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Exercises
in Media Education
Commercial media has always been targeting children. More so in the recent years. Content providers and advertisers alike have been out to get the mind share of innocent and gullible children. Audio-visual media, particularly the television, has been one of the biggest influences on children. Children are media consumers. There is no escape from the omnipresent media. This has become the fact of life. The only way out is to equip the children to be discerning media consumers. And, Exercises in Media Education precisely does that. The book has been designed:
The book adopts the participator, inductive and democratic method - in contrast with the syllabus-oriented, formal classroom-approach generally used in educational institutions. "Its essential, systematic and fun. It wears its research and erudition lightly and strikes a blow at several ills. It fits well into schoolwork where this kind of stimulus could do lasting good but is usually absent. it provides a simple, hard-to-find framework for an understanding of the media, for study and discussion of the subject beyond the classroom and for that most important of requirements, responsible participation in the use of media," according to Greson da Cunha, former Head of Lintas. Endorsing the book, Nitin Paranjape of Abhivyakti, Nashik, says that the book helped his organisation in planning and conducting sessions on critical understanding of media students of select schools in Nashik. "Over the years we have been organising such sessions in Marathi as well as English medium schools. The experience has been mutually gratifying. The book is indeed very useful. The syllabus is well thought out and designed. The language easy to understand. The exercises are meaningful. The methodology invites participation and fosters effective learning. Above all, it has wide scope and applicability," he says. The book is divided into six main sections viz Communication, Advertising, Popular Music, Radio, Television/Films and Newspapers/Magazines. The best thing about the book is that it helps children to identify what is wrong with the media. Not only that, it teaches children to create good media content. Though this book is aimed at children, even adults have a lot to learn from it. In fact, as media professionals, we are aware of several issues dealt with in the book. It indeed helped us in organising our ideas and taught us how to articulate them in a simple and lucid style. What more can one say. Check it out. Peter Gonsalves is a member of the Don Bosco Education Society. He is actively involved in the production of audio-visual material for value-based education. He also conducts courses in media education for teachers and youth leaders.
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