Strengthening Media Education in the Twenty-First Century: Opportunities for the State of Pennsylvania

Overview & Synopsis

This article defines media education and places it in the context of contemporary research on the arts, culture, and economic and social development. The author reviews current instructional settings where media analysis and media production activities are now occurring in K-12 education in Pennsylvania. This article then describes how other states have implemented and assessed media education within an arts education framework. Finally, this article makes specific recommendations on policies that could improve media education so that students can build skills of creativity, critical thinking, communication, and collaboration that are so central to life in an increasingly technology-rich and media-saturated society. In constructing this article, the author reviewed documents from the Pennsylvania State Department of Education; national, state, and local arts and arts education associations: and data from the U.S. Department of Education and Department of Labor. She examined syllabi and curriculum materials from a number of high schools and colleges across Pennsylvania and nationwide and conducted interviews with scholars, K-12 educators, media professionals, and artists involved in school-based residency or other outreach programs. Finally, she reviewed the scholarly and academic literature on media education and consulted with professional colleagues who are familiar with media education implementation and assessment in the states of Minnesota, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.