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Teaching Basic Concepts of Mass Communication with the Brain in Mind:
An "Enriched" Approach to Introducing Media Literacy at the Middle Level

Tina DiChiara

"Brain-compatible learning is here to stay. You can bet it will effect nearly everything we do including teaching strategies, discipline policies, the arts, special education, curriculum, technology, bilingual programs, music, learning environments, staff development, assessment, and even organizational change."

- Eric Jensen, Teaching with the Brain in Mind

The year 2001 marks the first time the Albuquerque Public Schools has acknowledged the importance of media literacy for its students by including performance benchmarks having to do with mass communication concepts in its newly-drafted standards.

My objective is to provide middle school educators with interesting approaches for teaching basic concepts in the study of mass communication. There are fruitful findings in the world of research when it comes to brain-compatible learning, and my intention is to provide some details about the basic principles of those findings and then present practical applications in the classroom using Media Literacy as an impetus.

Academic Setting

School Setting

Garfield Middle School is located in a now-predominantly Hispanic community whose families have attended Garfield since its opening in 1950. Two-thirds of the student body qualify for free or reduced lunch and breakfast programs. Terra Nova scores are lower than the district average in most subjects. The school provides bilingual instruction, special education services (for roughly a sixth of the student population) and Title I benefits, for all of which the school receives federal and state funding.

Class Setting

The class this unit is designed for is a sixth grade Language Arts and Literature block consisting of mostly regular education students. At Garfield, that would mean a group of 20 students with reading and writing skills that fall anywhere within a range of second to eighth grade levels. A quarter of the class is likely to be classified as being limited in English proficiency. There are visual learners, auditory learners, tactile learners, and plain old reluctant learners. Then add to the mix students with attention deficit disorder and hyperactivity. Just like any of my colleagues, I am expected to take this rainbow collection of young people and teach them everything laid out in the district standards. However insurmountable it may seem at times, it is not impossible.

Unit Objectives

The lessons created for this unit explore the basic elements of mass communication for the express intent of making students more literate in the realm of various media they are exposed to daily. Using the latest findings in brain-based learning research as a guide, students will have various avenues opened to them in becoming cognitive of the forces that compete for their attention.

Unit Performance Goals

Students will:

• demonstrate a basic understanding of the communication process as it applies to face-to-face and mass communication
• demonstrate a basic knowledge of the history of communication
• demonstrate a basic understanding of the concept of reality
• demonstrate a basic understanding of the term stereotype
• apply information about a couple of concepts using an assignment of choice
• analyze information about a couple of concepts using an assignment of choice

Context and Background

What is Brain-Based Learning?

Neuroscientists are developing amazing, new insights into how the brain works, including many causes for disorders, the biological roots of impulsive behavior and acts of violence, and most importantly for our purposes, how the brain is hot-wired to learn. The field of neuroscience is exploding with new and useful information that may benefit educators in determing their instruction. Many of the studies and findings summarized here might easily be applied to a course of inquiry in the classroom.

Neuroscience is moving at a very rapid pace. Discoveries made only two years ago about how the brain works are "old news" and what is new today will be old news again in two years. In the last decade alone, new technologies, such as Magnetic Resonance Imaging, have enabled us to see cross-sectional images of the brain, and others help track brainwave patterns and cerebral functions so that we can literally see brain activity. And now scientists are able to measure the output of brain chemicals to zero in on which part of the brain does what. Clinical studies, animal experiments, and autopsies have also contributed to brain-based learning research.

As Eric Jensen points out in his book Teaching with the Brain in Mind, "...brain research doesn’t necessarily ‘prove’ anything. It merely suggests ideas or paths that have a higher probability of success." He points out that neuroscience mustn’t be expected to "present us with the ‘holy grail’ to learning" but that more action research is needed. It simply is the most reliable form of inquiry and it will take us to the next level of knowledge about how the brain learns. Theory must lead to "in-context applications" according to a classification system for interpreting brain research. Educators must begin to consider themselves researchers in this field, if solid theories are to be confirmed.

The teaching approaches suggested for this unit will be based on those theories that have been strongly confirmed through documented action research under actual, real-life conditions. These studies provide invaluable data that may determine the way we teach. If we are in the business of teaching, then we need to understand, in general, the science of learning.

