Further Resources

• For educators
• For parents and communities
• For youth
• Research
• Organizations

For educators

Digital and Media Literacy Fundamentals is a section on MediaSmarts' Web site where the various concepts and competencies that define what it is to be literate in today’s complex media culture are brought together.

MediaSmarts: Lesson Library is an extensive database of more than 200 copyright cleared classroom ready media education lessons and activities.

A Platform for Good is a project of the Family Online Safety Institute designed to help parents, teachers and teens to connect, share and do good online.

Association for Media Literacy: Articles and Reviews is a collection of writings and media education resources on the Association for Media Literacy's Web site.

Kids' Take on Media Teacher/Student Activity Guide is an activity guide designed to help teachers and to encourage students to think critically about the media in their lives. (PDF)

Beyond the Screen is a popular TV show, hosted by John Pungente, which deconstructs films and examines their values.

Project New Media Literacies is a research initiative based at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) whose central goal is to engage educators and learners in today's participatory culture. The site includes several learning tools currently in development.

Spotlight: blogging the field of Digital Media and Learning, hosted by the MacArthur Foundation’s Digital Media and Learning initiative, is a source for insights into the ideas and questions shaping the future of digital media and learning.

CyberWise is digital and media literacy organization with great resources for parents and educators.

The Cinematheque Education Department, with the support of Vancouver Foundation and Simon Fraser University's School of Communication, has developed  free, downloadable PDF lesson plans to document their recently completed Integrated Media Literacy Project.  Developed in partnership with teachers, and test-run in BC classrooms, these resources offer practical techniques and project ideas to develop students' critical thinking skills, using cost-free and easy-to-use Web 2.0 technology in the classroom.  Visit the Integrated Media Literacy Project website at: thecinematheque.ca/education/imlp

For parents and communities

MediaSmarts' Web site provides many resources, background information and practical tips for helping parents manage media in the home.

Be Web Aware is a national, bilingual public education program produced by MediaSmarts. The site focuses on Internet safety to ensure young Canadians benefit from the Internet, while being safe and responsible in their online activities.

A Platform for Good is a project of the Family Online Safety Institute designed to help parents, teachers and teens to connect, share and do good online.

Me, My Kids and the Media: A Workshop for Parents is a workshop that provides parents with practical tips to help their kids become engaged, active and careful media users. (PDF)

Commonsense Media a non-partisan, not-for-profit organization that provides information, tools and an independent forum, so that families can have a choice and a voice about the media they consume.

National Institute on Media and the Family is an independent, non-partisan, non-profit research-based organization on the positive and harmful effects of media on children and families.

New American Dream provides resources and strategies to consume responsibly to protect the environment, enhance quality of life, and promote social justice.

Long Live Kids is a resource created by Concerned Children's Advertisers to help youth develope healthy media habits and life-coping skills.

myprivacymychoicemylife is a Web site hosted by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada that helps kids – and their parents – understand how technology affects their privacy. (PDF)

CyberWise is digital and media literacy organization with great resources for parents and educators.

For youth

MediaSmarts: Educational Games provides interactive modules and educational games for use in the classroom. All resources are accompanied by Teacher's Guides.

A Platform for Good is a project of the Family Online Safety Institute designed to help parents, teachers and teens to connect, share and do good online.

Adbusters is a not-for-profit, reader-supported, magazine concerned about the erosion of our physical and cultural environments by commercial forces.

About-Face promotes positive self-esteem in girls and women through a spirited approach to media education, outreach and activism.

Don't Buy It is a media literacy Web site for young people that encourages users to think critically about media and become smart consumers.

myprivacymychoicemylife is a Web site hosted by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada that helps kids understand how technology affects their privacy.

The Global Kids’ Digital Media Initiative (DMI) is a series of interrelated programs designed to support teens to think critically about the role of digital media in their lives and document their experiences in various media.  The blog collects materials both about and from the DMI.

Teach Parents Tech is a site made by Google that allows youth to select a number of simple tech support videos to answer questions that they get from adults.

Research

Young Canadians in a Wired World is a research project by Media Awareness Network that investigates and outlines the behaviours and attitudes of Canadian children with respect to their use of the Internet.

Kids' Take on Media is a national survey by the Canadian Teachers' Federation on the topic of Canadian children and their media habits. (PDF)

Commercialism in Canadian Schools is a national report by the Canadian Teachers' Federation on the commercialism in Canadian schools.

Media and health studies conducted through the Kaiser Family Foundation investigate a variety of issues related to children’s media use.

Pew Internet & American Life Project explores the impact of the Internet on children, families, communities, the work place, schools, health care and civic/political life.

Organizations

MediaSmarts is a Canadian not-for-profit centre for digital and media literacy. Its vision is that young people have the critical thinking skills to engage with media as active and informed digital citizens. 

Association for Media Literacy (AML) is a voluntary, non-profit organization dedicated to promoting media education as a means of understanding the influence of the media, and the impact of rapidly evolving technology, on our culture.

Canadian Association of Media Education Organizations (CAMEO) is an association of Canadian media literacy groups from across Canada.

Conseil pédagogique interdisciplinaire du Québec (CPIQ) promotes and supports media education with Quebec teachers and encourages media literacy skills in students. Each year, CPIQ hosts la Quinzaine éducation-médias in 3000 Quebec schools. - French only

Concerned Children's Advertisers (CCA) produces and delivers social messaging campaigns on issues of challenge in children's lives.

Alberta Association for Media Awareness (AAMA) a non-profit association dedicated to providing education, information and leadership in promoting and improving mass media awareness and mass media education across Alberta.

CITIZENshift is online media for social change, an initiative of the National Film Board of Canada.

Safe Online Outreach Society's purpose is to educate the public about exploitation on the Internet by doing research, creating materials and delivering presentations and workshops.

Digital Natives is an interdisciplinary collaboration between the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School and the Research Center for Information Law at the University of St. Gallen that focuses on the key legal, social, and political implications of a generation "born digital".

The Geena Davis Institute on Gender in the Media focuses on getting more females and more varied portrayals of both female and male characters into movies, TV and other media aimed at kids 11 and under.  The Institute is a resource for the entertainment industry, the next generation of content-creators, and the public.

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