The eight units in Media Literacy and their powerful ideas:

Media ownership and economics...

How all of the world's major media production and distribution apparatus is controlled by five multi-national corporations and how this manipulates individuals in our society.

Persistence of vision and the illusion of movement...

How motion picture film and projection and television work to construct an illusion of movement based upon fatigue of the retina.

Computer/Video game violence, stereotyping and exaggeration...

Do video games act as catharsis or do they cause their users to become violent? Examining the links between military training and video simulations. Students create their own non-violent and gender neutral game prototypes.

Gladiators of the Roman Arena and modern day sports...

Examining the links between the ancient games and modern entertainment spectacle; bloodlust; violence between players; violence between fans; the media's depiction.

Advertising...

The use of subtle and blatant means of directing audience attention to a product; hard sell/soft sell; subliminal seduction; exploitation of women and racial minorities.

Racial, gender, and ethnic stereotyping in the media...

Examination of blatant racist animated cartoons from bygone days and connection to the more subtle manifestations of racism in today's media; examination of less-than/better-than thinking;a look at the holocaust--facing history and ourselves.

Media and drug culture...

The perpetuation of drug myths;examination of the levels of drug manufacture, distribution and consumption--from the level of the peasant farmer to the street consumer; staging a mock trial.

Reflection, Documentation, self-assessment, action plans...

Metacognition through journal writing; self assessment using the zone of proximal development;letter writing to world or industry leaders; student-run campaigns.