Technology, education and critical media literacy: potential, challenges, and opportunities

Authors: Mayte Santos-Albardía, Simón Peña-Fernández, Irati Agirreazkuenaga

Published: 2026-08-11 10:30:06+00:00

Comment: 12 pages, 6 tables

Journal Ref: Frontiers in Human Dynamics (2025), 7, 1608911

AI Summary

This study investigates the integration of technology into media education and literacy, examining perceptions of university students and academic experts regarding critical competencies. It highlights challenges like disinformation and deepfakes within educational contexts and identifies opportunities for improving teaching-learning processes through technology. The findings reveal that while technology offers educational benefits, its curriculum inclusion is limited and superficial, suggesting a need for a critical media literacy framework that fosters ethical content evaluation and participatory citizenship.

Abstract

This study examines the impact of technology within media education, media literacy, and educommunication, and explores how these fields are perceived and understood by students and academic experts, focusing on the development of critical competencies and critical media literacy. Based on semi-structured in-depth interviews with leading experts in the field of critical media literacy, and a survey conducted with 141 university students in Communication and Education programs, this study explores how recent technological advances are linked to challenges in information consumption-such as disinformation, fake news, incidental exposure to information, and deepfakes-as well as the challenges and opportunities these issues present within educational contexts. The results reveal that, although such technologies provide opportunities to improve teaching-learning processes, their inclusion in the curriculum is limited and often superficial. In addition, we identify shortcomings in how teachers are trained to manage these tools effectively, hindering the development of critical thinking by students. The conclusions suggest a need for critical media literacy that not only educates students in the use of technologies but also allows them to question and evaluate the content they consume, all within an ethical and reflective framework that promotes participatory and critical citizenship.

Key findings

The study found a significant gap between the perceived importance of critical media literacy skills and their actual integration into university curricula, with many students unfamiliar with key concepts. Despite frequent media consumption, students often feel unprepared to critically analyze content or manage information overload. A correlation was observed between more frequent and diverse media consumption and greater confidence in critical analysis skills, suggesting that active engagement outside formal education contributes to media literacy development.

Approach

The study employs a mixed-methods approach, combining qualitative semi-structured in-depth interviews with leading experts in critical media literacy and a quantitative survey administered to 141 university students. This dual approach aims to understand both expert perspectives on critical media literacy and student perceptions of media habits and competencies in the context of technological transformation.

Datasets

UNKNOWN

Model(s)

UNKNOWN

Author countries

Spain

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