Introduction.
The Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario has developed this teaching unit resource for public elementary teachers in Ontario through a partnership with the National Watch on Images of Women in the Media (MediaWatch) Inc. and partially funded by a grant from the Ontario Women’s Directorate.

This resource is directed at boys and girls in the junior division; it addresses the issue of gender, violence and the media. It is easily adaptable to the intermediate division as well. The resource is designed as an intensive unit for the classroom composed of a series of topics that include a Focus, Pre-Activities, an Activity, Reflection and Closure, and Assessment and Evaluation. Each focused topic also provides for the integration of learning activities throughout the year through “The Next Step,” as well as the “Community Connection” that culminates the work of the unit through a community information session.

Through the overall unit objectives students will:

• develop media literacy skills which will enable them to critically analyze advertising campaigns and programs that condone and/or promote violence against women and children;
• make educated decisions about media consumption;
• learn to internalize positive role models as portrayed in the media.

This unit is published in two parts. The first part, published in the Spring 2000 issue of Voice, contained material needed to begin the program and to prepare for the community information session. The second part, published here, contains the two final lesson plans as well as evaluation forms and resources.

Consultation Team: Margaret Archibald, Suzanne Charron, David DePoe, Susan Leppington, Darlene Taggart, Debbie Wells. Writing Team: Inta Aldridge, Patricia Hektor, Linda Millar. Project Leader: Colleen Lee, ETFO Executive Assistant

Special Thanks to Lorea Boogerman (Thames Valley), Susan Cafley (Renfrew), Micheline Joseph (York Region) and Margaret Nimigan (Halton) for participating in the pilot projects and for their invaluable contributions to this unit.

So What!

ACTIVITY

• Body Beautiful – Students work in pairs to prepare a one-minute presentation which reflects their views on one of the following topics:
  • Body Image. Does the “body beautiful” that we see in most ads tell the “real” story? Explain.
  • Gender Bias. What types of ads do you see women used in most often? What about men? Do you feel this represents the genders fairly? Explain.
  • Cultural Sensitivity. Describe the race and culture used most often to advertise in Canada. Do you feel that this represents all members of our society? Explain.
  • Socio-Economic Status. Describe the typical person in most ads from the point of view of the amount of money they make, their clothing and hair styles and the jobs the advertisers want us to think that they have. Do you feel that this image represents the average Canadian? Discuss.
  • Ageism. What would you say the average age range of most people in advertisements would be? Do you see elderly people very often on television or in the print media? When you do, what are they usually advertising? Do you feel this is fair? Discuss.
• The presentations could be in the form of a skit, role play, mime, song, rap, poster or any other form selected by the group to express their feelings about these topics.
• The students share their one-minute presentations with the rest of the group.

REFLECTION AND CLOSURE

• As individuals, using what they have learned from their peers in this lesson, students are asked to write an article for the school newspaper on any of the issues discussed. (It does not have to be the issue they worked on.) Consider the following:
  Is the issue clearly identified? Is the point of view clearly stated? Does the author make any suggestions for positive change?
• Students share their completed articles, and the teacher collects them for publication in the school newsletter throughout the year.

THE NEXT STEP

Integrated activities to reinforce this learning focus throughout the year.

• One Minute, Please! (Language, Drama) The students review their one-minute presentations from the lesson and prepare to deliver them to the student body at an assembly.
• Out of Order (Health) Invite a health professional in to discuss eating disorders, such as bulimia and anorexia nervosa, as well as over-eating. Ask the students to explain the connection between these health problems and the images portrayed in the media.
• Double Check (Media Literacy, Math) Ask the students to look at several ads over the next few days. Remind them of the issues that they have discussed. Hold a feedback session and discuss results.

COMMUNITY CONNECTION

• Consider asking the students to present their one-minute reflections about the images portrayed in the media as part of the community information session.

ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION

Formative Assessment 1
Create a Peer Group Student Evaluation form which students complete after the advertising agency activity. The process, where students decide upon the requirements for choosing (drawing) two individuals to sell a food product and the presentation of the students’ two sketches should be included. Following teacher’s instructions, the message communicated through group sketches and group explanation of their individuals’ age, gender, weight, height, clothing, hairstyle, etc., should be evaluated by peers.

