1. Mrs Pirjo Sinko (FIN), Counsellor of Education, The National Board of Education
2. Ms Sanna Harakkamäki (FIN), Designer of youth work at Mannerheim League of Child Welfare
3. Mrs Sirkku Kotilainen (FIN), Senior Researcher, Ph.D., The Finnish Youth Research Network, Adjunct Professor, University of Jyväskylä, Adjunct Professor, University of Turku
4. Mrs Anu Ruhala (FIN), Instructor, Bachelor of Education, Media Education Center Metka
5. Ms Anniina Lundvall (FIN), Coordinator, Bachelor of Media Design, The Finnish Society on Media Education
6. Mr Ismo Kiesiläinen (FIN), Youth worker and producer, Bachelor of Media Design
7. Mrs Outi Freese (FIN), Executive Director, Koulukino (School Cinema Association)
Finland
Project descriptions
Projects for parents, teachers and youth workers
1. We and media- a media education project Presented by: Mrs Pirjo Sinko (FIN), Counsellor of Education, The National Board of Education
With this small media education project the Finnish National Board of Education (FNBE) aimed at producing new solutions and action models for media education. The specific purpose was to promote active citizenship with the means of media education and to support the implementation of new core curriculum, which stresse more than the previous one media education as a cross-curricular theme. We also wanted to deepen the co-operation between schools and media so that schools could learn more about media as a rapidly changing learning environment.
The criterias set for the participating schools were that their project plans should contain something innovative, a team big and representive enough to carry out the project and at least one external partner involved.
Two experts in FNBE designed and decided the action plan and guidelines for the project. The funding (50,000€) was recieved quite unexpectedly from the Goverment's Citizen Programme. Therefor the comprehensive schools were invited to take part in the project quite inconviniently just in the end of spring term 2006.
Schools participated in the opening seminar for two days in FNBE introducing themselves, following lectures, getting acquainted with the main partners on the media education field and being consulted by the FNBE media education experts.
Through this project we learned for example that schools can do innovative work without any additional funding, but even a small amount of extra money can trigger new and extraordinary initiatives and solicit new partnerships. There is readiness within schools for cross-curricular collaboration as well as with external partners and national school administration, but all this needs to be supported in various ways (funding, counselling, information, sharing).
2. Enhancing Youth Civic Engagement with Media Production Presented by: Mrs Sirkku Kotilainen (FIN), Senior Researcher, Ph.D., The Finnish Youth Research Network, Adjunct Professor, University of Jyväskylä, Adjunct Professor, University of Turku
Public space, especially online, is now offered more than ever before. Still, the role of public media in youth cultures has not been taken seriously enough in citizenship education. The presentation provides insights to the relations between youth, media publicity and citizenship.
It is based on three years empirical research, which has aimed to the enhancement of youth civic engagement on media, supported with media education in youth work and school (Kotilainen, Sirkku & Rantala, Leena 2008: coming on October in Finnish: Youth civic Identities and Media
Education)
The presentation starts with the description of youth media participation and multiple civic identities based on the case study. After that, there is a short discussion on media pedagogy, i.e. the practices that have been developed in youth work and school.
The presentation argues, that youth citizenship can be strengthened with media education which takes account the multiple youth civic identities and media publicity. This kind of media education consists on three elements related with each other: pedagogy understood as learning
community, youth media participation including media production and audiences which are, for example, offered on media publicity.
3. TUNNE - Turvallinen nuorten netti (Internet Safety for Youth) Presented by: Ms Sanna Harakkamäki (FIN), Designer of youth work at Mannerheim League of Child Welfare
The purpose of the TUNNE Project, in line with the European Commission Safer Internet Programme (2005-2007), was to empower citizens to use the internet, as well as other information and communication technologies, safely and responsibly. The primary target groups of the project were children aged 11-16 and their parents and teachers. In TUNNE Project, positive opportunities and smart, active use of media were emphasised and media skills were seen as a protective factor in child development. In Finland, children start using new communication technologies at an early age. Among the teenagers, the internet has quickly become a fundamental part of their daily social life. The development has been so rapid that a great deal of parents and educators are not at all familiar with the new technologies and new forms of communication their children are using.
The internet safety awareness work has been of great importance to MLL since 1999, when the first Smart on the Web Campaign was launched by MLL. The TUNNE project continued and strengthened the work already done in different awareness campaigns. The TUNNE Project was funded by Safer Internet Programme of the European Commission (50%). Additional funding for the project was provided by the Ministry of Transport and Communications Finland, Nokia, and the Children and New Media Project (MLL), which was funded by the Finland’s Slot Machine Association.
