Think Critically
Where do you get your information from? How do you know that you can trust it? These are important questions that need to be asked as we live not only in the middle of a pandemic—but an infodemic, too. Media coverage of COVID-19 can be overwhelming. Navigate the online world of news like a scientist by learning to spot bad or misleading information and find your way to good information you can trust. Understand the differences between misinformation and disinformation. Find out why believing the wrong thing can be harmful.
Strand : Media Literacy
| 1.2 | Use overt and implied messages to draw inferences and construct meaning in media texts. |
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| 1.3 | Express opinions about ideas, issues, and/or experiences presented in media texts, and give evidence from the texts to support their opinions. |
| 1.5 | Identify whose point of view is presented or reflected in a media text, ask questions to identify missing or alternative points of view, and, where appropriate, suggest how a more balanced view might be represented. |
| 4.1 | Identify, with some support and direction, what strategies they found most helpful in making sense of and creating media texts, and explain how these and other strategies can help them improve as media viewers/listeners/producers. |
Strand : Media Literacy
| 1.2 | Interpret media texts, using overt and implied messages as evidence for their interpretations. |
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| 1.3 | Evaluate the effectiveness of the presentation and treatment of ideas, information, themes, opinions, issues, and/or experiences in media text. |
| 1.5 | Identify whose point of view is presented in a media text, identify missing or alternative points of view, and, where appropriate, determine whether the chosen view achieves a particular goal. |
| 4.1 | Identify what strategies they found most helpful in making sense of and creating media texts, and explain how these and other strategies can help them improve as media viewers/ listeners/producers. |
Strand : Media Literacy
| 1.2 | Interpret increasingly complex or difficult media texts, using overt and implied messages as evidence for their interpretations. |
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| 1.3 | Evaluate the effectiveness of the presentation and treatment of ideas, information, themes, opinions, issues, and/or experiences in media texts. |
| 1.5 | Demonstrate understanding that different media texts reflect different points of view. |
| 4.1 | Identify what strategies they found most helpful in making sense of and creating media texts, and explain how these and other strategies can help them improve as media viewers/ listeners/producers. |
Strand : Media Literacy
| 1.2 | Interpret increasingly complex or difficult media texts, using overt and implied messages as evidence for their interpretations. |
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| 1.3 | Evaluate the effectiveness of the presentation and treatment of ideas, information, themes, opinions, issues, and/or experiences in media texts. |
| 1.5 | Demonstrate understanding that different media texts reflect different points of view and that some texts reflect multiple points of view. |
| 4.1 | Identify what strategies they found most helpful in making sense of and creating media texts, and explain how these and other strategies can help them improve as media viewers/listeners/producers. |
Strand : Media Studies
| 1.2 | Interpret simple and complex media texts, identifying and explaining the overt and implied messages they convey. |
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| 1.3 | Evaluate how effectively information, ideas, issues, and opinions are communicated in both simple and complex media texts and decide whether the texts achieve their intended purpose. |
| 1.5 | Identify the perspectives and/or biases evident in both simple and complex media texts and comment on any questions they may raise about beliefs, values, and identity. |
| 4.1 | Describe several different strategies they used in interpreting and creating media texts, explain which ones they found most helpful, and identify several specific steps they can take to improve as media interpreters and producers. |
Strand : Media Studies
| 1.2 | Interpret simple media texts and some teacher-selected complex media texts, identifying some of the overt and implied messages they convey. |
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| 1.3 | Evaluate how effectively information and ideas are communicated in simple media texts and some teacher-selected complex media texts, and decide whether the texts achieve their intended purpose. |
| 1.5 | Identify the perspectives and/or biases evident in a few simple media texts and teacher-selected complex media texts and comment on any questions they may raise about beliefs, values, and identity. |
| 4.1 | Describe a few different strategies they used in interpreting and creating media texts and explain how these and other strategies can help them improve as media interpreters and producers. |
Strand : Media Studies
| 1.2 | Interpret media texts, including increasingly complex texts, identifying and explaining the overt and implied messages they convey. |
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| 1.3 | Evaluate how effectively information, ideas, issues, and opinions, are communicated in media texts, including increasingly complex texts, and decide whether the texts achieve their intended purpose. |
| 1.5 | Identify the perspectives and/or biases evident in media texts, including increasingly complex texts, and comment on any questions they may raise about beliefs, values, identity, and power. |
| 4.1 | Describe a variety of strategies they used in interpreting and creating media texts, explain which ones they found most helpful, and identify appropriate steps they can take to improve as media interpreters and producers. |
Strand : Media Studies
| 1.2 | Interpret simple and complex media texts, identifying and explaining the overt and implied messages they convey. |
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| 1.3 | Evaluate how effectively information, ideas, issues, and opinions are communicated in both simple and complex media texts and decide whether the texts achieve their intended purpose. |
| 1.5 | Identify the perspectives and/or biases evident in both simple and complex media texts and comment on any questions they may raise about beliefs, values, identity, and power. |
| 4.1 | Describe several different strategies they used in interpreting and creating media texts, explain which ones they found most helpful, and identify several specific steps they can take to improve as media interpreters and producers. |
Strand : Media Studies
