By the time children reach middle school, they already have a well-established relationship with the media. Ignoring the significance of media in the lives of adolescents creates a gap between their in-school and out-of-school worlds. Middle school curricula needs to be relevant to students. Therefore, educators should make time to address the…

Literacy has traditionally been associated with the printed word. But today, print literacy is not enough. Children and youth need to learn to "read" and interpret visual images as well. Film, television, videos, DVDs, computer games, and the Internet all hold a prominent and pervasive place in one's culture. Its presence in people's lives is only…