They’ve grown up online. So why are our kids not better at detecting misinformation?::Recent studies have shown teens are more susceptible than adults. It’s a problem researchers, teachers and parents are only beginning to understand.

  • @audiomodder
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    5710 months ago

    I’m a teacher. This is very false. The issue is that being taught in schools and being learned in schools are completely different things. Between No Child Left Behind and IDEA, schools are being incentivized to graduate students regardless of the learning done in the school.

    I know for a fact that these skills are taught in 6-8th grade social studies classes, as well as digital literacy classes. Hell, I teach 2 classes that are entirely based around critical thinking.

      • @audiomodder
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        1810 months ago

        This isn’t helped by the fact that in many school districts it isn’t possible to hold a child back. We literally have students entering high school that haven’t done anything since 3rd grade but have been advanced to the next grade anyways. Then we get surprised Pikachu face when they can’t do the things they need to graduate.

        That actually ignores the whole “make up credit” classes where answers to every question are literally a google search away.

        I literally had a student in one of my math classes who pasted a “couldn’t find results for…” as an answer to a homework question because they had mistyped the question.

        • @Chriszz@lemmy.world
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          110 months ago

          Curious: What is the root cause of students/less intelligent people like this? Poor upbringing? Genetics? Effort? Somewhere down the line there’s a cause.

          • @audiomodder
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            310 months ago

            There’s no motivation to do the work. Students that work hard get a diploma. Students that don’t do anything…still get a diploma.

            We have students who can barely read and can’t do basic math, but they still get a diploma. Why do work for the same result?

    • @Redredme@lemmy.world
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      2010 months ago

      My experience as a parent:

      It has nothing to do with education. It had nothing to do with knowledge.

      It has everything to do with trust. They trust youtube/insta/Tiktok. They trust the influencers.

      This is nothing new or exclusive to kids. Don’t believe me? The antivax movement. You know: “educate yourself.” That. Grownups are not immune.

      This is nothing new.

    • don
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      1210 months ago

      Quality education is locked behind a very expensive paywall.

      • @Xiaz@lemmy.world
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        1410 months ago

        I went to a public high school in the renaissance of MySpace and Angelfire and Geocities. My Current Events class was entirely breaking down political speech and recognizing the undercurrents. World History was as much about what happened but also how the situation developed, including a stint on understanding modern journalism through the development of Yellow Journalism.

        Public school can do exceptionally well if it’s actually funded like it’s supposed to be.

    • @astronaut_sloth@mander.xyz
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      910 months ago

      I think it’s less that “media literacy is not taught” but that media literacy is not learned. Like @audiomodder said, everyone is graduated regardless. So, on one hand, there are students who either will not or cannot learn the material (for one reason or another, such as disability, stress, family, etc.) and teachers who get a laundry list of things to teach and not enough time or support to teach it.

      Ultimately, the problem is a lack of focus on education as a society. Children are pulled in too many directions, and teachers aren’t given the resources needed, so we end up with a broken educational system.