This article presents a critical analysis of how the issue of childhood "sexualization"--and the role of consumer culture within it--has been defined and framed, both within the public debate and in the academic research literature. It counterposes this with some evidence taken from a study conducted in Scotland in 2009/10 about the…

Postmodern media culture widens the gap between school and children's external environments; it challenges the critical objective of media education. Students' efforts at media production manifest a more playful concept of knowledge and learning, requiring a more comprehensive postmodern approach to media education. (Contains 47 references.) (SK)

Summarizes recent debates concerning the use of popular culture and media within the English curriculum. Presents an approach to using media in fostering understanding the way meaning and taste are socially constructed. Describes research aimed at developing an account of reading as social process. (HB)

Notes that news media use has declined in recent years, particularly among young people. Offers a critical review of research on the changing role of journalism in political socialization. Evaluates calls for popular alternatives to conventional forms of news and for a postmodern conception of citizenship and the public sphere. Concludes that more…

Teaching children to think critically about the media, particularly television, is discussed in terms of research on children's understanding of television; the interrelationships between cognitive, affective, and social factors; and the nature of child discourse and audience response to the media. Development of a more complex theoretical basis…

Offers a critical overview of the cultural and educational benefits and dangers of digital media for young people. Argues that public debates on this issue have "veered from utopian hype to moral panic." Provides accounts of previous research on children's engagement with computer games and creative use of multimedia in the home. (CR)