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This paper re-visits the Media Arts curriculum 10 years after initial discussions within the Australian Media Education community helped to shape the content and contexts for teaching about media in Australian schools. 10 years is a long time in media history, particularly with the rise of social media and digital platforms as major venues for entertainment, information dispersal and social, cultural and political discourse. Media Arts was developed towards the end of the 2000s, when the focus in media literacy research was on 'participatory culture' - the idea that digital media allowed almost anyone to be a media producer and consumer. In this context, Media Arts' focus was on identifying the knowledge and skills young Australians required to creatively and productively participate in media culture. The use of digital media in society in the 2010s, however, drew attention to many of the problematic consequences of digital participation, including the ambiguous role of the digital platforms in mediating social and culture discourse. This paper investigates what should be updated in future versions of the Media Arts curriculum, particularly to respond to challenges such as disinformation, the media industries' shift in power from Hollywood to Silicon Valley, and the impact of algorithmic culture on creative participation. The paper argues that while is it important for young people to develop creative and practical skills to make their own media, it is just as important for them to think critically about the technological contexts of digital media production, distribution and use, and its impacts on society and individuals. [Author abstract]

This article extends the idea of media pedagogies to consider how TikTok provides a site of social learning about books and reading. It uses the concept of “peer pedagogies” to identify how the #BookTok hashtag is used to invite book and reading enthusiasts to take up learning positions. The article uses an exploratory approach to identify contrasting videos in which learning about books and reading is made available, and it undertakes an in-depth content and semiotic analysis of three videos to consider how learning is framed in different ways. The article is informed by Bernstein’s theorization of pedagogical classification and framing, which relates to how knowledge and skills are institutionally defined, and how knowledge is made available along a continuum of greater and less formality. This approach enables a consideration of the learning positions available to members of the #BookTok community as they engage with the videos. The article shows how #BookTok creators make deliberate creative and pedagogical choices to use TikTok’s affordances to share knowledge and skills as a form of public media pedagogy and service to the #BookTok community. In addition, it argues that the sharing of knowledge and skills between people who share a passion and interest in books and reading contributes to the videos’ popularity and success.

News media literacy has come to receive considerable public attention in recent years in the context of anxieties about the impact of misinformation on society. This article outlines research that examines how Australian teachers perceive and value news media literacy and it explores their experiences of teaching news in the classroom. The article presents findings from an online survey of 295 Australian teachers and follow-up semi-structured interviews with 20 teachers. Our analysis finds that although many teachers value students' learning about the news, there are significant challenges and barriers to address if the approach is to become more widely available in Australian classrooms. Teachers lack direction about how news should be taught to young people, the curriculum is already crowded, limiting opportunities to address news, and teachers lack access to relevant professional development. The article provides insights into how to move forward to ensure young people receive adequate education about news in Australia, with the findings holding relevance to other countries facing similar challenges. [Author abstract]

This paper examines the personal and professional experiences of the five arts leaders who co-wrote the foundation document for Australia's first national curriculum in the Arts. Their personal and professional backgrounds, which were explored during in depth interviews, drove the complex collaborative process that informed the first iteration of the Australian Curriculum: The Arts. Though each couched their responses in the context of their background and arts discipline, they shared an awareness of the important role of the Arts in providing the analytical tools for children and young people to identify and subsequently challenge social injustice. The findings, which are presented as a group narrative using a Narrative Inquiry approach, reveal how the five arts leaders' individual lived experience, disciplinary experience and expertise, and commitment to collaborative leadership informed their approach. It was one driven by their shared belief that all Australian students, regardless of their background, are entitled to a quality arts education. [Author abstract]

The Curriculum Connections STEM (CC STEM) YouTube channel was developed by researchers at Queensland University of Technology based on findings from a national research project: the Australian Screen Content in Education Project. A key project finding was that YouTube is highly popular as a teaching tool and that video production is becoming a common activity in classrooms across the curriculum, as teachers and students turn to multimodal communication to develop and express knowledge in new ways.

Digital Participation through Social Living Labs connects two largely separate debates: On the one hand, high speed internet access and associated technologies are often heralded as a means to bring about not only connectivity, but also innovation, economic development, new jobs, and regional prosperity.

