Before you read this blog, ask yourself:
- Who made this and for what purposes?
- How might I confirm this info using reliable sources?
- What kinds of actions might I take in response to this?
Like many Americans, I take my responsibility to be an informed citizen seriously. When I go to the ballot box each year, I want to have the background knowledge that I need to inform my choices.
I originally found AllSides back in 2020, because I was trying to make sense of the world and felt like I was not being told the whole story from any one news outlet.
After four years as Director of School Programs at AllSides, my media literacy skills have grown tenfold. I now understand I should be utilizing lateral reading, verifying claims, and considering the author’s motivation. Like many good habits, I keep up with it when I have the time and energy. But when it hasn’t become routine, I’m easily pulled in too many directions, worn down, and distracted — and I don’t always do what I know is best. I know I’m not alone in this.
That is why I am thrilled to share that AllSides is embarking on a new initiative to add a media literacy layer to our balanced information platform, upgrading the AllSides user experience so that it is even better optimized for critical thinking. Teachers in all 50 states already use AllSides tools and services to teach media literacy and current events. Now they will have an even more powerful set of tools that help students easily learn media literacy as part of their news reading habits. For example, did you notice the questions at the top of this blog? It’s foreshadowing what’s to come. The full vision is to connect readers through our deliberative dialogue tools to find deeper understanding through thoughtful conversation.
The best edtech software is co-created with educators. We are partnering with Project Look Sharp, the leader in the field of media literacy for 30 years. Dr. Cyndy Scheibe and Chris Sperry will be helping us run a pilot group of classrooms to test and refine new features as they are released on the AllSides app and web platform. During the pilot, we will gather quantitative and qualitative data to track whether we are measurably improving target democratic dispositions, skills, and knowledge.
We are grateful to be supported by a $500,000 grant from The Andrew Carnegie Foundation, formerly Carnegie Corporation of New York, to invest in media literacy.
“Media literacy is essential to civic participation,” said Ambika Kapur, a program director of education at Carnegie. “In such a polarized information environment, Carnegie is glad to support AllSides’ efforts to help people of all ages develop the skills to engage with news critically and responsibly — an important foundation for a healthy democracy.”
We are also grateful to the Stone Family Foundation for a $50,000 grant, as part of its Critical Thinking and Engaged Citizenry Initiative.
In the face of all of our challenges today, working with the team at AllSides gives me a sense of hope for our future. I hope my children, who are just entering the reading world, can grow up trusting technology will not addict or manipulate them because they will have choices like AllSides delivering the best information that lets them decide for themselves.
Alice Sheehan is the Director of Schools Programs at AllSides. She has a Center bias.
