That's Me You're Talking About
Level(s): Grade 9 to 12
Overview
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This is the first of five lessons designed to teach students to think critically about the way aboriginal peoples and visible minorities are portrayed in the press. Each of the lessons, which are designed to be used in order, deal with a specific topic. Human rights, the front page, bias in the news, and fact versus opinion are the first four lessons, culminating in a final class project - a one week audit of the way aboriginal peoples and visible minorities are represented in your local paper.
"That's Me You're Talking About" is a mock letter to the editor. In this letter, racial, prejudicial and stereotypical statements publicly made about ethnocultural minority groups in Canada have been modified into parallel statements about youth. The idea is that by experiencing a personal reaction to these derogatory, all encompassing statements about youth, students will recognize their unfairness and be in a position to refute the writer's position.
It should be easier to deal with aspects of human rights in class once students have had a meaningful related experience from which empathy and a sense of justice can develop.
Outcomes
Students will:
- understand how generalized statements may create bias about a specific group of people
- recognize bias and slant in written work
- recognize the importance of actively responding to the media
- demonstrate writing skills and critical thought in interpreting and responding to a written work
Preparation and Materials
Photocopy Letter to the Editor
Procedure
Many ethnocultural minority groups in Canada are discriminated against because they stand out as being different.
- Hand out and read the mock Letter to the Editor.
- Discuss it with your class, asking the following questions.
- How do you feel about this letter?
- Which parts of the letter do you agree or disagree with? Why?
- Give examples of ways in which kids contribute to our society.
- How can people become more aware of the contributions youth make to society?
- How does the letter writer's views of youth compare to the treatment of other groups in our society?
Activity
- Have students write a letter of response, taking into account the previous discussion points.
Extension Activity
- Have students visit MNet's Media Toolkit for Youth and record their suggested strategies for combating the negative portrayal of young people in the media.
- Discuss how other groups might be able to use these strategies.
Evaluation
- Student responses to the letter to the editor.