| 1.2 | Interpret media texts, including increasingly complex or difficult texts, identifying and explaining the overt and implied messages they convey. |
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| 1.3 | Evaluate how effectively information, ideas, themes, issues, and opinions are communicated in media texts, including increasingly complex or difficult texts, and decide whether the texts achieve their intended purpose. |
| 1.5 | Identify the perspectives and/or biases evident in media texts, including increasingly complex or difficult texts, and comment on any questions they may raise about beliefs, values, identity, and power. |
| 4.1 | Explain which of a variety of strategies they found most helpful in interpreting and creating media texts, then evaluate their strengths and weaknesses as media interpreters and producers to help identify the steps they can take to improve their skills. |
Strand : Media Studies
| 1.2 | Interpret media texts, including increasingly complex texts, identifying and explaining the overt and implied messages they convey. |
|---|---|
| 1.3 | Evaluate how effectively information, ideas, issues, and opinions are communicated in media texts, including increasingly complex texts, and decide whether the texts achieve their intended purpose. |
| 1.5 | Identify the perspectives and/or biases evident in media texts, including increasingly complex texts, and comment on any questions they may raise about beliefs, values, identity, and power. |
| 4.1 | Describe a variety of strategies they used in interpreting and creating media texts, explain which ones they found most helpful, and identify appropriate steps they can take to improve as media interpreters and producers. |
Strand : Media Studies
| 1.2 | Interpret simple and complex media texts, identifying and explaining the overt and implied messages they convey. |
|---|---|
| 1.3 | Evaluate how effectively information, ideas, issues, and opinions are communicated in both simple and complex media texts and decide whether the texts achieve their intended purpose. |
| 1.5 | Identify the perspectives and/or biases evident in both simple and complex media texts, and comment on any questions they may raise about beliefs, values, and identity. |
| 4.1 | Describe several different strategies they used in interpreting and creating media texts, explain which ones they found most helpful, and identify several specific steps they can take to improve as media interpreters and producers. |
Strand : Understanding and Interpreting Media Texts
| 1.2 | Identify and explain the messages in and meanings of media texts. |
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| 2.2 | Analyse how the language, tone, and point of view used in media texts work to influence the interpretation of messages. |
| Strand : Media and Society | |
| 1.3 | Analyse the representation of behaviours and attitudes in media texts and comment on how they influence the behaviours and attitudes of the audience. |
| 2.5 | Explain how people use media and communication technologies in their personal and working lives and identify some of the effects of those technologies. |
| Strand : The Media Industry | |
| 1.2 | Identify some of the ways in which the delivery of content to audiences has changed as a result of new technologies and describe the effects of those changes. |
| Strand : Producing and Reflecting On Media Texts | |
| 3.2 | Reflect on the strategies they used to evaluate media representation. |
Strand : Media Studies
| 1.2 | Interpret media texts, including complex or challenging texts, identifying and explaining with increasing insight the overt and implied messages they convey. |
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| 1.3 | Evaluate how effectively information, ideas, themes, issues, and opinions are communicated in media texts, including complex and challenging texts, and decide whether the texts achieve their intended purpose. |
| 1.5 | Identify and analyse the perspectives and/or biases evident in texts, including complex and challenging texts, commenting with understanding and increasing insight on any questions they may raise about beliefs, values, identity, and power. |
| 4.1 | Demonstrate insight into their strengths and weaknesses as media interpreters and producers, and practise the strategies they found most helpful when interpreting and creating particularly complex media texts to improve their skills. |
Strand : Media Studies
| 1.2 | Interpret media texts, including increasingly complex or difficult texts, identifying and explaining the overt and implied messages they convey. |
|---|---|
| 1.3 | Evaluate how effectively information, ideas, themes, issues, and opinions are communicated in media texts, including increasingly complex or difficult texts, and decide whether the texts achieve their intended purpose. |
| 1.5 | Identify the perspectives and/or biases evident in media texts, including increasingly complex or difficult texts, and comment on any questions they may raise about beliefs, values, identity, and power. |
| 4.1 | Explain which of a variety of strategies they found most helpful in interpreting and creating media texts, then evaluate their strengths and weaknesses as media interpreters and producers to help identify the steps they can take to improve their skills. |
Strand : Media Studies
| 1.2 | Interpret media texts, including increasingly complex texts, identifying and explaining the overt and implied messages they convey. |
|---|---|
| 1.3 | Evaluate how effectively information, ideas, issues, and opinions are communicated in media texts, including increasingly complex texts, and decide whether the texts achieve their intended purpose. |
| 1.5 | Identify the perspectives and/or biases evident in media texts, including increasingly complex texts, and comment on any questions they may raise about beliefs, values, identity, and power. |
| 4.1 | Describe a variety of strategies they used in interpreting and creating media texts, explain which ones they found most helpful, and identify appropriate steps they can take to improve as media interpreters and producers. |
Field Guide to Fake News
Misinformation? Disinformation? Conspiracy theory? Get tips to help identify different types of bad information. Learn when to trust something—and when to be sceptical.
Navigating an Infodemic
The facts may not always be enough. Find out how and why our personal worldviews can get in the way of seeing information clearly—especially in times of uncertainty, like in a pandemic.
Train Your Brain to SIFT
News stories are shared online many times each day. How do you know if a story is trustworthy? Use the SIFT method: Stop. Investigate the source. Find trusted coverage. Trace the information back to the original.
Learn more and try your SIFT skills here!
This project has been made possible in part by the Government of Canada.