What Do We Already Know About the Brain that May Affect Our Teaching?

• The brain uses one fifth of the body’s oxygen.
• We utilize only one percent of one percent of our brain’s estimated capacity.
• In 1967, it was discovered that enriched environmental stimulation fosters brain development. In other words, the brain develops according to how much you use it, and what you use it for (Diamond).
• Many experiments have resulted in findings that continuously validate a 1973 discovery regarding the process of memory retention. Cells change how they respond to messages based on how they responded at an earlier time. This would mean that each cell has a "memory" and every time it is stimulated by something familiar, it responds less actively. If it’s stimulated by something new, it tends to become more efficient in carrying messages to other cells (Bliss and Lomo).
• There’s been a major paradigm shift in how we view "intelligence" thanks to the work of Howard Gardner, a cognitive psychologist. Gardner uncovered several different kinds of intelligence. His theory offers a much broader view of intelligence and suggests that intelligence is a continuum which is developed throughout life. Gardner’s "intelligences" include:

spatial-visual: thinking in images and pictures
linguistic-verbal: thinking in words
interpersonal: thinking by communicating with other people
musical-rhythmic: thinking in rhymes and melodies
naturalistic: thinking in reference to nature
bodily-kinesthetic: thinking through physical sensations and movement
intrapersonal: thinking reflectively
logical-mathematical: thinking by reasoning

Some of the Latest Findings in Brain-Based Learning Research:

• Learning actually changes the brain, making the neural pathways more efficient. Although scientists have proven that this occurs, they aren’t exactly sure how it happens. Alternative thinking, multiple answers, and creative insights would be more conducive to brain development than rote comprehension and multiple choice questions (Freeman).
• Behaviors are likely directed by a combination of memories and emotional states. Therefore, the process of learning is incredibly complicated to map out (Pert).
• As to our temperament, 50% can be traced to genetics, and the other 50% depends on what’s learned (Kagan).
• Stimulating sensory challenge is like a "nutrient" to the brain (Jacobs, et al).
• Brains have a "baseline" of neural connectivity, and being in an enriched environment adds to it. Therefore, all students should have access to "enriched" classes (Begley).

Why Media Literacy?

There’s no denying that the media are a powerful influence on the lives of our students. Advertising, movies, magazines, radio, television, and now video games and the World Wide Web are all vying for their attentions and their spending habits. From the time they enter middle school to the moment they leave, they will increasingly be exposed to adult-oriented materials.

The goal of Media Literacy is to provide students with the critical and cognitive skills they need in order to decipher the hundreds of messages sent to them through various media on a daily basis. To be "media literate" is to understand the language, grammar and "rhetoric" of the media as well as appreciate the artistry behind it. Media Literacy is essential in the middle grades. Research has shown that at this age, children’s long-term interests and behavior patterns are established (Healy).

Although my objective is to provide fellow teachers with an "enriched" approach to addressing media literacy; the focus on mass communication makes this unit especially appropriate as an introduction to the understanding and appreciation of the media. The lessons present the basic concepts inherent in understanding the processes of mass communication. Without knowledge of these basic concepts, students would be hard-pressed to comprehend the larger, more complex issues they may be asked to grapple with in subsequent units or courses addressing the media.

What Kind of Environment Builds A Better Brain?

According to William Greenough, a pioneer in the study of how environment plays a role in brain development, two things are important in providing enrichment: the student must be challenged with new information and experiences and there must be meaningful, interactive feedback.

Some elements of "challenge" to consider:

• Curriculum must consist of problem solving, critical thinking, relevant projects and complex activities (Jensen).
• Too much or too little will either discourage or create a sense of boredom.
• Mental challenge involves new material, raising degree of difficulty, limiting resources, Also, consider varying things like time, expectations, support, room decor, and materials.
• Vary instructional strategies: use computers, field trips, guests, games, different groupings, assessments, projects, etc…

Some elements of "feedback" to consider:

• Must be specific, multi-modal (modes of learning-- visual, auditory, kinesthetic), timely, and learner-controlled (Jensen).
• Feedback reduces stress (Hennessy, et al.).
• The brain is hot-wired to operate on feedback (Harth).
• Forms of feedback are direct comments from teachers (verbal or written), cooperative peer groups and peer response, any group interaction, assessment results made available to the student in a way he or she can understand them and can consider them valuable, rubrics (pre-posted criteria), monitoring personal goals, journals, etc…
• Stressed or threatened learners prefer delayed feedback (Greenbough).
• Ideal feedback involves choice- it’s accessible and the initial performance can be improved upon (Greenbough).

