NAMLE PRESIDENT'S COLUMN
MARCH 2008
Have you been hearing the words "media literacy" in new and unexpected places recently?
This past month, I was fortunate to attend 2 events on NAMLE's behalf in which media literacy was the central topic. The first was an event held at the Kaiser Family Foundation in Washington, DC and sponsored by the American Center for Children & Media.
The event discussed children's media policy under our new administration and the need for media literacy education.
The second was an event of the Federal Trade Commission discussing advertising literacy. In both cases, NAMLE was recognized as an organization supporting the work of media literacy educators.
A third event was held at Stonybrook University and discussed the growing field of news literacy. Each of these discussions can be seen as a component of media literacy and is evidence that a growing list of industries and people are recognizing the critical need for media literacy education.
In just a few months, NAMLE will bring its national conference to Detroit, Michigan. Make your plans now to join us. Our online registration is open and our speaker line-up is nearly complete. I'm thrilled to report that presentation submissions were almost 20% higher than in 2007! Another indication of the growing interest in this field.
What do Detroit, St. Louis, San Francisco, and Baltimore have in common? They've each been the location for a NAMLE national conference. Now, it's time to decide on our location for 2011.
Do you think your city would be the perfect spot? If so, please forward your thoughts to me and reasons why. We don't want to overlook any terrific locations, so don't just think about why we should come to your town-send me an email about it.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Sherri Hope Culver
shculver@namle.net
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If you're not a member yet, what are you waiting for?
Join NAMLE Today
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The NAMLE Marketplace: Your One-Stop Shop for the best in media literacy materials
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We Need You!
Don't just sit back and ponder the best ways to advance media literacy education. Join a NAMLE Committee! New NAMLE President, Sherri Hope Culver, invites members to help advance the mission of media literacy education by joining a committee of the Board. Board Committees tackle specific projects and initiatives for the industry and the organization. Committees seeking interested volunteers are listed below. Please contact the committee chair directly. Communications Committee Karen Zill communicationschair@namle.net(manages website, UPDATE newsletter and external information) Marketing CommitteeJessica Z. Brown Marketingchair@namle.net(manages marketing strategy, press relations, etc.) Development Committee Cindy Pulley developmentchair@namle.net (manages fundraising from foundations, corporate giving, and government) Program Committee Amy Jensen propubchair@namle.net(manages programmatic development) Conference Committee Sharon Sellers-Clark NMECchair@namle.net(manages the NAMLE conference upcoming Aug. 2009) Membership Committee Jane Owens membershipchair@namle.net(manages membership recruitment, renewal and service)
Finance Committee
Liz Thoman
ethoman@namle.net
(budgeting, reporting, strategizing all things fiscal)
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 Early Early Bird Registration Ends April 15
Members Pay only $199!
The NAMLE media literacy education conference is the MUST NOT MISS media literacy event of the year, bringing together teachers, community educators, media professionals, researchers and much, much more.
Do you need new tools for your classroom? Want to kick start your career in media literacy education? Do you want to learn from and share with some of the greatest minds in media literacy education? Then visit our website for the latest news about the 2009 NAMLE National Conference. Meet some of our featured speakers and read about the conference program theme. You can also watch a student-produced video that highlights the culture and entertainment that Detroit has to offer. The NAMLE conference offers four days of non-stop media literacy, including keynotes, workshops, roundtables, presentations and screenings. We'll have several meal events with stimulating speakers - plus you won't want to miss the Monday night celebration of the 50th anniversary of the "Motown Sound." NAMLE is committed to making our biennial conference affordable for all. So we've arranged for an Early Early Bird registration fee of only $199 - available until April 15. Full time graduate or undergraduate students can register for only $119. But these rates will be available to members only, so make sure your membership is current. You can save over $100 off the non-member rate of $300 . Not a member or has your membership lapsed? Join (or rejoin) when you register and you'll qualify for the discounted rate. Renew or join for two years and be current until the next conference in 2011. |
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Lots to do in the D
NAMLE's Detroit caucus, our local host committee, is giving us the inside scoop on the city's hidden charms. Detroit offers many family-friendly attractions, excellent ethnic neighborhoods and restaurants, places we're sure you'll want to visit before or after our conference. Your family can enjoy many attractions, both in the city and around the state. And, let's not forget Canada - it's just across the river. We've learned there is a strong Detroit/Windsor relationship, so be sure to bring your passport! As a professional organization committed to media literacy education, we're.hoping our menu of conference offerings will entice you to register; but if you're also trying to get a vacation in, this summer, we believe you should seriously consider combining the conference and a vacation in beautiful Michigan. Yes, we've uncovered lots of interesting places and many ways to just have plain fun...not a surprise when you remember this is the home of MOTOWN! ... See you in Detroit, Aug-1-4.....and maybe before or after!
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Proposal Deadline April 15
 NAMLE's Journal of Media Literacy Education has posted the call for its second edition . The deadline for submissions is April 15. The peer-reviewed journal will be published online three times a year. The call for papers and information about the journal are available on the NAMLE website, namle.net/publications/jmle. The first edition of the journal will be launched - and celebrated - at our August conference in Detroit. |
Members on the Move & Making News
NAMLE members Frank Baker, Rhys Daunic, Renee Hobbs and president Sherri Hope Culver convened a panel at the WNET Celebration of Teaching and Learning.
NAMLE's busy president, Sherri Hope Culver, attended two events on behalf of NAMLE last month: the Kaiser Family Foundation's Children's Media Policy event and the Federal Trade Commission meeting on advertising literacy.
Members Paul Mihaldis and Frank Baker attended the Stonybrook University's first conference on News Media Literacy. Contact Paul for more information on the conference.
