Welcome to the MLI Monthly Update!
Have something you want to share with the membership? Tell us about it by emailing us at info@medialiteracyireland.ie. We are particularly interested in including your resources in the Training and Development section of the MLI website.
This Month in Media Literacy
February was a particularly busy month for media literacy as you’ll see from our packed newsletter! Safer Internet Day was celebrated on Tuesday, 11 February, with a very successful flagship event, coordinated by Webwise and supported by the Safer Internet Centre. There were lots of other SID-related initiatives this month, some of which are highlighted below. We also have calls for awards entries, conferences, funding and plenty of dates for your diary. Last, but definitely not least, we are making future plans at MLI, and we want to hear your views. Please take a few minutes and tell us what you think.
Announcements
MLI members survey – have your say!
We are developing our workplan for the next couple of years and we would like to get your feedback about the work we do, how we do it, and suggestions you have for doing it better! Please take five minutes and have your say.
More
New website and educational resources launched by Coimisiún na Meán
Coimisiún na Meán has launched a suite of educational resources called Rights, Rules and Reporting Online on its new website. These resources are designed to help students, teachers and parents/guardians better understand their rights under the Online Safety Framework.
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National Youth Council of Ireland publishes new resources for youth workers
To coincide with Safer Internet Day, the NYCI has published Stay Safe Online: Empowering Young Minds Against Cyberbullying, and has developed a free eLearning course to support youth workers to help keep young people safe online.
More
CyberSafeKids launch Same Rules Apply campaign
To mark Safer Internet Day, CyberSafeKids launched its fourth annual parental awareness campaign, Same Rules Apply, which aims to give parents the confidence to support their children’s online lives more effectively. An updated Digital Parenting Guide was also published, highlighting changes in regulation, AI usage, and mis/dis-information, as well as providing guidance on good digital health practices.
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EU Code of Practice on Disinformation becomes Code of Conduct
On 13 February 2025, the European Commission and the European Board for Digital Services endorsed the integration of the Code of Practice into the framework of the DSA as a Code of Conduct on Disinformation. This integration will make the Code a benchmark for determining platforms’ compliance with the DSA. This is a positive step in the fight against disinformation and towards strengthening media literacy initiatives across a range of platforms.
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The Disinformation Landscape: Youth in Ireland and the EU
European Movement Ireland has published its most recent report, The Disinformation Landscape: Youth in Ireland and the EU, written in the context of increasing far-right attacks on refugees and migrants around Ireland, alongside the persistent display of disinformation across EU members states.
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Call for Entries: Student Media Awards 2025
Entries are now open for ‘the Oscars for Students in Ireland’! These awards are open to students from every college across Ireland, with categories ranging from Collaborative Journalism of the Year, Magazine of the Year, Léiriúcháin Teilifíse i nGaeilge, to Satirical Writer of the Year. The big event will take place on 9 April in the Mansion House in Dublin. The deadline for entries is 12 March.
Enter here
Call for Entries: SID 2025 Awards
Organised by Webwise, the SID Awards 2025 reward primary and secondary students and schools around Ireland who run events, activities and positive actions for Safer Internet Day.
The deadline for entries is 28 March at 5 p.m.
More
Call for Applications: Comenius EduMedia Awards
Comenius EduMedia Awards are calling for applications for their awards taking place on 24 June. These awards recognise and celebrate outstanding ICT-based educational media across all educational fields, content areas, and applications. Award criteria are listed here. The deadline for applications is 31 March.
Apply here
Call for Papers: Teaching with Hope and Love Conference in Galway
Presented in association with the Community Communication and Alternative Media section of IAMCR, this conference on 29–30 May will focus on how teaching and research related to community and alternative media can help tackle the global rise in racism and intolerance. The conference organisers are welcoming proposals in the form of academic papers and presentations on practical interventions.. The deadline for proposals is 15 April.
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Call for Submissions: Electoral Commission’s Education and Public Engagement Strategy
An Coimisiún Toghcháin, Ireland’s independent electoral commission, is preparing a Strategy to try and encourage people to get more involved with our democratic process. To help inform the development of the strategy, it is seeking views from people who work in formal education, adult and community education, and those working with marginalised communities, as well as the general public. The deadline for submissions is 24 March at 11:59 p.m.
