Belfast to host 'Media Education' conference

Nearly one hundred delegates from 23 countries are converging on Belfast tomorrow to share their media teaching expertise.
The 'Media Education In Europe' international conference, which is taking place at W5 in the Odyssey Arena, will cover topics including film, video, radio, Internet and press, with dozens of examples of media production by children, disadvantaged youth, older learners and migrants, as well as by young people within the formal school system.
Equally important to these delegates will be the development of critical skills in relation to the modern mass media. This does not just involve spotting the stereotypes in advertising or analysing the spin of politicians, but includes developing an appreciation of one’s own national cinema heritage, whether this is Czech, Polish, British or Irish.
While this week's event, which runs until Friday, is being funded by the European Commission, and attended by delegates from across Europe, there will also be representations from Canada, South Africa, New Zealand, Russia and Japan.
The conference will also include 14 speakers from eight different countries, and 20 staff from the combined institutions forming Media-Educ, a five-nation consortium that runs Europe’s online observatory for media education.
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