Medya Okuryazarlığı Dersi Hakkında Öğretmen ve Öğrenci Görüşleri

Bu araştırmada ülkemizde 2006–2007 eğitim-öğretim yılında ilköğretim programlarında pilot uygulama olarak yer alan, 2007–2008 eğitim–öğretim yılında ise tüm ülkede seçmeli ders olarak okutulmaya başlanan Medya Okuryazarlığıseçmeli dersini alan öğrencilerin ve bu dersi okutan öğretmenlerin bu derse yönelik görüşlerini belirlemektir. Bu amaçla öğretmen ve öğrencilere yönelik açık uçlu sorulardan oluşan görüşme formu hazırlanarak seçilen okullarda görüşmeler yapılmıştır. Görüşmeler ses kayıt cihazıile kayıt edilmiştir. Yapılan görüşmeler sonucunda elde edilen veriler alt başlıklara ayrılarak betimsel analiz tekniği ile yorumlanmıştır. Elde edilen sonuçlar doğrultusunda Medya Okuryazarlığıdersinin öğrencilerin medyaya yönelik tutumlarında olumlu bir etki yaratmadığıgörülmüştür. Öğrencilerin dersin müfredatınısıkıcıbulduklarıve dersin müfredatının dersin amaçlarıile tam olarak uyuşmadığıbelirlenmiştir.

The media firstly came into social life by means of newspaper. Since the first newspaper was pressed, the media has developed itself and in this process, it set important goals. The media, which primarily emerged for information, in time sets goals like entertainment, inducement and propaganda. With the help of setting these goals, the media considerably extended its effects on society. After increasing its importance, the media became widespread and became a part of community life. The more the society was interested in the media, the more the media gained power. It reached the level where it could effect the social and the economic conditions of countries. After that it started to set society’s agenda, make society take sides and it even effected the regimes of countries. Because of media, it became more easy to make people accept some certain ideas and norms. It led to the need of protection from the effects of media and the studies for this need began. These studies have aimed to raise awareness of the disadvantages of media. So in schools, media oriented lessons have been given. At first, the studies has focused on giving the basic information about media and its products but in time it has broadened it’s scope and it has aimed to raise individuals who understand, interpret and evaluate media’s effects properly. Due to all these studies, the media literacy emerged. The term of media literacy has a lot of skills in it. Media literacy has focused on analyzing mass media which has oral or written messages, interpreting its messages, evaluating and critisizing its accuracy, reaching exact information and media’s products and being selective to these products. Media literacy requires to be critical against the ideas which many people have been exposed by popular culture. Media literacy aims to make consumers be active, not a passive reader or listener. In our country, the studies of media literacy were started in 2000s. RTUK radio and television supreme council decided that media literacy should be in the curriculum as a lesson. After the protocol signed by RTUK and MEB the ministry of national education , media literacy was given as a pilot study in 2006- 2007 and it took place in curriculum as an elective course all around the country in 2007-2008. In this study, it is discussed that whether the media literacy course, which was in curriculum as an elective course in 20072008, help the students change their attitude towards media and whether it achieves its goals or not. Also the study aims to determine the problems and the shortcomings which are encountered during the process. For this purpose, six social science teachers, who work in schools which are in the township of Samsun province , and six students, who elect media literacy course, was interviewed. In order to collect data, different interview forms were prepared for teachers and students. The interviews were recorded by a tape recorder then they were written and analysed with the technique of descriptive analysis. The findings were studied on titles. In the first title, it is discussed that what kind of differences the media literacy courses create student’s media follow-up level. There are three subtitles of this title. These are students’ level of watching television, students’ level of using computer and students’ level of following printed media. In the subtitle which defines students’ level of watching television, it is aimed to determine that what kind of differences media literacy courses create in their level of watching television. In the interviews which had been with teachers and students, it was seen that the students still watch television frequently. It is also seen that there are students who decrease their level of watching television or watch it rarely because of SBS placement test . In addition, it is understood that the students who have concerns about the SBS have no time for watching television because of the homeworks they were given by training centers or tutoring as well as schools. It is also understood that students’ parents interfere in their television watching level because they think that watching television long hours effect their children’s success negatively. When the student’s level of using computer is examined, it is understood that the students have so much interest in computer especially Internet. The interviews show that even the students who don’t have a computer or Internet at home go to the internet cafes to use internet. It also shows that the students use internet for playing games, chatting and watching movies. It is indicated that the students use internet for their school projects and homeworks but they aren’t capable of understanding the accuracy of the information they get. Besides it is revealed that teachers think the students are vulnerable to internet. When it is compared to mass media like internet and television, it is seen that they have less interest in the printed media. It is revealed that whether the students don’t follow the printed media or they only follow the pages they are interested in. It is understood that they are up to date via television or internet more than printed media. When the media’s effect on students is examined, it is seen that every student is effected by media in a different way. While the teachers stress that the students are effected by the characters they watch and take them as a model, the students answer the questions saying they are effected by media in a sensitive way. In addition, it is indicated that the students follow their model’s consumption patterns and it also effects students’ consumption patterns. When the students’ interest about course’s content is observed, it is understood that they find it boring. When the curriculum is examined, it is seen that the subjects focus on the mass media’s history and its function. But the students don’t find these subjects interesting. In addition, it is understood that because it is an elective course, the students don’t have any concern for their success so it effects their interest to course negatively. One of the aims of media literacy courses is to make students more selective and make them establish self-control. But when the media literacy courses’ effects on students’ usage of media is examined, we encounter with a different situation. It is observed that the students , who elect this course, still follow the same programmes. Also it is understood that the students recognize the advised marker, but sometimes they ignore them to watch the programmes they like. So it is indicated that the media literacy course make no difference on students’ preference on medias products. Consequently, it is seen that there are some shortcomings in the process of implementing media literacy courses. One of the main shortcoming is that the aim of raising student who evaluates and interprets the information they read isn’t achieved sufficiently. The main problem is that the students don’t find the course interesting. So it will be useful to make the course’s content more interesting and instead of giving too much information, the content should focus on the current issues which make students think and critise