NAMLE board of directors member Jane Owens, who serves as Director of Outreach and Education for Mountain Lake PBS, has been recognized for her work with a Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) My Source Community Impact Award for Education. Mountain Lake PBS won its award for the "Links to Learning: Educational
Partnership Between Mountain Lake PBS and The Champlain Valley
Transportation Museum." Congratulations to Jane and Mountain Lake PBS!
What have you been doing lately? NAMLE members, send us news of your
activities, and we'll include it in the UPDATE. Email us at
update@namle.net
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Media Smart Research Awards
Cable in the Classroom has announced its 2008 Media Smart Research Awards program, which aims to encourage the teaching and learning of media literacy in American schools and homes. By publicizing and supporting the research of emerging media literacy scholars, Cable in the Classroom aims to expand the knowledge base on the status and effectiveness of media literacy instruction. Up to three Media Smart Research Awards of $2,000 each will be given for research papers in media literacy written by graduate students attending accredited colleges and universities in the United States. Undergraduate students at such institutions may, with the recommendation of their faculty advisor, also submit papers for consideration. This year's deadline is May 31, 2009. NAMLE's own Kelly Mendoza was one of last year's winners. Let's do it again this year. Details online.
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Mark Your Calendars
REGISTER TODAY for the NAMLE Conference 2009 "Bridging Literacies: Critical Connections in a Digital World," which will be held in Detroit, MI August 1 - 4, 2009. Visit the NAMLE website for more information. Drug Free Pennsylvania is hosting the second annual Critical Eye on the Media Conference on April 2-3
in Harrisburg. The conference will feature two of the top authorities
in the field of media literacy, NAMLE members Dr. Renee Hobbs from
Temple University and Dr. Brian Primack from the University of
Pittsburgh. Details online. The 7th annual Northeast Media Literacy Conference will be held on Friday, April 3, 2009 at the University of Connecticut. The theme of the conference is "Rethinking Media Literacy Priorities in a Changing Information Age." Read more online. 3rd Global Conference: Visual Literacies: Exploring Critical Issues. Tuesday 14th July - Thursday 16th July 2009, Mansfield College, Oxford, United Kingdom. Read the call for papers and more information about the conference at the conference website. Teachers College at Columbia University will present TEACH, THINK, PLAY II: The Moving Image in the Classroom conference April 4 & 5. Featured speakers include Kevin Clash, the Emmy award winning voice of Elmo. More info online. Project Look Sharp will once again be holding its Summer Media Literacy Institute at Ithaca College in beautiful Ithaca, NY (a place that the Utne Reader once called "the most enlightened city in the United States). The dates are July 13-17, 2009; details are available at: www.ithaca.edu/looksharp/. Stony Brook University is offering a News Literacy Institute for high school teachers July 13-24. Applications are now available online. Deadline for applications is April 1, 2009.
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Media Literacy at SECOND LIFE Conference March 27 -29
 The virtual world of Second Life now has a
resident media literacy advocate. Elizabeth Thoman, founder of the
Center for Media Literacy, founding board member of NAMLE and known in
Second Life as Liz Huntress, will be a keynote speaker in Second Life's
Third Annual Best Practices in Education Conference, March 27 - 29,
2009. Held entirely in Second Life and sponsored by SLED (Second
Life EDucators), this full- scale academic conference is a opportunity
to experience the 3-D simulated world of Second Life while at the same
time hearing one of the field's most articulate leaders. Liz, whose
highly popular "Crash Course in Media Literacy" has oriented thousands
of teachers to the basic concepts of the field, has recently expanded
her interest and involvement to include the 21st century skills
movement and particularly, Second Life. Liz is floating the idea of a NAMLE caucus in SL.
Contact her if you're interested. For NAMLE Second Lifers who want
to attend, the conference is free. Liz's presentation is Saturday,
March 28 at 5pm SL (Pacific)/ 8 Pm (Eastern.) time. There's also a
panel Sunday morning 10:30 - 12 SL (Pacific) / 1:30 - 3:00 (Eastern). For
conference details, go to www.vwbpe.org. To contact Liz
about speaking in Real Life or joining the NAMLE caucus in Second Life:
lizthoman@sbcglobal.net.
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New MLE Resources
NAMLE member Paul Mihaldis has published an article in the University of Toronto Press Journal SIMILE (Studies in Media and Information Literacy Education) titled: Are We Speaking the Same Language? Assessing the State of Media Literacy in U.S. Higher Education. Read the abstract here: www.aocmedialiteracy.orgThe March issue of ASCD's Educational Leadership magazine is devoted to Literacy in a 2.0 world. It's available online at www.ascd.org. Ofcom has published its latest edition of the Media Literacy e-bulletin. In addition to articles on UK media literacy initiatives, this edition takes a look at Digital Britain - The Interim Report, developments within UK Council for Child Internet Safety and a new European agreement to encourage safer social networking. The e-bulletin can be found online. The entire March, 2009, issue of the British Journal of Developmental Psychology is focused on youth and the media. |
Calls for proposals / submissions
The Shortie Awards: Student Film and News Festival is seeking international entries from all student and teacher filmmakers and news producers. The Shortie Awards is a FREE festival recognizing original digital media productions created by student filmmakers, ages 7-18, and their teachers. The festival focuses on nurturing imagination and choice making in students. SUBMISSION DEADLINE: 03 April 2009. Entry Form online.
Action for Media Education, a Seattle-based group, invites youth to express their voices in its 4th annual Images of Youth video festival. This curated media literacy-based festival will feature the work of young people from all around the world. Videos may be no more than 5 minutes in length and must be submitted by April 17th, 2009. Cash prizes will be given to six festival winners. For more information, please visit the festival website. |
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