Formative Assessment 2
Create a Checklist for the class discussion about posted student drawings of individuals they have created to sell a food product. The checklist should include the questions used in the discussion outline to assess individual students’ learning and explorations of the impact of the media on their lives and their communities.

Summative Assessment 1
Create a Checklist to assess small-group presentations of the following topics: Body Image, Gender Bias, Cultural Sensitivity, Socio-Economic Status, Ageism. The checklist should reflect student understanding of the impact the media may have on their own lives and the message it may give about specific community groups.

Summative Assessment 2
Presentation / Follow-up class discussion indicates an understanding of the media’s message about body image, power and gender, power and culture, power and socio-economic status, power and age.

Use Checklist from Summative Assessment 1 for both teacher evaluation of individual students and student self-evaluation. Conference with individuals and compare teacher evaluations and student self-evaluations.

Summative Assessment 3
Teacher evaluates individual students’ newspaper articles using a rubric. The following criteria should be included:

• Was the issue clearly identified?
• Is the point of view clearly stated?
• Are suggestions made for positive change?

Now What!

ACTIVITY

• Critical Viewing Sheet. The students are asked to prepare a critical viewing reminder sheet for family viewing. The criteria for the activity are as follows:
  • The sheet is to be a reminder for all ages of viewers of the options they have when they are watching television. It should be easy to read, clear, informative and eye-catching. Encourage point-form format, illustrations or symbols, colour, etc. Students may list the choices discussed in the pre-activity, as well as any that they want to add. Ask students to include a “return” portion, which will offer opportunities for family responses.
• Complete the task and share the final results with the class.

REFLECTION AND CLOSURE

• Discussion: After sharing the Critical Viewing Reminders, ask the students to think about the following:
  • Where would you post this sheet in your home?
  • How will you introduce it to your families?
  • How will you ensure that it is something that is looked at often, instead of just the first time you introduce it?
• Share your responses with a neighbour. Put your hand up if you would like to share your thoughts with the group.
• Take your critical viewing reminder sheet home and share it with your families (students need to return these sheets for the follow-up activities).

THE NEXT STEP Integrated activities to reinforce this learning focus throughout the year.

• Data Management (Math) Using the data collected in the pre-activity, work as a class to prepare a chart that will show your class viewing habits. Make predictions about the following:
  • Do you think data will vary according to age, grade and gender? Do you think more boys than girls watch a particular kind of show?
    Put together a class survey and have students visit other classes to see how results may differ.
  • How do these compare with your predictions?
  • What does this information tell you about the importance of learning critical viewing skills?
• Dear Sibling (Language) Write a letter to a younger brother, sister or friend, explaining why you think it is important for them to develop critical viewing skills. Be sure to explain what the term means and refer to the examples that you have discussed in class. What role do you think you can play in helping a younger viewer to make good choices about their viewing habits?
• Responsibility Award (Language, Technology, Art) Design an award (using the computer if possible) to present to a company that you feel has shown responsible reporting or advertising. Discuss the program, ad, article, etc., with a friend to make sure that it meets the criteria which you have learned in this unit. Prepare the certificate congratulating them for being responsible to their viewing population.

Obtain the address of the television station or company involved and mail it to them! Be sure to sign the certificate. After completing the exercise, share them with the class, explaining why you have selected a particular company, show, article or ad.

• Wanted – Positive Role Model! (Language) Examine several want ads in the newspaper. Identify the main criteria for an ad. Be sure to point out the criteria that it must contain: WHAT (the message), WHO (for whom is it designed), WHY (what is the purpose of the ad), WHERE (where can they contact you), WHEN (when would be the best time to contact you). Design an ad which is put together to find a positive role model for your age group. With your group, discuss what you would be looking for: what characteristics, personality traits, gender, age, accomplishments, etc. Explain in brief terms why you might want a positive role model in your life. Prepare the ads, share them with other groups. Consider placing them in the school newsletter.

COMMUNITY CONNECTION

• Send your data to a local television station or newspaper. Get on-line and compare your results with other communities in different parts of the province. Share your data with your classmates!

ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION
Formative Assessment 1
Create an Evaluation Form for the critical viewing sheet, including a checklist and teacher comments that will determine if students have met the criteria required for the assigned task. Criteria could include the following:

• communicates information for a purpose
• organizes information
• follows the teacher’s instructions.

