Singh, Jagtar, Alton Grizzle, Sin Joan Yee, and Sherri Hope Culver (Eds.). Media and Information Literacy for the Sustainable Development Goals.

Soukup, Paul A.

Singh, Jagtar, Alton Grizzle, Sin Joan Yee, and Sherri Hope Culver (Eds.). Media and Information Literacy for the Sustainable Development Goals. (MILID Yearbook 2015). Goteborg: NORDICOM, 2015. Pp. 334. ISBN 978-91-87957-13-0 (paper) 250 Kr.; 28.00 [euro].

This yearbook of the media and information literacy and intercultural dialogue group (MILID) presents an overview of the collaboration itself as well as articles and papers discussing the different aspects of the program. The yearbook results from an association of partner universities making up the network for this particular UNESCO-backed program. These universities include Ahmadu Bello University, Cairo University, Hosei University, Nnamdi Azikiew University, Punjabi University, Queensland University of Technology, Sidi Mohammed Ben Abdellah University, Temple University, The Autonomous University of Barcelona, University of Sao Paulo, Tsinghua University, University of Gothenburg, University of Guadalajara, University of South Africa, University of the South Pacific, University of West Indies, and Western University.

Emerging from the United Nations sustainable development goals, this project looks at the role that media literacy and information literacy plays in working toward those goals. An introductory essay based on the framework and action plan of the UNESCO program sets out different principles grounding the action plan. These include convergence (an approach that would bring together different theoretical components in media and information literacy); a rights-based approach, targeting both citizens who have rights in media and information literacy and those who have the duty to develop those rights; equal rights for female and male adults and children, people with disabilities, indigenous groups, and ethnic minorities; prioritizing empowerment over protectionism; the inclusion of cultural and linguistic diversity; and the balance of actions and organizations in various regions of the world. In addition, the plan sets out a number of specific goals and objectives for the overall collaborative work. The editors arrange the 31 essays according to five key goals, with the majority falling into two categories: sustainable development through teaching and learning; and media organizations, information providers, and freedom of expression

The first part of the volume on "Sustainable Development through Teaching and Learning" explores both theoretical and practical approaches. Jose Reuben Q. Alagaran II offers a theoretical underpinning for a model for teaching media and information literacy ("Explore, Engage, Empower Model: Integrating Media and Information Literacy (MIL) for Sustainable Development in Communication Education Curriculum"). His suggested model consists of three aspects: (1) exploring, asking, "How do I identify, access and retrieve information and media content skillfully?"; (2) engaging, "How do I analyze and evaluate media and information critically?"; and (3) empowering, "How do I create, share, and use information and media content ethically, safely, and responsibly for decision-making and taking action?" (p. 33). He develops the model by showing how it might take place in the classroom. Thomas Rohlinger ("The MILID Dividend: A Conceptual Framework for MILID in the Glocal Society") also takes a theoretical perspective. He too suggests a model with which one could understand the different aspects of this particular UNESCO-backed operation and identifies new factors arising from the combination of media and information literacy and intercultural dialogue. The third chapter, presented by Jagtar Singh, ("From Information Skills for Learning to Media and Information Literacy: A Decade of Transition in South Asia: 2004-2014"), offers an historical overview of the South Asian developments in 10 years of the United Nations sustainable development goals. Singh notes both changes in the ways the material has been presented and those things still lacking (" gaps and divides"). His overview also includes modules that have been used for teaching this material to young people. Carolyn Wilson and Tessa Jolls ("Media and Information Literacy Education: Fundamentals for Global Teaching and Learning") offer an overview of different approaches to teaching media and information literacy. One thing they stress is "connected learning," a learning approach based in the work of Marshall McLuhan and Len Masterman. Anubhuti Yadav ("Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) Literacy for Sustainable Development") turns more specifically to the situation in India. Yadav examines the digital divide, particularly as it appears between rural and urban areas. Often connected to differences in education, this divide has led to a number of projects seeking to offer more students some access both to the technology and to the literacy they need to use it. He presents in some detail the Digital India project coordinated by one of the ministries of the government of India.

