and researchers from across the country including the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard, plus the creators of classroom resources at the New York Times, PBS NewsHour and more.

How can those unable to attend in person join the conversation?

Wendy Wallace: Follow along on the hashtag on Twitter. We plan to use it during the summit.  One of our work groups is focusing on creating news literacy resources to share. I hope that we’re able to launch something soon after the summit, even if it’s only the links we gathered to get our participants ready for the event.

Our goal is widespread knowledge and use of news and information literacy tools. So we’ll be sure to share what we can as quickly as possible and to find ways for those interested in news literacy to interact. Columbia Journalism Review and Poynter.org plan coverage after the event.  We’ll produce a video highlight reel, as well.

Thanks Wendy! We look forward to the conference and learning about fresh ideas in news literacy.

 

Categories: Good to Know, News & Updates, Program Updates, Tips for Teachers