The Instructional Implications of a Critical Media Literacy Framework and Podcasts in a Social Justice Classroom

• In Event: How Critical Literacies Are Changing in a Post-Pandemic World

Abstract

This study explored instructional implications of a Critical Media Literacy Framework for podcasts in a Social Justice Classroom. In a post-Covid educational space, teachers are transitioning from fully-digital spaces to in-person learning, and are continually faced with a multitude of media-based texts to design and mediate classroom learning experiences. Due to the prevalence and importance of media in students' lives as well as concerns over “fake news and alternative facts” (Share, et al., 2019), there is a need for an educational process that helps students view media from a critical stance and encourages students to question the power of the media and its influence over audiences (Kellner & Share, 2007; Share et al., 2019).
Critical literacy and Critical Media Literacy (CML) guided this research. Engaging in critical media literacy practices is more complex than simply debunking fake news; instead, students examine multiple texts, evaluate different perspectives, and integrate their understanding of these sources to cross reference and evaluate findings (Share et al., 2019).
The purpose of this study was twofold; we wanted to understand how students perceived podcasts when compared to other media texts used in the classroom, and how students responded to podcasts when analyzed through a critical media literacy framework (Kellner & Share, 2019). This 10-week action research study was implemented in a high-school-level Intro to Social Justice course (n=eight 16-18-year-olds) taught synchronously on Zoom due to COVID-19 restrictions. Students engaged in a weekly podcast-based lesson activity, where they selected a podcast episode to use as a supplemental course text that was related to the current classroom topic of study (two episodes per unit topic).
The study included multiple measures of data collection and polyangulation to create a more holistic picture of students’ experiences and perceptions throughout the inquiry and to account for bias, cross-check accuracy, and establish accurate research findings (Mertler, 2020; Mills, 2018) through pre- and post-study questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, and student artifacts (Gill, 2022). Data analysis included first-cycle In Vivo Coding, and second-cycle Pattern Coding. This process allowed us to elevate student voices and experiences and organize findings into meaningful researcher-created themes (Miles et al., 2020; Saldaña, 2016). In keeping with our CML theoretical framework, we needed to understand the ways in which the students were taking up the features outlined in Kellner and Share’s (2019) Critical Media Literacy Framework. Therefore, data analysis centered around coding for how the students were responding to podcast content when framed in critical media literacy practices.
The findings of this study indicate that students perceived podcasts as engaging classroom texts and ways to access multiple perspectives, a characteristic that they noted was missing from other media texts. These findings are of particular value to educators looking to understand the classroom implications of critical media literacy practices and want to make room in their classrooms for multiple perspectives. By engaging in critical media literacy practices, student voices were elevated, students questioned the role of texts in their understanding of the world around them, and showed signs of critical consumption.

Authors

• Anne Gill, West Chester University of Pennsylvania

• Olivia G. Stewart, St. John's University