How Can Media Literacy Be Taught Using Elements of An "Enriched" Environment?

Media Literacy instruction lends itself well to the potential for challenging problem solving at the middle level. By ages 11 to 13, the brain is fully developed and ready to cross over from thinking concretely to understanding more complex abstract ideas such as terms like "reality" or "culture." Their brains are primed for challenges due to the fact that the bridge between their left and right hemispheres has finally matured and both sides are ready to communicate at full capacity.

An amazing fact that should be shouted from the rooftops of every school is that, in terms of healthy brain development, it doesn’t matter if a student gets all the answers right or not! The connections between neurons grow in the process of trying to figure out the answer. As Jensen points out, a student can get every answer wrong throughout her twelve years in school, and yet still have a well-developed brain- as long as she tries to solve problems.

When a student has mastered a skill, and is no longer being stimulated by something novel, his brain is, as Jensen puts it, "coasting," and the neural connections are no longer being developed. That is why it’s important to assess mastery, so that students are continuously being challenged and being faced with new stimuli.

Media Literacy is an apt breeding ground for trying to solve problems that may not have clear answers. The content is high-interest in that many visual aids must be used to demonstrate certain concepts or processes. Students will be challenged to reconsider the role media play in their lives. This creates interesting possibilities in terms of a paradigm shift for many individuals. Since it permeates so many aspects of their lives, connections are more likely to be made outside the classroom to ideas presented during class.

Another way to enrich the environment for teaching Media Literacy is to integrate art into the curriculum. Art has been used to teach thinking skills, to express emotions regarding any given subject, and to build memory. There are documented cases of schools integrating the arts in every aspect of their curricula, and those schools have shown significant measurable progress as a result. The scientific evidence points to art being used as a form of therapy and being beneficial to making stronger connections in the brain as a result of being exposed to new skills (Kolb and Whishaw). The physical environment also plays a part in "enriching" the Media Literacy unit. Visual aids relevant to the content and placed on display can help learners review at their own pace, and they can also create a sense of safety, comfort and support (Debes). Another enrichment strategy is to include as much choice on the students’ part as is possible. They can choose the number of people in a group for a project, or what form a project will take (written, oral, visual, etc…).

"Attention" and the Brain

Understanding how or why the brain pays attention is a critical part of effectively communicating ideas. That is what makes information about the neuroscience of "attention" important not only to teaching this unit, but it may also be very useful in teaching about Media Literacy. Everywhere they go, young people are inundated with media vying for a momentary pause. One of the essential questions to be asked in any unit addressing the media is, "What gets and holds our attention?"

What we know about the brain and attention:

• Apparently, the purpose of attention is survival and pleasure.
• On average, we make about 100,000 decisions daily.
• The visual system sends more than 80% of the information that goes to the brain.
• Stress induces high levels of a certain chemical (norepinephrine) that causes hyperactivity, making focused attention difficult. It also inhibits creativity. Humor, physical activity, music and storytelling relieve the output of this chemical (Hobson).
• Natural body rhythms have highs and lows when it comes to attention. Each cycle lasts a little under two hours. Blood flow actually changes and it effects learning ability (Klein, et al.). Stretching or marching alleviates the low part of the cycle.
• Five-minute breaks every hour and a half may increase productivity (Howard). A "passing period" is not considered a break. Students are active and alert at that time. "Down" time would be considered "lights out, heads resting on desks."
• Constant focused attention is counterproductive. Students need time to "process" new information. Also, they need "internal" time, a process by which meaning is generated through reflection. Then, there needs to be time for the "imprint" of the new information to take place. You can’t expect them to pay attention and make meaning at the same time. Meaning-making strategies include small group discussions, question-generating, propose what-if scenarios, journal-writing, creative response, etc…

