MEDIA LITERACY IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING AT UNIVERSITY LEVEL: NECESSITY OR LUXURY? Robert Helán Language Centre Masaryk University Brno, Czech Republic OUTLINE  Introduction  Defining Media Literacy  Types of Media Messages  Media Literacy and English as a Foreign Language  Approaches to Analyzing Media Texts  General ELT: Advertisements  ESP: Health Fraud  Conclusion LITERACY  In the past – ability to read and write  Today – the skill of understanding, interpreting, and critically evaluating texts  Literacy changes as new technologies emerge  Central problems: - uncritical acceptance of facts/ideas/opinions - interpreting texts as right or wrong instead of being open to interpretation MEDIA IN THE ELT  provide authentic language - use of media sources of written, audio, and visual texts  however, it should also be a tool for learning to interpret multiple layers of messages  awareness of mediated images of people, places, things, ideas, values versus reality WHAT IS MEDIA LITERACY? Silverblatt (2008): 1. Promoting critical thinking skills 2. Understanding the process of mass communication 3. Media impact on the individual and society 4. Strategies for analyzing and discussing media texts 5. Insight into our culture and ourselves 6. Understanding and enjoyment of media content 7. Producing effective, responsible media messages WHAT IS MEDIA LITERACY? Quinlisk (2003):  media messages are constructed representations of reality  individual experiences filter media messages  media messages carry social, political, economic, and aesthetic power  each form of media has its own communicative characteristics WHAT IS MEDIA LITERACY? Hobbs (2011): 1. Media messages are constructed 2. They are produced within economic, social, political, historical, and aesthetic contexts 3. Interpretation – an interaction between the reader, the text, and the culture. 4. There are codes and conventions associated with different genres 5. Media representations impact people’s understanding of and participation in social reality. 6. Media messages reflect and shape individual and social behavior, attitudes, and values. WHAT IS MEDIA LITERACY?  reality is mediated via symbolic representations  media messages arise within specific contexts  they provide insights into our world  they are conveyed through genres  they impact on individual and society. TYPES OF MEDIA MESSAGES 1. manifest messages: overtly expressed, recognizable by the target audience. 2. latent messages: hidden in the media text, being therefore difficult to notice 3. cumulative messages: frequently occurring, add new shades of meaning over a certain period of time, reproducing gender, age, race, and cultural stereotypes MEDIA LITERACY AND EFL Bringing specific issues into focus:  portrayal of people, society, and culture  promoting attitudes and values by specific images  meaning via technical and symbolic features  media influence on opinions of others, world views, social relations, and behaviors  meaning is interpreted through different cultural positions FRAMEWORK FOR ANALYZING MEDIA TEXTS (HOBBS 2011) APPROACHES TO MEDIA LITERACY  PROCESS: the purposes of a media text  FORMULAIC: structure, characters, and plot  HISTORICAL: depiction of events in specific genres  IDEOLOGICAL: reflection of ideologies in media  AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL: individual perceptions  NON-VERBAL: analysis of gestures, visuals, fonts…  OTHER: mythic analysis, industry perspective, analysis of production elements, … DENOTATION AND CONNOTATION  DENOTATION – refers to the literal meaning of a sign. It is the dictionary definition of a word – e.g., snake – “any of numerous scaly, legless, sometimes venomous reptiles”.  CONNOTATION – refers to the associations that are connected to a certain sign such as emotional suggestions related to a word. The connotative meanings of a word exist together with the denotative meanings. E.g., the connotations for snake might include danger or evil. DENOTATION: A BROWN CROSS CONNOTATION: A SYMBOL OF RELIGION, A SYMBOL OF CHRISTIANITY Denotation: where a person lives Connotation: HOME – cozy, loving, comfortable HOUSE – the actual building or structure RESIDENCE – large, cold, no feeling DENOTATION: Blonde Hair CONNOTES: Ideal Woman, Innocence, Looks ‘gold’ DENOTATION : Perfume Bottle CONNOTES : Looks Jewel-like, Buried Treasure DENOTATION : Colour Gold CONNOTES : Luxury, Riches, Expense, Success, Shimmering DENOTATION : Jewellery CONNOTES : Extravagance, Excess, Glamour, Decadence DENOTATION : Word ‘Love’ CONNOTES : Passion, Excitement, Lust DENOTATION : Font CONNOTES : Dior Logo, Brand Name, Designer THE RED FLAGS OF HEALTH FRAUD THE RED FLAGS OF HEALTH FRAUD - fast results and no restrictions on diet, exercise, or lifestyle - easy fixes to obesity or impotence - promises to cure untreatable diseases - expressions connoting mystery, such as hidden ingredients - the use of all natural therefore safe - testimonies from unknown physicians alias actors - product endorsement by sportsmen - the before/after comparison (adjusted with Photoshop) - sense of urgency: limited availability, act now - no-risk guarantee with money back EVIDENCE-BASED SOURCES OF INFORMATION ProCon.org website: http://www.procon.org  addresses selected controversial topics by listing pro- and con-arguments  is based on unbiased and objective sources of scientific information  thus debunks some of the common myths related to the topic CONCLUSION Media literacy approach to EFL teaching:  valuable contribution to classroom practice  reading, writing, and discussion skills  successful language learners are media literate  media representation of people, communities, nations, and races as opposed to reality SOURCES ANDING, R. H. Nutrition Made Clear. The Teaching Company, 2009. HOBBS, R. Digital and Media Literacy. Connecting Culture and Classroom. London: Sage Ltd., 2011. QUINLISK, C. C. Media Literacy in the ESL/EFL Classroom: Reading Images and Cultural Stories. In: Tesol Journal. 2003. SILVERBLATT, A. Genre Studies in Mass Media. A Handbook. New York and London: M. E. Sharpe, 2007. Pros and Cons of Controversial Issues [online]. ProCon.org, Santa Monica [accessed 2013-08-20]. Available from WWW: