Reading on the Screen

I did okay. I am a voracious reader though and don't really care what type of text I am reading. I just want to read anything. I think it is relatively easy to identify whether information is reliable once you have experience and practice reading a lot of different information. Making sure that you know the source is extremely important to identifying the reliability though.  I think it is most important for students to read as much as possible in as many formats as possible. This will help them identify what they love most and then hopefully deepen that love.

1. With the current media headlines, it is really tough to get unbias reporting. Click bait is always going to be a problem with digital media. The links were not available at this time.

2. Prior knowledge helps determine some of the content that I understand to be true. However, when reading for pleasure, information, or other, I always consider the source.

3. Always think about the information you are looking forand how it is presented. They are still developing these skills but they need to continue to ask questions.

I was unable to take the quizzes. One had a paywall and the other one said the site could not be found. 

1.  I was really hit and miss with those quizzes.  Reputable and fake sources are both engaging with pictures and gifs that  grab a readers attention.  This makes it difficult to tell the real from the fake sometimes.

2.  I typically don't count on anything I see on social media as reliable.  If I am looking for reliable information, I will go to reliable sources directly.

3.  I think older kids would enjoy taking the quizzes themselves to see how they do.  It would open up a good discussion of what sources you can trust and how users are manipulated.

1. Fake headlines was no longer available, but I did pretty well on the fake FB posts. I think I have become VERY cynical of any information and am definitely on the lookout for the grammatical and spelling errors pointed out in the article. 

2. In addition to the errors pointed out above, my own salvo is if it's too good to be true, it probably is not true. ANYthing that perfectly supports one extreme or the other is suspect and deserves additional investigation. 

3. Reminding students to be aware and to play out the possible scenarios before they accept something as fact will be a solid start. 

1. How did you do on the quizzes? Why do you think you had the outcomes you did? Did anything surprise you?

I was only able to complete the Facebook quiz, as the other quiz was no longer available. I only missed one of the questions. I don't think anything surprised me really because I have been a part of social media since it began. 

1. What elements do you rely on to help you determine if the information is reliable or not? What reading techniques do you use?

When using social media, I rarely view any of the information as reliable. I feel it's important to go straight to the source to get reliable information. Big read flags are spelling and grammar errors for me. 

1. How can you share what you learned in this lesson with your students? What will be of most value to them?

In my technology classes we complete a lesson that discusses how you can't believe everything you see online. I think students are still very trusting and gullible, so it is important to have these discussions with them. 

I did really well on the quizzes because I read a lot of internet content and have learned over time what is fake and what is not although sometimes I still find myself conned. 

The elements I rely on are facts, common sense and research if needed. 

By having them take the quiz and explaining the reasons that something seems to be fake and how it is used quite a bit in the same way. 

1. How Safe Am I in the Digital Wilderness?

Honestly, those quizzes were a real eye-opener. I thought I was pretty good at spotting fake news online, but I definitely didn't do as well as I expected. It was surprising how easily I got fooled by some of those headlines and deceptive posts.

2. What Helps Me Spot Fake News?

Here's what I usually look for:

• The source: Is it a reputable news organization with a history of fact-checking? Or is it a website I've never heard of before?

• The writing style: Does the article seem well-researched and objective? Or is it full of sensational language and loaded words?

• Evidence and citations: Does the article back up its claims with facts and sources? I try to check those sources too, to see if they're reliable.

As far as reading techniques, I try to be a bit skeptical when I'm online. I don't just accept things at face value. I also try to read beyond the headlines and skim the article to get a sense of the overall message.

3. There's a lot I can take away from this lesson to share with my students. First, it's important to be aware of just how easy it is to be fooled by fake news online. We all need to be critical consumers of information.

Here's what I think will be most valuable for them:

• Teaching them how to identify reliable sources online.

• Helping them develop those reading techniques for spotting bias and deception.

• Maybe even showing them some of the quizzes I took, so they can see how easy it is to fall for fake news.

1) I was not able to take the Australia Broadcast Company quiz because that link doesn't work anymore. I got one wrong on the NYT quiz. I keep up with the news from a variety of sources so I believe I am more likely to know which posts are just inflamatory rhetoric. The clue for me was if it made me roll my eyes and sigh, it was probably false. 

2) When I read something, I decide if it seems to be written in a way that is trying to get a rise out of its readers. If so, it is probably biased. If the writer is taking an "us against them" stance, it is probably biased. If the writer is taking a "things used to be fantastic until ...." stance, it is probably biased. If the writer is taking an "all we have to do is ..." stance, it is probably biased. The world is complicated, and life has never been easy. When someone tries to oversimplify a problem or romanticise the past, they are probably biased. 

3) I think that playing the devil's advocate in the classroom on topics gives the students the opportunity to hear the different sides to topics they might not have heard otherwise. It's important to give students the chance to talk through topics and discuss things in a safe environment. It's critical that students see that not all sources are credible and that false information can be found in many places. It would be most valuable to show them some examples of those sources.