Study Finds Sizable Impact of Civic Media Literacy Education on Democratic Engagement

Youth, through efforts that leverage the power of social media, are often driving many of the most important social movements of our era — from the #Dreamers, to #BlackLivesMatter, to the push for gun control and #NeverAgain. These efforts are fueling national dialogs as well as democratic action and are testimony to the power and importance of youth voice. Indeed, young people have been such a big part of online efforts to push for social change that some may conclude that there is no need for educators to help. They would be wrong.

In fact, while some youth are deeply involved in online civic and political activities, most youth participate very rarely, if at all. Our analysis of a publically available nationally representative survey of youth, which we conducted with Cathy Cohen and her team at the University of Chicago, found that 60% of youth had not engaged in a single online civic or political act in the prior 12 months. Since all youth should have a say when it comes to the issues that currently shape their lives and will shape their futures, it’s worth asking whether educators can help.

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