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Building a news and media literate generation

How you can make a difference

The spread of false information is putting children and young people in harm's way.

Only 11% of children aged 12-17 are able to correctly identify a genuine social media post, without making a mistake (1). Mis and disinformation is infiltrating every part of children’s lives, from unrealistic beauty standards to critical health advice about medicine and vaccines. Misleading content can even normalise and fuel misogyny, climate change denial, and racism.

Meanwhile, generative AI has the potential to be a positive force, but it is also making fake content more sophisticated and widespread. Children are twice as likely as adults to have used AI tools and 76% of parents worry about generative AI’s impact on their child’s critical thinking skills (2).

With your support, we can reach more young people, giving them the skills and confidence to safely navigate the world of news.

Many children believe everything they see or hear online. The spread of “fake news” is lightning speed and can grow arms and legs in a very negative and sometimes harmful way. Today’s current events are proof of this. Sensationalism, pressure from peer groups and the motives of influencers is a dangerous threat for children and our world.

Jenny

Primary school teacher

What we do

We turn classrooms into newsrooms, produce lesson plans and train educators and families so young people can engage critically with news and information and distinguish fact from fiction. We prioritise schools in disadvantaged communities because we know that those experiencing greater levels of inequality may not have access to the extracurricular activities that help build critical thinking.

Training and workshops for children and young people in person, online, and in our classroom located at the heart of Guardian newsroom.

Free curriculum-linked resources and lesson plans tailored for teachers, librarians, youth workers and SEND settings.

Peer learning through our network of young ‘Media Literacy Ambassadors’.

School visits from journalists.

Engaging activities for families to build media literacy together.

We're making a difference

To date, over 180,000 people across the UK have participated in our news and media literacy programmes. This number continues to grow as we bring our programmes to Europe. Independent evaluation of our programmes has shown that children become (3):

More resilient to false information.

Stronger writers. Teachers report year after year that taking part in our programme increases young people’s writing skills.

More likely to engage with their community, volunteer and help others.

Better at presenting and communicating. 75% of our young media literacy ambassadors improved their presentation and communication skills in addition to improving critical thinking in relation to news.

Why we need your support

Mis and disinformation, online conspiracy theories and declining trust in journalism are putting young people at risk like never before. The need for news and media literacy education has never been more urgent. Our programmes are ready to scale, but the demand for our work outstrips our available resources to deliver.

With your support, we could:

Map of UK with text Expand our free programme to more state schools, reaching 10 more disadvantaged communities over the next year.

Woman sitting with laptop with text Continue to support systemic change by engaging with government and regulatory bodies on online safety, school curriculum changes and the future of journalism.

Man shouting with text Continue to support systemic change by engaging with government and regulatory bodies on online safety, school curriculum changes and the future of journalism.

Map of Europe with text Continue to expand our work outside of the UK in European countries like Spain, Belgium, Germany and Greece, where there is a demand for specialist programmes like ours.

Colourful NewsWise resources with text Adapt our resources for different countries, working with partners in those countries to map them to national curriculums and local contexts.

Map of australia with text Reach countries outside of Europe like Australia, where the impact of mis and disinformation has affected the outcome of national votes and where there is an established Guardian office.

Rising to the challenge

£2,000

helps us deliver a workshop for 25 children so they can engage safely and critically with the news.

£10,000

Could help train 120 new media literacy ambassadors, empowering at least 720 young people with the skills to spot false information and critically consume content they see online.

£100,000

could allow us to take our primary school programme to Spain, Greece or another European country, training 50 teachers and reaching at least 1,000 children.