Layered Instruction: How It Works

This triangular method divides an instructional unit into three layers, called C, B and A. The C level consists of a wide variety of assignment choices which teach basic facts, skills, vocabulary and technique. The B level offers an assortment of projects students can complete to demonstrate an application of the knowledge and skills gained in the C level. The A level requires students to critically analyze a current issue that relates to the unit of study. Students pick and choose their way through the various levels in their pursuit of a C, B or A grade. This method fits well with Bloom’s Taxonomy of Cognitive Development, which is a model most teachers use when building lesson plans. Assignment choices include lecture, problem solving, textbook reading, computer work, videos, worksheets, artwork, models, demonstrations and research. The list of assignments students can choose from run the gamut when it comes to the various intelligences students utilize to help them process information (Gardner).

Implementation

An effective introduction serves to set the outcome and the context of a unit. It has the potential, if executed well, to "hook" students by creating intrigue, or making it relative to their everyday lives. The ultimate goal of an effective introduction is to spark students’ desire to explore the concepts of the unit.

What follows is a "script" that demonstrates the implementation of an introduction that considers various learning modes and brain-based research regarding attention span:

Before formally introducing the unit, take the students on a "field trip" to the "mall". The "mall" is actually your classroom with dozens of ads for products hung around the room. There is a mix of popular brands and lesser-known brands of products that appeal to teens (sneakers, make-up, acne medicine, clothes, CD’s). Each student has "won" $200 worth of Monopoly money and may shop the "mall" and list his/her "purchases." These lists will contribute to later discussion regarding purchasing choices.

"This is the beginning of a unit about how our entertainment and purchasing decisions effect how we understand and experience the world around us.

It’s not something we usually think about while we’re at the movies or watching the television or buying a pair of Nikes.

(Transparency: Cartoon person watching a TV in the shape of the earth. He’s wondering, "How is this affecting my view of the world?")

"Yet, we’ll see how thinking about how it effects us helps us to be more wise about the choices we make, not only in what we choose to buy (gesture toward the ads on the walls) and what we choose for entertainment, but in our everyday lives as well.

(Transparency: Cartoon person holding the world in hand, looking at it pensively, thinking "hmm...")

"What you learn about in this unit will make you think differently about the world in which you live.

"Are you ready?"

Having students move about the room. Mocking what some of them do in their off-hours creates a sense of intrigue. Even though the unit theme has not been introduced, there’s no stress involved because it taps into their experiences or their desires. The activity also serves as a basis for discussion later on. What figured into their choices? Did some choose not to spend all their "money"? Why did one student spend her entire $200 on a popular brand of sneakers when she could have gotten a quality lesser-known pair for half that price?

The use of transparencies helps visual learners process new information and concepts.

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Lesson 1: The History of Communication

Main Ideas:
A Brief History of Communication

Mini-Lesson Content:
The objective for this first lesson is to collect data for later discussion and to provide an overview of the history of mass communication.

I. Learning Logs
Students will begin keeping journals of what they learn during this unit. Each day, a prompt will be given that challenges them to explore their own relationship with the medium based on discussions and topics of the day.

II. Student Survey
Students are surveyed about what they watch, and the data collected will be used to inform discussions. (See appendix for "Survey")

III. A Brief History of Communication
This would take the format of a game. Students choose cards that have a number and a brief description of a milestone in the history of communication. When I call each student’s number, she/he must read the card to the rest of the class. Students must listen closely and take notes which they may use during the game. The class moves outside where there is a giant timeline taped to a fence. As a class, students have ten minutes to place 20 milestones (printed on placards) correctly in the order that they occurred.

Assignments:
Journal Prompts: What are some things about television that you feel are good for you? What are some things about televsion that you feel are bad for you?

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Lesson 2: Face-to-Face Communication vs. Mass Communication

Main Ideas:
Medium-- carries a message from one place to another
Mass Media-- technologies that carry messages from one place to a larger audience (e.g., books, television, radio, sound recordings, magazines, internet, newspapers, advertisements)
Mass Communication-- the process of creating shared meaning between the mass media and their audiences
Media Literacy-- being able to understand the language of the media

Mini-Lesson Content:
I. Ask students to pay special attention to your actions as you demonstrate face-to-face communication by engaging students in casual conversation. Then tell them you will now interact with mass media. You watch the television for a few seconds (a pre-taped, low-interest program, so that they don’t moan when you end it), listen to the radio for about 15 seconds and then pick up a magazine and leaf through it, all the while showing expressions of surprise, humor, shock, etc... Ask students what the difference was in your actions between the two types of communication.