In order to bridge the digital divide between generations, the TUNNE Project pursued to foster the dialogue between generations. An important aspect of the approach was to familiarise adults with new forms of online and mobile methods of communication used by young people and to increase the understanding of the possible risks and negative effects they may induce. Thus, we used young people as trainers to share their knowledge and experiences with parents and teachers.
In the TUNNE School Campaign, a nationwide trainer network was created, which organised a total of 695 face-to-face briefings in schools with 42 800 participants altogether. The awareness-raising tools of the project consisted of brochures, video spots, educational material for peer student work, trainer’s guide and websites for parents and young people. The largest events of the project were Safer Internet Day 2006 and 2007 and the Smart on the Web professional seminar. The project conducted three wide surveys on children’s internet use and parents’ awareness. Active involvement in national and international networks and partnerships in several media education projects made it possible for the project tools and findings to be spread out wider thus increasing the overall effectiveness of the project.
With a successful school campaign, high visibility in local and national media and close communication with the popular online communities for young people, the TUNNE Project fulfilled the objective of awareness-raising in many respects. In addition, an internet safety trainer network was established in conjunction with the Tunne Project, which will continue the nationwide support for schools after the project phase. The MLL has also established a steady position in national as well as international networks on media safety and media education. The work continues in the Finnish Internet Awareness Project funded by the European Commission Safer Internet Programme. The Finnish Internet Awareness Project is a joint action of MLL, Save the Children Finland and the Finnish Communications Regulatory Authority (Finnish Safer Internet Day Campaign).
Projects with easy access
4. www.mediakasvatus.fi - Materials, information, events, news and opinions about media education Presented by: Ms Anniina Lundvall (FIN), Coordinator, Bachelor of Media Design, The Finnish Society on Media Education
Enhancing youth civic engagement withIn September 2007 the Finnish Society on Media Education opened a web portal called www.mediakasvatus.fi (mediaeducation.fi). This web portal meant for professional educators and workers, researchers, students, voluntary organisations and parents in the field of media education was launched the 27th of September 2007. The site is financed by the Ministry of Education and there are two editors, a Finnish and a Swedish, working with the site.
The mission of the portal is to increase awareness of media education and provide material resources for users in three languages. The website includes information about news and events, a massive collection of material for different target groups, information about research and statistics, blogs and conversational forums as well as a survival kit for parents. One part of the mission is to improve Nordic co-operation between Nordic countries and bring the knowledge about media education online.
By June 2008 the site has gained more than 370 users and over 1300 newsletter orders. The site has over 20 000 visitors every month. The most used pages are news, events and material search. Users have given feedback and informed us that the site is useful in many ways. The best feedback is given about the newsletters, which gather the actual news, events, competitions and materials. The newsletters are sent twice a month.
There have been some technical issues that still need to be fixed. For example there was a public news channel for visitors, so they could send news without registering. It had to be closed due to the spam. There is still a lack of content, especially in Swedish and English versions. In order to improve the contents we need alternative financers. The language issue was not properly considered in the first place.
5. Media Muffin - www.mediamuffinsi.fi Presented by: Anu Ruhala (FIN), Instructor, Bachelor of Education, Media Education Center Metka
The Media Muffin project was a launch to development of media education for small children. The project was organized by the Ministry of Education in Finland during years 2006-2007. Media Muffin training and material production continues in year 2008.
The project is carried out by three organizations: The Center for School Clubs, the School Cinema and Media Education Center Metka.
The goal of the Media Muffin project was to improve the media education readiness in early childhood education, the first grades of primary school and before and after school clubs. It also seeks to inform parents of small children’s media education.
Another goal is to make media education a more integral part of the training of early childhood staff, school teachers, and those working in children´s before and after school activities. Media Muffin was both educational as well as a media protectional project.
The project produces media education materials. The media education materials' offers pedagogical support to do media education with children and parents. The Media Muffin project organizes national training sessions, where teachers and other educators are introduced to the basic concepts and working methods of media education, and guided in the basics of the safe use of media.
During the Media Muffin project two researches have been done; one by the University of Tampere - Department of Journalism and one by University of Jyväskylä. These researches showed the points of development and success.
6. My Movie Event - www.mediametka.fi Presented by: Anu Ruhala (FIN), Instructor, Bachelor of Education, Media Education Center Metka
Media Education Center Metka organizes My Movie Event every year. This year 2008 the event is celebrating it´s 20th active year.
