Media Literacy: Waldorf Education is Ahead of the Curve

The use of technology and media in education has gained renewed attention with the unexpected twist of distance learning, families and educators alike are examining the role of technology in education. The follow is an excerpt from a post shared by CyberCivics, an organization focused on helping children build healthy relationships with technology. (And is the Media Literacy curriculum used by The Waldorf School on the Roaring Fork).

“The United States and most of the world is just now talking about the ‘need for digital citizenship’ and the importance of ‘educating our youth’ about media use, misinformation, balance and wellness and, most importantly, how to use tech ethically and wisely.

People worldwide are asking themselves “How do we control this Pandora’s Box after the pandemic? What can we do to help our kids help themselves in the digital landscape?”

All the while, Waldorf schools have been quietly holding this conversation with intentionality and patience: asking families to be thoughtful, mindful, discerning, and slow with media access for children. Not to deprive them, but rather to give children the gift of childhood—the endless opportunities that come with downtime, boredom, and unscheduled freedom. To favor face-to-face interactions over abstract experiences. To work on self-regulation, problem solving, physical movement, and social-emotional regulation.

By the time Waldorf students get to middle school, even though many aren’t using digital media at the same level as average kids their age, most are participating in weekly Cyber Civics lessons ranging from simple concepts such as what it means to be a citizen in any community and how to apply that to the digital world to more advanced topics such as: privacy and personal information, identifying misinformation, reading visual images, recognizing stereotypes and media representations, and ethical thinking in future technologies.

While many middle school students know their way around the device / app / platform, they haven’t been trained much in ethics, privacy, balance, and the decision-making aspects actually needed to survive and thrive in the digital age during adolescence. “ You can read the full post written by Soni Albright here.

The Waldorf School on the Roaring Fork, like Waldorf Schools worldwide has been on the forefront of media literacy having implemented the complete CyberCivics curriculum years before the pandemic. Our goal is to prepare to students for the journey ahead and this includes an understanding of the need for media literacy and responsible digital citizenship.