Media and Information Literacyand Intercultural Dialogue - Nordicom

Sirkku Kotilainen & Annikka SuoninenThe sociocultural aspects shown above include, firstly, the general stage of multipleand personal uses of media – international, as in this research, or morelocal. Regarding the young users in this study, an important stage is the levelof access at home, described here as ‘non-access at home’, ‘access at home’ and‘personal access at home’. The quality of access in this respect leads to differentkinds of possibilities for choosing information sources, meaning-making andactivities in relation to media, i.e. media participation (see also e.g. Carpentier2011). Conducting this kind of audience research locally as well from timeto time is worth considering, as a basis for the development of curricula andother MIL programmes. For example, in Finland the Ministry of Educationand Culture has funded a special Media Barometer Study for Children andYoung People annually since 2010 (English abstract available online at: http://www.mediaeducation.fi/publications/ISBN%20978-952-67693-2-5.pdf ). Mostimportant is that international and national planning officers and organizationsfamiliarize themselves with at least the access rates, differences in media use,etc., as a basis for planning.Additionally, the social and political situation seems to affect the need tocommunicate information among users of media, as has been case in Egypt inthis study (see other examples in e.g. Enghel & Tufte 2011). This has implicationson the resources for implementing MIL, content of MIL and pedagogicprojects, which all are dependent on a country’s peacefulness or its stage ofrecovery from a crisis. In peaceful environments the focus should be on all levels,content, and pedagogic modes of MIL. However, in the case of Egypt afterthe uprising and the evolution of a new democracy, this study suggests that itis important to emphasize media criticism and ethical reflections together withparticipatory activities in relation to media among young people. Moreover,there seems to be a will to develop this area at the University of Cairo, which isinvolved in the international UNESCO-based cooperation.Finally, local and transnational policies either promote or restrict young people’sor any other users’ possibilities to learn media and information literacies,which is the third sociocultural aspect of youth practices in MIL. Peer learningtakes place online, but educational and research policies play important roles inspreading MIL in schools, youth clubs and NGOs and in developing the field ofstudy both locally and globally. Possibilities for young people to learn MIL areat several stages around the globe, and local implementations vary. Resources,materials, curricula, research and teaching are developing in several countries(see e.g. Carlsson et al. 2008). Based on this research, the developmentareas include content and forms of MIL in, and collaboration with actors on,this subject. For example, the need for gender sensitivity should be taken intoaccount in planning content and pedagogic forms of implementation, as wellas in research. Locally, for example, schools could benefit from collaborating159