A Qualitative Study on Media Literacy of High School Students in Shanghai

This is a qualitative research intended to study the baseline for media literacy level of high school students in Shanghai. There has been abundance of qualitative and quantitative research intended to quantify media literacy. However, there is lack of studies measuring the baseline media literacy prior to educational intervention intended to improve students’ media literacy in formal instructional settings. The interviews in focus group and questionnaire will be provided to the students having watched the videos of four different genres including news, documentaries, commercials, and public relations, selected from the two major video-sharing websites in China, Tudou and Youku. During the interviews conducted individually or through focus group, open-ended questions will be raised based on the model of (1) recall (2) purpose (3) viewpoint (4) technique, and (5) evaluation. Once the responses from these five aspects from the students regarding the videos of four different sorts are collected, the responses will be coded subsequently in order to evaluate the baseline level high school student’s media literacy before any intervention.

As demonstrated by the past studies, qualitative studies are very useful to understand students’ baseline literacy and measure media literacy in formal pedagogical settings. Nevertheless, no concrete information is available on high school students in China. As such, none of the previous studies focus on the way high school students differentiate, interpret, or evaluate different sorts of messages/videos on video-sharing websites at base level, as well as learners’ gains in media literacy before and after educational intervention in place. Therefore, the research question will be formulated accordingly: (1) What is the baseline media literacy of high school students in Shanghai, as shown in their interpreting and evaluating messages and videos on Chinese video-sharing websites, such as Tudou and Youku? (2) What are the gains most students can possibly have when they receive education intervention designed to enhance their media literacy level?

It can be claimed that students may show higher level of media literacy in terms of their summary skills, whereas their critical abilities to interpret the content from digital media is lower prior to any educational intervention in formal instructional settings. The purpose of the study is two-fold: while the results of the study may provide guides to parent, educators, and policy makers in their efforts to integrate a more effective scheme of media education. The study is also is to further evaluate the effectiveness of holistic media literacy courses delivered in Shanghai. Special attention should be given to those intended to make improvements on certain aspects of media literacy of learners, such as their critical thinking, evaluation, and other skills, in order to make comparison and contrast with the similar but more sophisticated programs in other countries for future comparative studies.