How to become a media literacy coach

The European MediaCoach Initiative contributed by training media literacy educators across Europe; the process of this initiative is described with details in the book ‘Media Coach- How to become a media literacy coach’.

Nowadays, our exposure to media content is overwhelming. We spend vast swathes of time on our smartphones, tablets, consoles and in front of the television. A deluge of images, sounds, and messages frenetically consumed all too often fail to be meaningful. On the contrary, individuals risk becoming more docile, controlled, and vulnerable to external pressures unless they obtain the adequate competencies to navigate this media storm.

Against this background, media literacy is the key to the empowerment of people to be critical thinkers and engaged citizens.

Citizens must become media literate to be able to participate in every aspect of public life, from social networking, internet research and democratic processes. They must be equipped with the skills to utilise and therefore benefit from media and to do this, people need to acquire new competences beyond that of traditional literacy and critical capacity