Examining critical media literacy in the study of sociology.

Abstract

In this study, I advocate the importance of developing critical media literacy (CML) skills in the study of Sociology. This study reports on a study of whether having higher level of critical thinking skills correlates to higher CML skills or whether CML skills are a separate set of skills to be learnt. A CML assessment tool was conceived and 2 versions of media content were used for assessment. Results showed that in analyzing media content, respondents focused mainly on the content but not the larger context like the media platform and how the media content was put together. Therefore, critical analysis of media content requires not only critical thinking skills but also CML skills which incorporate skills from other literacies as well as critical observation skills. I also carried out a short discussion on the possibility of designing a quantitative CML scale as such a tool may be useful in Sociological research and training.