Jordi Torrent ("Media and Information Literacy: New Opportunities for New Challenges") gives a different kind of overview of the media and information literacy programs. Torrent criticizes the ways that many schools in the West have approached information and media literacy, by replacing humanities studies and critical thinking studies with these kinds of technological studies. Ibrahim Mostafa Saleh ("From Living Rooms to Classrooms: 'Turn on the Lights' of Mobile Learning in MENA") looks at Arab countries and elearning and mobile learning initiatives. He describes in some detail the approaches in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) area. The next chapter turns once more to India. Harinder Pal Singh Kalra ("Media and Information Literacy in Higher Education in India") focuses, as the title suggests, on university level instruction that deals with information literacy. Kalra first describes the higher education system in India, and then UNESCO's role in media and information literacy as it is put into practice in that sector. The next chapter, Senada Dizdar, Lejla Hajdarpasic ("Information Literacy Initiatives at the Faculty of Philosophy in Sarajevo") describes the situation of university education in that city. The article reviews what is happening in a number of different faculties, including a program of pedagogical training for teachers.

The second section "Media Organizations, Information Providers, and Freedom of Expression," presents a number of articles which look at approaches to teaching and the provision of information by agencies and media organizations.. Alton Grizzle ("Measuring Media and Information Literacy: Implications for the Sustainable Development Goals") reviews the competencies involved and then suggests specific things that would be needed in developing the kind of curriculum for teaching and assessing the sustainable development goals in the area of media and information literacy. He presents some helpful tables looking at different frameworks based on eight key dimensions. These include context, purpose, interdisciplinary approaches, the types of learning domains, broad assessment levels, broad assessment categories, the assessment process, and the tools or instruments provided (pp. 118-120). Tibor Koltay ("Data Literacy: An Emerging Responsibility for Libraries") suggests a different view. With so much attention devoted to schools, Koltay turns to libraries. The overview looks at the importance of data and the contemporary role of the library in storing and sharing data. Koltay argues the need for libraries to prepare people to use such data. The next essay returns to policy questions. Jose Manuel Perez Tornero, Tomas Duran Becerra, and Santiago Tejedor Calvo specifically look at the "MIL Policies in Europe 2004-2014: The Uniqueness of a Policy and its Connection to UNESCO." As one would expect, this essay reviews the responses of European member states to the UNESCO policies; they look at both legislative development as well as the system of indicators used to measure the accomplishments based on the policies. The indicators include "1. the efficient use of technologies; 2. the capacity to access information and make informed choices and decisions; 3. the need to understand how media content is produced; 4. critical analysis of techniques, language, and content related to the media; 5. the use of the media to express and communicate ideas; 6. the need to identify and avoid harmful media content and services; and 7. the efficient use of the media in order to exercise democratic and civil rights" (p. 143). The authors then discuss how these European indicators were merged with the UNESCO indicators. Kyoko Murakami directs attention to the Asia-Pacific region. In the essay, "Information Freedom and GAPMIL in AsiaPacific Region: Challenges and Suggested Action Plan," Murakami not only looks at how media and information literacy is carried out in that region of the world but also asks questions about specific challenges for these countries in the context of diverse national cultures.

Neelima Mathur offers similar reflections for the South Asian context, particularly for the Indian subcontinent in "MIL Empowerment for an Enhanced Democracy: An India Perspective." Here the discussion has to do with the role of the government as well as of media organizations in setting up a media code of conduct as well as offering training in these things for a very diverse and lively media. Mathur looks in particular at a pilot curriculum based on the UNESCO model provided by the Uttarkhand Open University and then draws from that lessons that could be applied in other places. Sally S. Tayie turns to North Africa and the specific role of social media in Egypt ("Impact of Social Media on Political Participation of Egyptian Youth"). She writes, "this study aims at examining the role played by social media in empowering and encouraging Egyptian youth for political participation." Her research combined different methodologies (surveys and in-depth interviews) with the uses and gratifications theory framework; her findings included documenting that "social media became the most prominent among youth in Egypt after the January 25 Revolution. The study also found that most Egyptian youth use social media on a daily basis. Egyptian youth consider social media as a platform through which they manage to share their common concerns and possibly turn it into collective real-life actions" (p. 169).

