Activity
This activity is designed to train educators in recognizing and analyzing nonfiction texts and fake news. The goal is to enhance critical reading skills, challenge information validity, and develop informed readers. The session includes pre-reading activities, reading exercises, and post-assessment.
Pre-requisites
Basic understanding of media literacy and textual analysis. Familiarity with concepts of credibility, evidence, and objectivity in information.
Explanation of activity
- Pre-Reading Activities (Activation of Previous Knowledge & Reading Skills)
- The teacher provides students with a questionnaire to activate their prior knowledge and reading competences.
- Students answer the following questions: a. How do you define non-fiction texts? b. “Non fake,” “Non real”: How can you be sure that something is fake or non-real? c. Have you ever been surprised by a text? If yes, why was it surprising? d. Was your surprise connected with your prior knowledge?
- Implementation: Media Analysis Project
- Students analyze news articles, social media posts, or other media sources to identify instances of disinformation, misinformation, fake news, or urban myths and the technological tools that produce them.
- They classify the sources and justify their reasoning.
- Students present their findings and explain the reasons for their classifications.
- Reading Activities
- Verified fake news and real news are provided, and students determine which is fake, justifying their reasoning (Working Sheet 1).
- A short article is analyzed to identify what the author assumed the reader already knew (Working Sheet 2).
- A read-aloud session where the teacher reads fake news and demonstrates verification techniques (Text 4).
- Group activity where students collaborate to identify fake news in a given text (Working Sheet 3).
- Post-Reading Assessment
- Students complete the same questionnaire as in the pre-reading stage to evaluate their learning progress.
- They reflect on the criteria used to assess information validity and discuss their experiences.
Teacher materials
- Pre-reading questionnaire
- Selected texts (fake and factual)
- Working Sheets 1, 2, and 3
- Guidelines for verifying information credibility
- Media analysis project guidelines
Relevant Reading to Understand the Materials:
- Articles on fake news identification
- Studies on media literacy and critical reading
Further reading to further develop the activity/understanding of the topic
- Academic papers on misinformation and media manipulation
- Books on non-fiction analysis and critical thinking
Student Materials
- Pre-reading questionnaire
- Selected reading texts
- Working Sheets for analysis
- Media analysis project materials
Analysis of Student Understanding
- Evaluation of student responses to pre- and post-questionnaire
- Assessment of justification and reasoning in working sheets
- Review of student media analysis projects
Assessing and Evaluation
- Comparison of pre- and post-questionnaire results
- Review of student analyses in working sheets
- Assessment of media analysis project presentations
Modulations
- Adaptable for different levels of student experience with media literacy
- Can be modified to include contemporary examples of fake news
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Resources
June 18, 2025
