Every year, the media center comes into English classes to discuss media literacy with students, with the lessons differing depending on the grade-level audience. In addition, during media literacy week in the fall, students complete an online media literacy lesson for SSL hours. However, these skills are rarely paired with teaching students about news and current events.

While some teachers occasionally do discuss current events in class, there is not regular or sustained coverage of current events in social studies or English classes.

“I think it’s very important to know about events in the news. Making things current shows students the importance of events in their lives,” said social studies teacher Michael King, who added that it can be more difficult to incorporate current events in such a politically polarizing time. “We live in a world now where people treat news and opinions almost like they do their sports fandom. Some difficult discussions are hard to navigate when discussions become ‘me vs you.’”

English teacher Ashley Graham-Bell agrees that it is important for students to discuss the world today, but she acknowledges that it’s challenging. “I think that a lot of teachers kind of shy away from talking about current events, because they’re so volatile, right? And they’re afraid that there’s going to be a debate that maybe gets out of hand or something like that,” she said.

Media literacy lessons have become a more pressing need as the emergence of AI has made it much more challenging to distinguish between what is real and what is fake. While AI tools can be beneficial, it’s important to view them with a healthy skepticism.

“There’s so much information coming at us that it’s hard to question it. They’ve made unbelievable stuff believable to the point where believable things are now questioned, too,” said media specialist Stephanie Flaherty.

Because of this abundance of AI, people, especially students and the youth, lack the required media literacy skills to determine credible news. MCPS media centers partners with Common Sense Media to create straightforward lessons that students can easily understand and pay attention to. These lessons teach students the necessary skills they need, such as identifying credible sources and identifying AI.

“ I think it’s a great overview to start the conversation, but I think that with media literacy, especially with regards to all that’s happening with misinformation and AI, there’s so many ways that we can be duped,” said Graham-Bell. “I feel like teachers in all subjects that relate to the media should be having those conversations.”