Young people under 25 years can send their self made movies to My Movie Event. They have the possibility to get feedback from professionals working in the Finnish filmindustry. In My Movie Event young people also have the opportunity to watch movies, which are made by other young people. My Movie Event is founded by the Ministry of Education.
Projects produced by children and young people
7. The Youth Voice Editorial Board Presented by: Mr Ismo Kiesiläinen (FIN), Youth worker and producer, Bachelor of Media Design
The Youth Voice Editorial Board is a youth participation and media education for young people wiling to influence and change the youth's image in media. The Youth Voice Editorial Board works as a news agency delivering material and stories to different media. The aim of this pioneer project is to get young people to produce media content into the maintsream media. The project activates and enables young people to have public discussions and debates with other people, experts and politicians in media topical issues important to them. The teens are trained to write atricles and produce TV programs with the help of professionla and leading journalists.
The idea of the Youth Voice Editorial Board originated in Youth's Open Forums in Helsinki in 2005. The Open Forums are discussion arenas for young people and politicians of the city of Helsinki organized by The Voice of the Young in Helsinki- campaing. In 2005 the theme of the Open Forums was media critic 'TV-me and virtual you - critically about media'. The young criticised the tiny visibility they have in mainstream media respect to the other age-groups and matters concerning them.
Helsinki city Youth Department established, together with an active group of young people, a planning group that worked for to make it possible to run a youth editorial board. The Youth Voice project started in the autumn 2006 and it collaborates with YLE (Finland's national public service broadcasting company), Helsingin Sanomat (the biggest newspaper in Finland) and Dynamoid OY (the enterprise that owns IRC-galleria). The project is a part of The Voice of the Young -campaign, a joint youth participation project of the Helsinki City Education and Youth Department that develops democratic operational culture at schools and youth work. The Editorial Board gets its financing from Youth Department, Helsingin Sanomat Foundation and Ministry of Education.
The activities of theYouth Editorial Board are various: the board members produce TV programs for YLE, write articles for Helsingin Sanomat and produce also surveys in IRG-galleria (a huge web based community which has 400,000 active users) about issues concerning the whole society. The subject of the programs have been youth's mental health and depression, the lack of politics at Finnish schools and youth's heavy drinking habits.
The Youth Voice Editorial Board consists of 50 media and activists, between 14-20-year old, which are all different personalities, and have various and also contradictory opinions about the society. The desire to make a difference is what brings these teens together in the field of media. The YVEB tries not to show the opinions of a small isolated group, but bring up the opinions of Finland's youth. When in the working phase, editorial board divides its members to several different small groups which all work on their own fields of media e.g Internet and television. Still major decisions concerning The Youth Voice Editorial Board are made together, by the members themselves.
The strength of this pioneer project is that it combines the desire to influence the society with media educatin and activate participation in an all new way. The Youth Voice Editorial Board provides its members, with all the training, experience and possibilities, to form a network of young activists which can make a difference now and tomorrow.
8. dvoted - www.dvoted.net Presented by: Mrs Outi Freese (FIN), Executive Director, Koulukino (School Cinema Association)
dvoted is a website where young people meet to share and develop their filmmaking together.
What we have here is three major services:
1. Upload, watch and discuss films in ARENA
2. Get feedback and advice from professional filmmakers in MENTOR
3. Receive updated news and information on film production, education and festivals in ACADEMY
The website also serves as a community, showroom and network. dvoted exists in real life as well with activities such as offline workshops and competitions at Nordic youth film festivals.
Who is it for?
dvoted is especially aimed at the young Nordic filmmaker aged 15 -20 years. But we also welcome everyone else who has an interest in filmmaking and can take advantage of dvoted.
Why dvoted?
Film is one of the most important media for modern storytelling wherein you seek answers on questions of life. The art of filmmaking is a gifted talent and a craft.
dvoted aims to develop talented young Nordic filmmakers, their craft, their stories and ideas. After all storytelling in a Nordic context has a long history – and so has Nordic filmmaking. dvoted wants to identify and develop the talent and skills of every young person who has the ambition to tell stories in moving images.
dvoted is the only Nordic service where means and guidance to professional film production are offered to the young filmmaker.
dvoted is produced by; Svenska Filminstitutet, Det Danske Filminstitut, Norsk Filminstitutt, Koulukino & Icelandic Film Centre
5.
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