II. Both forms of communication need someone to send and someone to receive a message, yet during face-to-face communication, you were able to immediately respond. You can’t do that with television unless you know the language. Learning the language of TV and other media is called media literacy. TV uses a language of sound, words and pictures to communicate messages. When we become media literate, we understand more about those messages and how they are created.

III. Using the results of the previous lesson’s survey, present the average number of combined hours students watch television and play computer games. Use a graph to show this in relation to how many hours they sleep and go to school.

Assignments:
Journal prompt: What’s the biggest role television plays in your life?
Students are given a list of about a dozen roles television plays in our lives. They must choose three of them for which to give specific examples.

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Lesson 3: Reality

Terms:
Reality-- Our perception of what is true in the world. How we understand and experience the world around us.

Mini-Lesson:

I. Begin by introducing the class to "Goldie," the goldfish in a bowl. Ask students to sit in a circle around the goldfish bowl and describe what Goldie’s life is like. Write their ideas on the board. Generate interesting answers by rephrasing the question ("How is Goldie’s life different from ours?" "Does Goldie know he’s wet?").

Introduce the word reality by pointing out that Goldie’s reality is how he sees the world. It’s how he understands the world around him and how the world operates. That is Goldie’s reality.

II. Perform a couple of easy-to-learn magic tricks that you think will "wow" the students. Ask them why magic tricks amaze people. What makes a magic trick work? What is it about magic tricks, when they work, that make us so surprised? Magic tricks work because they show us something that goes against our understanding of reality. It goes against the way we believe the world is supposed to work.

Reality is how we experience the world. (Use a transparency-- some kind of visual or the definition written out for them to take notes). It’s how we believe the world works.

Hold up a sneaker and ask, "What is this in your reality? How do we experience this object?" Then ask how an ant might experience the object.

Hold up a music CD and ask how the object is experienced by most of us, then ask how it may be experienced by a deaf person.

Hold up a beautiful flower. How might we experience this as opposed to how a blind person might experience it?

(You might put these items in bags and place the bags on students’ desks, creating a sense of anticipation and mystery until the time comes to use them)

The possibilities are endless.

Since we were little kids, we each created our own realities by watching, listening, feeling, smelling and tasting. Our experiences, our families and our friends teach us about how things work, or how they don’t work. And if we watch a lot of television, then our realities are also shaped by what we see and hear on that medium.

Assignments:

Journal prompt: How has television helped shape your reality?

Have students choose from a list of about a dozen subjects- all of whom possess an individual reality. Don’t use any of the examples used in the mini-lesson. Students must generate a representation of what one of those subjects’ realities might be. They may do so in prose, as a work of art, as a song, as a dramatic work, as a dance or on videotape.

Some examples for subjects: dog, butterfly, baby in womb, newborn baby, gorilla at the zoo, snake, flower, wasp, blind person, person in wheelchair, person in jail for life, flea, turtle, canary in a cage, etc…

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Lesson 4: Stereotypes

Terms:
Stereotype-- overly simple ideas about the way a particular group of people acts, dresses, works, talks, believes or values they hold.

Mini-Lesson:
Using the survey from Lesson 1, videotape parts of a few of their favorite shows-- those that have strong examples of stereotypes. Use these clips to illustrate the concept in your discussion. Saturday morning cartoons are a great resource for stereotypes. Stereotypes serve a purpose in television and commercials. They help tell a story quickly, although at times they’re inaccurate.

Assignments:
Journal prompt-- Are you aware of any stereotypes of a group you feel strongly connected to? If so, how do the stereotypes make you feel?
Do you notice any stereotypes in the shows you watch or the commercials you view on TV?

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Layered Instruction Assignments for Lessons 1-4
"C" Level Assignments (Comprehension):

• Turn in your journal.
• Provide notes you took during lessons.
• Draw a visual representation of the differences between mass communication and face-to-face communication.
• Verbally summarize what was presented in lessons 1-4.
• In a language other than English, do any of the above.