Adebisi O. Taiwo ("Media Literacy and Political Campaigns in Nigeria") looks at the role that different forms of media play in the political life of Nigeria. The essay sketches the ways that political groups or the government distribute messages in political campaigns as well as how people will perceive and understand those messages. Taiwo argues that these examples highlight the need for greater media literacy. The article includes examples of some of the media materials. Also reporting research based in Africa, Kathleen Tyner ("WeOwnTV: Survivors Speak Out in Sierra Leone") describes the WeOwnTV as "a long-term collaborative media project with local residents of Sierra Leone, North American film makers, and regional humanitarian organizations" (p. 189). Sponsors conceived the project to allow survivors of war to speak about and share their stories of survival trauma and culture. By empowering people to tell their own stories they wanted the people to then take charge of their own healing and also to discover other areas in which the country needed to develop, such as health messages. Tyner includes an ethnographic study of the effectiveness of the program.

Dilara Begum ("Media and Information Literacy in Bangladesh: A Case Study of East West University") looks at media and information literacy through quantitative and qualitative methods. The essay provides an overview of the situation in Bangladesh as well as specific research-based findings of the interviews. Based on this, Begum presents a number of recommendations, including the need for adequate government funding, a stronger government role in promoting media and information literacy, an increased role for universities and schools, the need to update syllabi in teaching materials, and the establishment of standard curricula.

The third part of the yearbook presents studies under the heading of "Linguistic Diversity and Intercultural Dialogue." The studies look again at many of the parts of the world already seen in the other studies; however, here they focus on the intercultural development aspect as opposed to the media and information literacy aspect. K. S. Arul Selvan ("Measuring Linguistic Diversity in Indian Online Scenario") presents the results of a content analysis of the different languages of Internet users in India, basing the study on Google search details as well as the data sets drawn from other online materials. Selvan highlights several key findings: the difficulty of the use of Roman letters for Internet use (Unicode has helped resolve this issue); the role of national and state governments in providing resources; and the role of institutions of higher learning in the regional and national levels. Forest Woody Horton, Jr. provides a very different approach. A longtime activist in the information and media literacy areas, Horton reflects on his experience in countries around the world using a first-person approach to both describe cultural expression and what he calls coffee and tea houses as central for this type of intercultural work. Ogova Ondego ("Media Wise: Empowering Responsible Religious Leadership in the Digital Age") describes a workshop provided by the African media development initiative to train religious leaders-- Christians, Muslims, Sikhs, Copts--in the use of media and to develop a deeper understanding of "how representations shape perceptions, and ... how religious leaders can best respond to misinformation in the media about religious groups" (p. 229).

Jun Sakamoto ("Intercultural Dialogue and the Practice of Making Video Letters between Japanese and Chinese Schools") describes a program for schoolchildren in the two countries of Japan and China. He explains that the "exchange learning of video letters and digital storytelling works is the beginning stage of intercultural collaboration approach in the context of developing children" (p. 239). This develops a greater intercultural sensitivity starting in the school years; the program responds to the sometimes negative perceptions of each other's countries, sadly fostered at times for governmental purposes. The last essay in this section of the yearbook returns to strategy. Jose Manuel Perez Tornero, Santiago Tejedor, and Marta Portales Oliva ("Towards a Global Strategy for Media and Information Literacy") set out to describe how the overall information literacy strategy in Europe has led to concrete results. Beginning with the policy recommendations and the gathering of material into databases on media literacy, the group worked out an approach that could be shared as different learning opportunities throughout Europe, but also in Latin America and the Caribbean regions. The authors also summarize a number of recent publications in the areas of media literacy, intercultural dialogue, the communications law in Spain, and technology guides for teachers.