More
Reminder: Funding Available for Media Literacy Projects
The Creative Europe Programme (CREA) Programme and the Citizens’ Engagement and Participation Programme are still open for submissions.
More
Events
AONTAS Adult Learners’ Festival 2025 – 3–7 March
This is a week-long festival celebrating and recognising adult and community education across the island of Ireland. The theme for this year’s festival is ‘Connecting Communities’, highlighting the fact that adult and community education is the bridge that connects communities across the island of Ireland.
More
Beyond the Headlines: Using opinion writing to foster critical literacy and independent thinking skills – 5 March
Oide Creativity and Newsbrands Ireland, in collaboration with opinion editor and columnist Jennifer O’Connell, are presenting an elective online workshop, open to all teachers.
Register here
Breaking news in a broken system: An international view – 26 March
Democracy is built on people making informed decisions based on accurate and reliable information, but how can people access accurate and reliable news content in an information environment fuelled by algorithms, AI, data, personal bias and complex regulatory regimes? In this MLI event, Irish Times Opinion Editor, Jennifer O’Connell, will be joined by Associate Professor Emeritus Steven Reiner from the US to explore the challenges of holding power to account in a news media environment. A former Senior Editor and Executive Producer in CBS News, NBC and ABC News, Steven also teaches courses in News Literacy, Reporting in New York City and Journalism 24/7. This is a ticketed event.
Register here
Launch: Age Friendly AI: Ireland’s National Artificial Intelligence Initiative – 27 March
TU Dublin and the Research Ireland ADAPT Centre will be launching their Age Friendly AI: Ireland’s National Artificial Intelligence Literacy Initiative in Grangegorman, Dublin. The special guest speaker will be Francis Brennan, Age Friendly Ireland Ambassador for Kerry.
Register your interest here by 13 March.
Radio Days Ireland 2025 – 27 to 28 March
Registration is still open for this event, which will run over two days in the Gibson Hotel in Dublin.
More
In Case You Missed It
Safer Internet Day 2025 Event – 11 February
Coordinated by Webwise and supported by the Irish Safer Internet Centre, the theme for the annual Safer Internet Day event was ‘Prepare / Protect / Thrive: Navigating Algorithms and Influencers’. Hosted by Microsoft in their Dream Space in Dublin, the packed event featured enlightening talks and thought-provoking conversations around algorithms, influencers, education and regulation.
More
CyberSafeKids Webinar – 26 February
A digital parenting event took place on Wednesday, 26 February, with Alex Cooney, CEO of CyberSafeKids, and Dr David Colemen, Clinical Psychologist. The webinar discussed how parents can be more involved in their children’s online lives and the challenges, opportunities and risks facing parenting in the digital age.
You can watch the webinar here until 12 March.
AI (Literacy) in Teaching & Learning Webinar – 20 November 2024
This webinar tackled the key aspects of AI in education, focusing on how AI can empower teachers and enhance the learning experience. More information, including the presentation notes, can be found here
Games for Good: Media Literacy and Digital Citizenship Webinar – 11 December 2024
This webinar on the transformative potential of games as educational tools delved into how they can be leveraged for social activism and awareness. More information, including the presentation notes, can be found here
Channel 4 Report: Gen Z: Trends, Truth and Trust
On 30 January, Channel 4 published a report identifying the macro themes shaping young people in the UK’s experiences – both online and in the real world – today.
Read the full report here
Qustodio releases 2024 report on kids’ app usage: The Digital Dilemma: Childhood at a Crossroads
This study analyses technology habits among children in the US, UK, France, Spain and Australia in 2024, uncovering key trends in screen time, social media, communication apps, mobile gaming, video streaming, online education and artificial intelligence tools.
Read the full report here
Resource of the Month
Quiz: How News Literate Are You?
The News Literacy Project is inviting you to test your news literacy! This quiz is for anyone with an interest in journalism and news media and could be used as a classroom resource for Senior Cycle students. It might be a bit too tricky for younger audiences! Take the quiz here
For extra points, try the News Literacy Project’s ‘easiest quiz of all time’, which might make you think twice about your fact-checking skills!
Thanks for reading!
If you have a colleague or friend who might enjoy these updates, they can register to become an MLI member or just subscribe to receive the newsletter. For any membership issues, or if you have something you’d like to include in next month’s edition of the newsletter, please email us at info@medialiteracyireland.ie
Kind regards,
The MLI Team