"B" Level Assignments (Application):

• Role-play an alien whose perception of America is shaped by television.
• People who watch more TV think of the world as a more dangerous place than people who watch less TV. Form a hypothesis about why studies have shown this to be true.
• Using handouts provided by the teacher, learn about how video shots and camera moves are used to appeal to emotions by creating a short film with a short story that uses all six techniques. Demonstrate to the class how and why you used these shots and moves.
• Using handouts provided by the teacher, visit a television station and ask to see the tools listed on the handout. Ask each person you meet to sign their name next to their job.
• Using instructions provided by the teacher, create a claymation storyboard. Use the digital camera to create your piece.
• Draw or paint a picture of the front of your house with all the people who live with you standing in front of it. Then draw a picture of the characters in your favorite TV show standing in front of the setting of the show. On the back of the drawings/paintings compare and contrast the two.
• In a language other than English, do any of the above.

"A" Level Assignment (Analysis):

• During the time that you are viewing television, do a study of the population make-up of the characters and see if they match census numbers
• Choose one of the following groups of people and do a study of how they are portrayed on television: people with disabilities, older people, lesbian or gay people, religious groups, a particular class (rich, poor), a particular ethnic group, people your age, women, men.
• Make an argument for how TV ads and programs show us how to act and dress, what to eat, where to live, what’s in and what’s out, what’s right and what’s wrong. Present this in an essay, a speech, or a multi-media presentation.
• People who watch more TV think of the world as a more dangerous place than people who watch less TV. Form a hypothesis about why studies have shown this to be true. Research your hypothesis to see if there’s evidence to support your idea.
• In a language other than English, do any of the above.

Suggested Subsequent Units

I. Project: Creating a Television "Concept"
II. Field Trip: Visit Television Studio
III. TV: The Myth vs. Reality
VI. Guest Speaker: School officer watches television show about cop life and tells us the reality.
V. Advertising Hooks
VI. Gender Stereotypes in Ads
VII. Project: Talking Back to Ads
VIII. Framing the News; What Stays, What Goes-- You Decide
IX. Project: Getting the In-Depth Scoop
X. Field Trip: Local News Station-- Who’s Who

Meeting State Standards

This unit addresses the following State of New Mexico Language Arts Standards, Benchmarks and Concepts related to Media Literacy at the middle level:

• Standard #1: Use a variety of language arts resources in a variety of contexts; and use and expand vocabulary and linguistic skills to communicate effectively.
• Standard #2: Apply critical thinking skills in listening, speaking, reading, and writing.
• Standard #3: Listen, react to, and interpret conversations, drama, music, poems, and stories delivered live and through technology; read and study an wide range of materials; increase and use vocabulary through listening, reading, observing, and interacting with others; select and use appropriate reading materials and other information sources for a variety of purposes; and use print and no-print sources to generate and apply options to solve problems in the classroom and daily life.
• Standard #4: Use active listening skills to acquire information; acquire information; acquire and use knowledge of structural elements including rhetorical devices, figurative, descriptive, and visual language; demonstrate comprehension of written and spoken language; and use technological resources to assist comprehension.
• Standard #5: Use appropriate strategies to organize and to deliver oral communication; expand writing skills and explore a variety of writing forms by writing on regular basis; express facts, ideas, and opinion sin a variety of settings in oral and written forms; adjust language and vocabulary appropriate to various audiences and for a variety of purposes; develop, write, and participate in drama, music, poems, and stories; and draw on prior experiences, knowledge, culture and home language to speak and write proficiently across the curriculum.
• Standard #6: Students will speak and write clearly, effectively, and correctly.
• Standard #7: Analyze and critically respond to a variety of print and non-print materials in order to build understanding of content, self, and the cultures of the United States and the world; explore how language is used to present differing perspectives; apply media literacy knowledge and skills to classroom and daily life; and identify and analyze propaganda, marketing campaigns, and other persuasive messages.
• Standard #10: Find and apply information from a variety of sources; acquire and use a common language for technology, technical writing, and research skills; use available technology to located, organize, and present information; and produce a variety of forms of writing using technology.

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