Formative Assessment 2
Create a Checklist to evaluate the student’s ability to:

• design surveys
• collect data
• record the results on a spreadsheet or tally chart
• interpret displays of data and present the information
• display the data
• analyze how data were collected
• discuss the results
• evaluate the data presented using the information as a part of a report.

Formative Assessment 3
Create a Previewing Anecdotal Student Reflection Sheet with the following questions before the activity takes place:

• I believe that the genre that my family views the most is______________________.
• I believe that the programs I watch most often are appropriate/inappropriate (circle one) for my age.
• When I’m watching something on television that makes me feel uncomfortable, I _______________________.

Summative Assessment 1
Use the above Anecdotal Reflection Sheet after the activity has been completed and the data collected to assess individual students.

Community Session Evaluation and Reflection

1. I found this information to be     1     2     3     4     5
   1= Not Helpful 5= Most Helpful
2. My role in my community (e.g. parent, student, law enforcer, trustee, etc.) is:

_____________________________

Signature (optional)

Please copy and fax to:
Colleen Lee, Executive Assistant
Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario
1000-480 University Avenue,
Toronto, Ontario   M5G 1V2
Fax: (416) 642-2424

Resources

Publications

Basic English: Video Production / Work Experience. All Grades Curriculum Resource Unit. Ministry of Education, Ontario, 1990.

Bianculli, David. Teleliteracy: Taking Television Seriously. Simon & Schuster, Toronto, 1992.

Carpenter, Donna. Media Images and Issues. Addison-Wesley Publishers Limited, Don Mills, Ontario, 1989.

Evans, Kathy. The Issues Collection: Music. Gillda Leitenberg, collection editor. McGraw Hill Ryerson Limited, Toronto, 1993.

Hannan, Ed, et al. Media In Perspective. Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Canada, 1993.

Healthy Relationships: A Violence-Prevention Curriculum by Men For Change in Co-operation with the Halifax County-Bedford District School Board. Nova Scotia, 1994.

In Our Own Words: A Workshop for Teachers on Gender Equity. Ontario Women’s Directorate, Ontario, 1996.

Iveson, Margaret, and Samuel Robinson, series editors. Media Source – Media and Communication Anthology. Prentice Hall Canada Inc., Scarborough, 1993.

Iveson, Margaret, and Samuel Robinson, series editors. Multi Source – Media and Communication Magazine. Prentice Hall Canada Inc., Scarborough, 1993.

Media Literacy Intermediate and Senior Divisions 1989. Resource Guide. Ministry of Education, Queen’s Printer for Ontario, 1989.

Millar, Linda. TV and Me. Concerned Children’s Advertisers, Toronto, 1998.

Nayler, Jennifer, ed. Gender Up Front: Strategies for a Gender Focus across the Key Learning Areas. Association of Women Educators, Australia, 1997.

Program Guideline – Media Literacy Resource Guide – Intermediate/Senior. York Region Board of Education, Curriculum Division, 1993.

Pungentes, John J. (S.J.) and Martin O’Malley. More Than Meets the Eye: Watching Television Watching Us. McClelland & Stewart Inc., Toronto, 1999.

Silver, Rosalind, ed. “Children and Television: Growing Up in a Media World.” Media and Values, Number 52-53 (Fall 1990 / Winter 1991). Centre For Media and Values, Toronto, 1990/1991.

Thacker, Penny. The Issues Collection: Values. Gillda Leitenberg, collection editor. McGraw Hill Ryerson, Toronto, 1993.

Thacker, Penny. The Issues Collection: Values. Teacher’s Guide. Gillda Leitenberg, collection editor. McGraw Hill Ryerson, Toronto, 1994.

“Toxic TV.” Macleans Magazine, Vol. 109, no. 25 ( June 17, 1996).

Worsnop, Chris. The Issues Collection: Popular Culture. Gillda Leitenberg, collection editor. McGraw Hill Ryerson, Toronto, 1994.

Websites

·         Cable in the Classroom
www.cableducation.ca

·         Health and Welfare Canada
www.hc-sc.gc.ca

·         Media Awareness Network
www.media-awareness.ca

·         MediaWatch
www.mediawatch.ca