Our Goals
Our goal is that Young Adults will be equipped with the skills they need to manage in a media-saturated environment where ‘fake news’ and intentional misinformation is widespread.
We recognise that they need to be able to identify the validity, risks and opportunities of accessing information on the internet, given the ease at which disinformation about civic issues and individuals is allowed to spread and flourish.
Our work is intended to facilitate ‘educational empowerment’ by giving educators and young people the critical thinking and media literacy skills needed to assess the credibility of the information that floods their smartphones, tablets, and computers, despite their appreciation for digital and social media. As a result we hope they will become more responsible citizens and voters and discourse about public issues will be improved.
In terms of products the “No Alternative Facts” project will develop:
- A Situational Analysis Report on how young people experience fake news
- A Train-the-Trainer Format for adult educators including a Trainers Guide
- A Toolbox for Adult Educators
- An Online Gamification Environment
These resources will be available online subject to free registration on the platform. They will be continued to be offered after the end of the project and designed in a way which makes it easy for adult educators to apply “No alternative facts” training in different adult education contexts.
…and the anticipated impact?
For teachers, trainers and educators the impact we aspire to is:
- Greater understanding on the importance of media literacy and critical thinking for active democratic participation;
- Increased awareness of the benefits for raising awareness of critical thinking among young people;
- a greater understanding of intentional misinformation in digital technologies
- how critical thinking skills can be utilised to identify intentional misinformation
- Concrete knowledge, skills and competences for using the interactive game and embedding it effectively in their educational activities;
- Access to innovative training contents and materials;
- Increased network with an international group of trainers.
- Knowledge on and experience with the validation approach LEVEL5 to assess and evidence competence developments that can be transferred to other contexts.
- the development of Adult Educator competences in applying critical thinking skills to identify intentional misinformation in their teaching
- the benefits of strategic partnership for innovation and European cooperation and funding. Impacts on target groups have been measured by getting feedback from users through interviews and surveys.
For the young (disadvantaged) adults - the final beneficiaries - the impact we seek is:
- Increased awareness of the power of the Internet and its influence on political tendencies;
- Improved knowledge to distinguish between real and fake news;
- Improved knowledge to read between the lines;
- Increased competences to manage a media-saturated environment;
- Increased skills to read critically and write in a wide range of message forms;
- Improved learning achievements and personal growth;
- Increased interest in being more active in societyAccess to a challenging and attractive new game;
- Increased self-confidence to engage in social ativities;
- New contacts and network for further support and/or development.
