Media Literacy courses - which are usually offered at the secondary school level as an optional courses in English or the visual arts - will reflect a great diversity of approaches. The following are examples of areas covered by such courses:

Pop Culture

An understanding pop culture would touch on:

• fads and trends
• the coverage of royalty
• the appeal of the current music mega-stars
• pop culture's fascination with rituals
• the nature and power of celebrities
• fashion TV (television programs that cover the world of fashion, showcase the latest trends and profile fashion designers)
• fast-food happiness (the extensive marketing of fast-food restaurants through advertising campaigns that convey the idea that such eateries bring happiness by solving all one's problems)
• the appeal of shopping malls
• pop culture in a foreign country
• the culture of toys
• the appeal of cult film patterns in teen films
• formulas in best sellers
• the appeal of Harlequin romance novels
• the pop culture of the fifties and sixties

The World of Images

Topics and strategies might include:

• media images of men and women
• analyzing photographs
• adolescent magazines
• analyzing the signs and codes that appear in advertisements
• photographic trends from around the world
• the use of digital enhancement in photography

The Canadian Identity

Questions arising about Canadian identity include:

• What constitutes our identity and how well the media reflect it?
• What is the role of the CBC?
• How has the Canadian film industry developed?
• What is the "sound" of Canadian music?
• How is Canadian identity portrayed in the mass media, in literature, in theatre and in art?

The Information Society

The information society can be explored by looking at:

• current theories and research on the impact of the electronic media
• Marshall McLuhan's theories regarding the global village, the nature of perception, and the use of our senses
• the dynamics of third-wave technology (electronic technology and the use of computers)
• the Internet revolution
• the role of new and emergent technology

The Study of Specific Media or a Genre Within a Medium

Course units are often devoted to in-depth study of a specific medium such as film, television or the newspaper. The study of a medium can be subdivided further through the study of specific genres. A unit on genre in films might explore the nature of horror films; in a unit on radio students might explore the suspense drama genre; for television, the evolution of sitcoms might be an interesting topic.

Television Production

In order to understand better understand television, students might explore:

• the nature of the television medium
• the dynamics of television production
• script-writing and storyboards
• the use of the portable video camera
• the creation of a mini-documentary and a commercial
• the use of special effects
• applications of the mobile studio