Decoding Short-Form Videos for Education

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Part of: Reality Checkup: Mis- and Dis-Information in Healthcare and the Classroom

Short-form video on platforms like Instagram and TikTok are a “powerful” medium. It presents new ways of engaging directly with large and young audiences on social media platforms. Not all voices, however, are positive. The U.S. Surgeon General issued a warning about chronic social media use in young people. Many in Generation Z bemoan “brainrot.” Is short-form video an obstacle to comprehension and retention? Or can it be an innovative learning tool?

Join the Pulitzer Center for a panel discussion about media consumption and literacy education in the classroom. OpenMind founding editor Corey S. Powell will moderate. The conversation will help an audience of educators and adults with young people in their lives understand the mechanics, promise, and potential pitfalls of short-form education content. TikTok videos featured in the Pulitzer Center-supported project The Cognitive Science of Deception and Disinformation will serve as examples.

How can we create science education content that meets students where they are, leans into complexity, and encourages curiosity?

Panelists:

• Michelle Ciulla Lipkin has served as executive director of the National Association for Media Literacy Education since 2012. She has helped NAMLE grow to be the preeminent media literacy education association in the U.S. Michelle launched the first-ever Media Literacy Week in the U.S., developed many strategic partnerships, and restructured both the governance and membership of the organization.
• Ben Rein, PhD, is a neuroscientist and science communicator. Ben currently serves as the Chief Science Officer of the Mind Science Foundation. He has provided scientific advising/consulting for more than 35 companies and foundations. He is also a contributing editor at OpenMind Magazine, and the Founder & President of the Aspiring Scientists Coalition, a virtual organization providing free guidance for students in over 75 countries.
• Katherine Smith is a 2023 Pulitzer Center National Teacher Fellow and English and ESL educator at Chicago Public Schools. She aims to equip students to leave her classroom as stronger readers, writers, and thinkers so they can engage in society in a meaningful, beneficial, and influential way. Her Pulitzer Center Lesson Plan, "Fake News + Text Analysis," pushes students to reflect on their relationship with news, technology, and social media
• Corey S. Powell is founding editor of OpenMind. He is the former editor-in-chief of Discover and American Scientist magazines, as well as a podcaster and freelance writer who has collaborated on five New York Times bestselling books.

TikToks part of The Cognitive Science of Deception and Disinformation:

“TikTok: There Is a Chemical Assault on Your Brain”
“TikTok: What Race Reveals About Biased Attitudes”
“TikTok: Companies Are Selling AI Therapy. Should You Buy It?”
“TikTok: Is Your Morality Flexible and Situational, or Fixed as the North Star?”