The aim of this trainer’s guide is to provide professionals with tools to empower young people to participate in society through media literacy. We need media literacy to critically examine the media, to use them in meaningful ways and to make a social impact through them. Key areas of media literacy include interpreting and evaluating media, producing media and operating in a media environment. Media literacy also includes knowledge of different media phenomena.
The guide will help professionals use the model independently and to guide young people in participatory activities. Young people will acquire the knowledge and skills needed to actively influence and campaign on issues of social importance and contribute to positive change in their communities. The model enables them to work in partnership with non-governmental organisations (NGO), decisionmakers and media.
The model is based both on young people’s autonomy and on the conditions set by the organiser. It is a good idea for the organiser to start by considering the resources available, such as time, money and equipment. Everyone can implement the model on their own terms and adapt it to better suit their own needs. The model does not need to be implemented in isolation from existing work – it can easily be applied to existing activities.
We recommend that you start planning your project by reading the guide in its entirety first. It is a good idea to set aside at least an hour to read it.
