Do You Know the Three Billy Goats Gruff?

     My University of Regina transcript says that I'm on a fantastic journey to teaching middle years, which is around grades 6-9. This week's blog prompt poses an interesting concept for me: how do you teach digital literacy effectively so that students are able to recognize misinformation? I thought about the importance of digital literacy especially in middle years. I witnessed this fall how much tech or research is integrated into lessons. In fact, I was going to teach grade 7 and 8 students about government systems of various countries where they would group up and research specific information. I was advised not to allow students to fend for themselves and enter all these stranger sites through Google. Instead, I should direct students to Britannica School which is accessible through Clever. At the time, I agreed that students should stick to this trusted database to limit the possibility of them finding the wrong stuff. 

However, exposure to the "wrong stuff" is inevitable. Let me explain this through the Norwegian folklore called "The Three Billy Goats Gruff."

© Moral Story Minute

    There were three billy goats on their way to the hillside to eat, but they had to cross a bridge in order to get there. On the bridge, they encountered an ugly troll. 

Pretend the troll represents fake news or even "internet trolls." When you're scrolling online, watching all sorts of TikToks and videos, and reading articles, you will inevitably encounter disinformation. Actually, I was reminded of this folklore because of Spot the Troll. 

    I think it's vital that we teach students how to identify trolls as a first line of defense. The Clemson University created this quiz to test our ability to identify misinformation. They say, "Often created to spread misinformation and distrust, trolls have been deployed on every major social media platform" (n.d.), and that's why it's very likely that we encounter them. What's great about this Spot the Troll quiz is that it teaches us common tactics that trolls use like unsolicited messages, hyper-active accounts, accounts with no profile image, accounts with stolen profile images, or computer-generated account names.

The first and second billy goats convinced the troll to let them pass by saying, "No, don't eat me. The next goat is much bigger." 

    One of the articles that I read this week was Camila Domonoske's "It's Easier to Call A Fact A Fact When It's One You Like, Study Finds." One of the scariest things about online trolls is that they try to catch your eye, and they know how. Camila Domonoske says that "partisan beliefs and bias shape what we believe is factually true" (2018). We all have biases, and trolls feed off of them and appeal to our emotions. 

Don't let the trolls eat you. You are not their next victim, not the one they can have.

Then, the last goat went to cross the bridge. He was the biggest goat. The troll didn't stand a chance with this guy. He was a goner. 

    Fighting trolls or fake news with critical thinking is a skill we should teach students. The Canadian School Libraries Journal developed a list of strategies for dealing with fake news, and one in particular was to nurture a critical disposition (2018). Why is it important that we question everything? They say, "Not so that we are paralyzed by uncertainty but so that we are liberated, freed from a world of mistruths, and able to assess “reality” in order to create a more accurate picture of the world than the one that is being presented." (2018). 

Preparedness to handle and identify fake news is a strength. The trolls don't stand a chance. 

    One way that I can describe my role in teaching digital literacy is through an example. CR7.4 and CR8.4 in the ELA curriculum call for students to comprehend and interpret the messages of texts (including digital ones like videos, ads, news, etc.). This is an area where we can teach them to view information critically. We can use persuasive tactics of advertisements and news to demonstrate how bias can mislead, and we can even lead off into persuasive writing. This already shows evidence of NCTE's goals which are to "Participate effectively and critically in a networked world" and to "Promote culturally sustaining communication and recognize the bias and privilege present in the interactions."(2019). Anyway, all this is to say that we shouldn't cower away from the "wrong stuff," we should develop the skills and literacies to tackle it effectively.

That's all I have. Thanks for reading!