"The danger of 'fake news' isn't just that it tricks people into believing a lie. The real catastrophe is that it makes people so cynical that they stop believing that the truth even exists."
Cory Doctorow, Canadian-British Author & JournalistIn an era of "abundant information," your most valuable skill is the ability to filter noise from truth. The goal of these logs is to move past "gut feelings" and develop a systematic way to verify information. By the end of this course, you will have practiced four distinct professional frameworks for media analysis.
Be Skeptical: Most sources online are far from perfect. Your job here is to show that you can identify the less-than-perfect parts, not to prove that you have somehow found magically perfect sources. Try to show how skilful you are at identifying quality issues.
While the primary grade for this unit comes from your Media Log Review Video, your logs serve as the evidence of your learning journey. Think of them as your lab notes: they document the hours you spend developing your research muscles.
To make sure your work is recognized and meets the course requirements, keep the following in mind:
In this course, we aren't just looking for the "perfect" academic source. One of our primary goals is to learn how to navigate the mediocre sources that make up most of our daily digital diet. Because of this, you are encouraged to look for information across all types of media.
Don't feel limited to news sites or textbooks; you are welcome (and encouraged) to use:
The "Good Parts" Philosophy The goal isn't to find a source that is 100% perfect. The goal is to develop the skill of extracting the "good parts." Even a biased TikTok or a mediocre YouTube video might contain a specific, verifiable fact, a unique perspective, or a lead that you can follow to a more authoritative source. Your job is to use your current framework (CARS, CRAAP, RADCAB, or SIFT) to filter the noise and find the usable truth. Learning to engage with these different formats is exactly how you build the "Information Compass" you’ll use for the rest of your life.
Deliverable:
Complete the forms on the course app, and your work is collected automatically.
Before you submit, please complete the Pre-Submission Self-Assessment.
Media Logs
We are learning to:
Analyze the reliability of various types of media encountered in real life
Communicate the rationale behind conclusions to others
I can:
Create a 3-5 minute video that shows my face
Address issues most relevant to the target audience in an engaging way
Connect analytical skills to job and life skills
Describe problems and offer solutions
| Category | Level 4 | Level 3 | Level 2 | Level 1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Knowledge / Understanding | Student has described, with exceptional detail and clarity, how historical investigation has helped them develop useful skills | Student has described how historical investigation has helped them develop useful skills | Student has somewhat described how historical investigation has helped them develop useful skills | Student has described, in a limited fashion, how historical investigation has helped them develop useful skills |
| Thinking / Inquiring | Student has explained how a career will be made easier with their improved critical analysis skills very effectively | Student identified a career will be made easier with their improved critical analysis skills | Student made some connections about how a career will be made easier with their improved critical analysis skills | Student made limited connections about how a career will be made easier with their improved critical analysis skills |
| Application (Context) | Student is exceptionally able to use hisorical knowledge to provide context to a current issue | Student uses hisorical knowledge to provide context to a current issue | Student uses hisorical knowledge to provide some context to a current issue | Student uses hisorical knowledge to provide limited context to a current issue |
| Application (Skills) | Student applies the skills they have developed exceptionally in an everyday context | Student applies the skills they have developed in an everyday context | Student is able to apply some skills they have developed in an everyday context | Student is able to apply limited skills they have developed in an everyday context |
| Application (Life Lesson) | Student is able to evaluate and synthesize what they have learned into a memorable “life lesson” | Student is able to evaluate and synthesize what they have learned into a coherent “life lesson” | Student is able to evaluate and synthesize what they have learned into a reasonably coherent “life lesson” | Student is somewhat able to evaluate and synthesize what they have learned into a “life lesson” |
Student has described, with exceptional detail and clarity, how historical investigation has helped them develop useful skills
Student has described how historical investigation has helped them develop useful skills
Student has somewhat described how historical investigation has helped them develop useful skills
Student has described, in a limited fashion, how historical investigation has helped them develop useful skills
Student has explained how a career will be made easier with their improved critical analysis skills very effectively
Student identified a career will be made easier with their improved critical analysis skills
Student made some connections about how a career will be made easier with their improved critical analysis skills
Student made limited connections about how a career will be made easier with their improved critical analysis skills
Student is exceptionally able to use hisorical knowledge to provide context to a current issue
Student uses hisorical knowledge to provide context to a current issue
Student uses hisorical knowledge to provide some context to a current issue
Student uses hisorical knowledge to provide limited context to a current issue
Student applies the skills they have developed exceptionally in an everyday context
Student applies the skills they have developed in an everyday context
Student is able to apply some skills they have developed in an everyday context
Student is able to apply limited skills they have developed in an everyday context
Student is able to evaluate and synthesize what they have learned into a memorable “life lesson”
Student is able to evaluate and synthesize what they have learned into a coherent “life lesson”
Student is able to evaluate and synthesize what they have learned into a reasonably coherent “life lesson”
Student is somewhat able to evaluate and synthesize what they have learned into a “life lesson”