Learning to comment well, avoid chatter, and identify made-up news and comments — before sharing or forwarding them — is a critical 21st Century literacy skill.
Each week I receive a terrific email on fact checking, sent from the Poynter Institute, an independent group that promotes excellent and innovative journalism in our 21st Century democracy. Poynter’s weekly email message contains all sorts of interesting tidbits, quotes, and information that can help people learn more about information accuracy.
Several weeks ago the Pointer email contained the following quote that can be used as a teaching tool with students in class or with the family discussions around the dinner table.
Quote of the Week (from Poynter)
“People are commenting on comments without even checking out the facts. If somebody says today a frog has eaten a horse, then people will start commenting, ‘oh my God what color was the frog?’ as opposed to actually checking out the fact if the frog had eaten the horse or not.” — Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, Fiji Attorney General
So in today’s always-connected world young people need to develop strong skills that enable them to discern comments that are accurate as well as strengthen their ability to determine whether or not to share or forward content or comments. If you are interested in receiving the weekly electronic mailing check out Poynter’s Fact Checking Page.
Check out some of my pasts blog posts about commenting — still relevant today.
Media! Tech! Parenting! 