Section 4 of the yearbook focuses on "Gender Equality and Persons with Disabilities." The first three essays in this section report on particular activities, with the fourth offering a more theoretical approach. Adebola Adewunmi Aderibigbe and Anjuwon Josiah Akinwande ("Communication Strategies for Effective Participation of Women in Healthcare Programs in Rural Nigeria") describe particular programs that connect women and disabilities/health in Nigeria. They provide a helpful review of literature to situate their study and then, based on specific research, suggest recommendations, which include "localism in message content" and "localism in the media channel" (pp. 262-263). The next essay by Mia Rachmiati and Syarif Maulana ("Women's Life-Skills Education through

Local Cultural Arts: Enhanced by Media and Information Literacy") examines how women in Indonesia have been able to use media literacy skills to work towards greater equality. The program they describe is one that worked with cultural programs to develop personal skills, social skills, and vocational skills. As part of the report they indicate core competencies as well as the basic competencies they recommend in working with the different women's groups. Manukonda Rabindranath and Sujay Kapil ("Information Literacy among People with Disabilities") present a study of information access for people with disabilities in India. They include data about the estimated number of those with disabilities and the kinds of disabilities. They then review information literacy programs, looking both at government policies as well as the reality in the local communities, paying attention to the approaches at some schools and universities. Finally, they make a number of recommendations, including identifying children with disabilities, noting levels of accessibility in schools, changing the academic curriculum, sensitizing the stakeholders, and strengthening educational institutions. As noted, the last essay in this section addresses policy. Vedabhyas Kundu ("Towards a Framework of Media and Information Literacy Education for Children with Disabilities: A Global Entitlement") again reviews the situation in India and then, based on interviews, suggests ways in which a more global approach might be taken.

The last section of the yearbook addresses "Advancing Knowledge Societies: Environment, Health, and Agriculture." The four essays in this section turn to what often occupies a central role in communication and development studies: agricultural situations as part of sustainability and development. Antonio Lopez ("Ecomedia Literacy for Environmental Sustainability") begins by defining a problem in what he terms "green cultural citizenship" (p. 301). This includes a number of things: awareness of how media connect with living systems and how the media themselves play and environmental role, the influence of the media on perceptions of people in ecological areas, and how media help to shape environmental ideology. Cornelius B. Pratt, Ying Hu ("Beyond Training the Trainers: Engaging the Grass Roots in China's Public Health Campaigns") consider an area more closely associated with health communication. They examine some of the different campaigns used to raise people's awareness about public health and compare different models (the personal influence model and the media and information literacy model). With this context, they present the health campaign goals, strategies, and tactics for the information campaign they conducted. The next essay also takes a look at health communication and health education. Li Xiguang, Zhao Pu and Ouyang Chunxue ("News Kills: Media Literacy and Health Education') consider specific cases of news reports in China which attacked a vaccination program, leading to both factual errors in the reporting and serious public health consequences. They suggest how people might respond to this both at the governmental level and at the media level. Inder Vir Malhan ("Role of Agricultural Information Literacy in Agricultural Knowledge Mobilization") describes a program of agricultural information in India. Highlighting different gaps in knowledge, the author identifies the role that information literacy could play in remedying those gaps.

The volume includes biographies of each of the contributors. Individual chapters contain bibliographic reference lists as well as notes. This yearbook, as many yearbooks do, offers a good overview of some of the concerns and research findings in this particular area of media and information literacy and intercultural dialogue. Because it is based in a consortium of universities the yearbook offers a valuable insight into the research approaches taken in this worldwide consortium. Those who are already familiar with media literacy or information literacy or with communication for development will find an interesting perspective of the joining of these individual communication efforts and an added sense of the role of intercultural dialogue. Those not familiar with it will find a good introduction to the area. However, as in any yearbook, one gets only summary kinds of information, the editors choosing to include a greater number of studies rather than in-depth treatments of a few areas.

Paul A. Soukup, S.J.

Santa Clara University