Youth 2.0: meeting the digital challenge

Brian O’Neill, Dublin Institute of Technology‘Screenagers’ NYCI Conference, Nov 23rd, 2012

A delicate balancing act

Opportunities

Risks

MEDIA LITERACYFlourishing in today’s media and communications environment

A European approach to media literacy in the digital environment

• feeling comfortable with all existing media

• actively using media, through, inter alia, interactive television, use of Internet search engines or participation in virtual communities, and better exploiting the potential of media for entertainment, access to culture, intercultural dialogue, learning and daily-life applications (for instance, through libraries, podcasts);

• having a critical approach to media as regards both quality and accuracy of content (for example, being able to assess information, dealing with advertising on various media, using search engines intelligently);

• using media creatively, as the evolution of media technologies and the increasing presence of the Internet as a distribution channel allow an ever growing number of Europeans to create and disseminate images, information and content; European Commission (2007) Communication on Media Literacy in the Digital Environment

The ladder of opportunitiesO

ppor

tuni

ties

(and

risk

s)

Stage 5: Advanced. Creative. File-sharing,

blogging, virtual worlds

Stage 4: Playing. Sharing Content

Stage 3: Interactive. Communication.

Reading/watching news.

Stage 2: Information and entertainment. YouTube

Stage 1: Popular internet uses. Content-related

Not all are meeting their creative potential

Source: EU Kids Online

Online activities among Irish 9-16 year olds

57% don’t beyond Step 2 – using internet as a mass medium

Only 2% get to the top – most extensive and creative uses compared to 23% EU

A third are in the middle (6-9 activities) including communication/SNS uses.

Digital opportunities as a driver

• A ‘virtuous cycle’ in which digital opportunities drive better skills and experiences for users

• Changes the nature of the public debate Digital

activities

Skills

Internet safety

Trust and confidence

Creative Activities

Digital citizenship

Recommendations

• Support for digital citizenship• Promoting online opportunities• A focus on younger users• New modes of access• Positive content• Building resilience through skills• Industry responsibilities• Awareness raising for parents and

children• Supporting greater teacher

mediation• Understand children’s lives better

Thank you

Email: brian.oneill@dit.ie More at www.digitalyouth.ie and www.eukidsonline.net