This article develops insights and generates new lines of inquiry into young children's digital lives in China and Australia. It brings to dialogue findings from a national study of young children's digital media use in urban settings in China with findings from studies in Australia. This is not presented as a direct comparison, but rather as an opportunity to shed light on children's digital lives in two countries and to account for the impact of context in relatively different social and cultural circumstances. The article outlines findings from a study of 1,171 preschool-aged children (3 to 7-year-olds) in six provinces in China, including the frequency of their use of television, early education digital devices, computers, tablet computers and smartphones, music players, e-readers and games consoles. It also focuses on various activities such as watching cartoons, using educational apps, playing games and participating in video chat. Methods included a multistage sampling process, random selection of kindergartens, a weighted sampling process, the generation of descriptive data and the use of linear regression analysis, and a chi-square test. The study demonstrates the significance of a range of factors that influence the amount of time spent with digital media. The contrast with Australian studies produces new insights and generates new research questions.

This article argues that it is necessary to develop new approaches to media and information literacy (MIL) education to respond to information seeking on YouTube. The article draws on data from a survey of adult Australians (N=3,510), focusing on their media literacy attitudes, experiences, and needs. A subset of this data focuses on respondents who use YouTube to seek information for a purpose. The article interrogates the data to ask who uses YouTube to access information when they need to make a decision; how these adults’ critical dispositions compare to people who do not use YouTube to seek information; and what level of media ability they have compared to other groups. A total of 45% of adult Australians had used YouTube to seek information and make a decision in the month prior to completing the survey. While this group shared a critical disposition towards media and information, they lacked confidence in their own media abilities. We argue that it is necessary to develop new MIL approaches to assist this group. In addition, we argue that this group is more likely to respond to MIL initiatives that are available on YouTube itself and are unlikely to seek MIL learning in community institutions like libraries or community centres. Este artículo sostiene la necesidad de desarrollar nuevos enfoques en la educación en alfabetización mediática e informacional (AMI) para responder a la búsqueda de información en YouTube. El estudio se basa en los datos de una encuesta realizada a adultos australianos (N=3.510), centrada en sus actitudes, experiencias y necesidades en materia de alfabetización mediática. Un subconjunto de estos datos se centra en los encuestados que utilizan YouTube para buscar información con algún fin. El texto indaga sobre quiénes utilizan YouTube para acceder a la información cuando necesitan tomar una decisión; cómo se comparan las disposiciones críticas de estos adultos con las de las personas que no utilizan YouTube para buscar información; y qué nivel de competencia mediática tienen en comparación con otros grupos. El 45% de los australianos adultos acudió a YouTube en busca de información o para tomar una decisión durante el mes anterior a la realización de la encuesta. Aunque este grupo compartía una disposición crítica hacia los medios de comunicación y la información, carecía de confianza en sus propias habilidades mediáticas. Se argumenta que es preciso desarrollar un nuevo planteamiento de la AMI para ayudar a este colectivo. Además, se considera que este grupo es más propenso a responder a las iniciativas de alfabetización mediática e informacional que están disponibles en el propio YouTube y que es improbable que busque la alfabetización mediática e informacional en instituciones comunitarias como bibliotecas o centros cívicos.

A significant challenge for the implementation of the Australian Curriculum: The Arts is the professional development of primary school teachers in all parts of the country. During 2012, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra (SSO) conducted a remote music professional development workshop as part of the Sydney Opera House's Digital Education Program for teachers in New South Wales using the Department of Education's Connected Classroom system which allows live synchronous interaction between facilitators and participants in multiple sites. In this article, we analyse observational and videotape data collected during this live professional development event to consider the opportunities and challenges presented by this type of professional learning experience in the arts. In particular, consideration is given to the impact of a remote musical interaction on embodied learning and aesthetic experience. We draw on actor-network theory to consider the ways in which a remote professional development experience differs to one in which all participants are present in the same space. Finally, we conclude that although there are significant differences in the type of learning that occurs in a remote music interaction, the online space provides a legitimate and potentially transforming experience for primary school teachers. [Author abstract]

A significant challenge for the implementation of the Australian Curriculum: The Arts is the professional development of primary school teachers in all parts of the country. During 2012, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra (SSO) conducted a remote music professional development workshop as part of the Sydney Opera House's Digital Education Program for teachers in New South Wales using the Department of Education's Connected Classroom system which allows live synchronous interaction between facilitators and participants in multiple sites. In this article, we analyse observational and videotape data collected during this live professional development event to consider the opportunities and challenges presented by this type of professional learning experience in the arts. In particular, consideration is given to the impact of a remote musical interaction on embodied learning and aesthetic experience. We draw on actor-network theory to consider the ways in which a remote professional development experience differs to one in which all participants are present in the same space. Finally, we conclude that although there are significant differences in the type of learning that occurs in a remote music interaction, the online space provides a legitimate and potentially transforming experience for primary school teachers.