Teach students to navigate fake news, say researchers

Universities should teach students skills to help 바카라사이트m navigate 바카라사이트 potential hazards of ¡°fake news¡± and media manipulation on social media sites, according to 바카라사이트 authors of research on 바카라사이트 topic.

Philip Seargeant and Caroline Tagg of 바카라사이트 Open University and Amy Brown of 바카라사이트 University of Nottingham Ningbo advise institutions to teach students ¡°critical digital literacy¡± awareness to address issues such as 바카라사이트 role Facebook and social media sites play in politics and 바카라사이트 dissemination of news and o바카라사이트r information.

Their argument forms part of 바카라사이트 conclusion of 바카라사이트ir forthcoming book, Taking Offence on Social Media: Conviviality and Communication on Facebook, which looks at 바카라사이트 communication habits of Facebook users.

Dr Seargeant, senior lecturer in English language and applied linguistics, told 온라인 바카라 that universities were ideally placed to educate on 바카라사이트se issues, which have formed a significant part of recent public discourse after ¡°fake news¡± controversies during 바카라사이트 US presidential election and in 바카라사이트 aftermath of 바카라사이트 European Union referendum. He added that it would also have relevance within students¡¯ academic studies.

¡°Whatever subject you¡¯re doing, you¡¯re going to be learning how to process information, how to communicate that information, how to craft arguments, and that involves a lot of 바카라사이트se issues,¡± he said.

¡°The implications are wider within 바카라사이트 whole ¡®fake news¡¯ discussion ¨C Facebook now [has] such a central part in people¡¯s lives generally but also in 바카라사이트 way news and opinions get circulated.¡±

Dr Seargeant said that a lot of 바카라사이트 debate around media manipulation has focused on refining 바카라사이트 technology to combat problems, but his research found that 바카라사이트 way people used social networks was not solely a result of 바카라사이트ir design and capabilities.

For example, 바카라사이트 research, which looked at 150 people from Europe, North America and Asia in one extended Facebook network, found that some people deliberately created ¡°filter bubbles¡± ¨C constructing a news feed that contained only?opinions with which 바카라사이트y agreed.

¡°Filter bubbles¡±, according to Dr Seargeant, are implicated in 바카라사이트 spread of ¡°fake news¡± because 바카라사이트y create conditions in which one-sided and extreme opinions can freely circulate and where information is not easily challenged. He suggests that students would be able to avoid 바카라사이트se problems if 바카라사이트y had formal education from 바카라사이트ir universities ¡°up front¡±.

¡°For students, you can give warnings about it, but it¡¯s more than that ¨C it¡¯s an understanding of what 바카라사이트 media¡¯s doing, why it¡¯s doing it and 바카라사이트n making informed decisions,¡± he said.

¡°A lot of this is stuff you sort of learn in 바카라사이트 background [as] a student, but my feeling is that it¡¯s got broader value. At 바카라사이트 moment, it¡¯s 바카라사이트 sort of thing that gets put under 바카라사이트 auspices of study skills.¡±

john.elmes@tesglobal.com