By Angela Atabo
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) and its companions have unveiled a media and knowledge literacy e-book to assist kids aged six to 10 determine misinformation, faux information and on-line risks.
The workbook, entitled “Young Truth Detectives (YTD),” is written by Mrs Chiamaka Okafor-Onumah, Executive Director of the Media and Information Literacy and Intercultural Dialogue Foundation (MILID Foundation).
The public presentation of the YTD and the facilitators information was hosted by UNESCO,MILID Foundation, Zedx Original and Two Books One Pen Enhancement Initiative, on Thursday, in Abuja.
Speaking on the occasion, UNESCO Representative to Nigeria and Head of its Abuja Office, Dr Isaías Barreto da Rosa, stated training remained the best device for combating faux information, hate speech, misinformation and disinformation.
Barreto da Rosa, stated “The two books address issues related to information literacy for children.This is an important topic.
“We see today all over the world an exponential increase when it comes to fake news, hate speech, disinformation, misinformation and this exponential increase of fake news, misinformation, disinformation and hate speech has to be fought.
“When we teach our young children how to be detectives of truth, how to check facts, how not to share information that are not verified, we are contributing to a better society and that is why this initiative is particularly important.”
He stated UNESCO was supporting the initiative as a result of media and knowledge literacy was central to its efforts to selling accountable use of social media and knowledge.
Similarly, the Secretary-General of the Nigerian National Commission for UNESCO, Dr Lateef Idowu Olagunju, stated the workbook would assist kids entry dependable data and develop important pondering expertise earlier than sharing information.
Olagunju stated kids wanted to discover ways to query data, set up its supply and understood the motives behind its publication to maintain them from harms approach.
He recommended the event of digital studying sources, together with cartoons, to make media literacy classes extra accessible and fascinating for kids rising up within the digital age.
Dr Sharon Omotoso, Director of the International Media and Information Literacy Institute stated mother and father and different stakeholders ought to work collectively to information kids’s engagement with media and know-how.
Omotoso defined that folks shouldn’t solely monitor their kids’s on-line actions but additionally educate themselves about rising digital dangers.
According to her, kids face threats starting from on-line scams and identification theft to exploitation, safety breaches and the misuse of synthetic intelligence.
The director known as for wider media literacy training to equip kids with the data to guard themselves from dangerous on-line interactions and knowledge dysfunction.
In her remarks, Okafor-Onumah stated the initiative was developed to handle the rising problem of misinformation and disinformation by instilling accountable data habits in kids from an early age.
She stated many current interventions focused adults, journalists and younger individuals, whereas the muse believed that influencing data habits early may promote lasting behavioural change.
Okafor-Onumah defined that the workbook contained six missions designed to make studying interactive and pleasant whereas serving to kids develop lifelong media and knowledge literacy expertise.
She added {that a} facilitator’s information had additionally been developed to help lecturers, mother and father and group members in delivering the teachings in each formal and casual settings.
According to her, the supplies can be utilized in faculties, church buildings, mosques and different group gatherings, making media literacy training a shared duty.
She stated the initiative would search partnerships with people and organisations prepared to undertake faculties, notably in rural and underserved communities, to make sure that kids exterior city centres additionally benefitted.
Okafor-Onumah stated the books had been at present not on the market, because the organisers supposed to evaluate their usefulness and affect earlier than figuring out the subsequent steps.
She added that though the supplies had been initially produced in English, the muse deliberate to translate them into native languages to develop entry amongst kids in communities the place English was not broadly spoken.
She stated the initiative was designed to advertise a whole-of-society strategy to tackling data manipulation and strengthening data integrity in Nigeria.
She expressed hope that the workbook would assist nurture a era of youngsters able to critically evaluating data, verifying details and making accountable choices about what they devour and share. (NAN)
ATAB/KOO
===========
Edited by Kevin Okunzuwa
