The document discusses the new UNESCO Media and Information Literacy (MIL) curriculum for the Western Balkans, presented at the International Summit of the Book in December 2022. It highlights the challenges posed by social media, the psychological effects of dopamine driven by likes, and the manipulation through algorithms that aim to keep users engaged. The curriculum aims to develop critical thinking skills and competencies related to information usage, with a focus on fostering informed citizens in the digital age.

1. Training MIL Tool:
The New UNESCO MIL Curriculum
Western Balkan Information & Media Literacy (WBIMLC)
and 11th International Summit of the Book
Bihac, Bosnia and Herzegovina
December 8-9, 2022. 7:20 – 7:50 am
Jesús Lau
jlau@uv.mx / jesuslau@gmail.com / www.jesuslau.com.mx
Professor, Faculty of Pedagogy, DSAE Doctoral Program, Universidad Veracruzana,
Veracruz, Campus
Veracruz, Veracruz, México

2. Topics
1.I. Social networks demand info-skills
2.
2.II. UNESCO MIL Alliance
3.
3.III. UNESCO MIL Curriculum

3. Sodium glutamate – Taste manipulation
https://foodandwineespanol.com/glutamato-monosodico-umami-que-es/
• Monosodium glutamate "tricks" our body into believing that food tastes
better
• Monosodium glutamate is among the many chemical additives in our food
and can be found naturally in some foods, however monosodium glutamate
or MSG is the result of a chemical process.
• A high consumption of monosodium glutamate
has also been linked to a worse development
of certain diseases such as Alzheimer's,
depression, autism or multiple sclerosis.

4. Sodium Glutamate – Taste
manipulation
https://foodandwineespanol.com/glutamato-monosodico-umami-que-es/
Its consumption or can cause the following ailments:
• Headaches
• Migraines
• Muscle spasms
• Nausea
• Allergies
• Epileptic seizures
• Depression and heart irregularities

5. Social networks manipulate
1. Social networks were born as places to connect
friends, stay up to date on information and to form
communities
2. Now the goal is to keep the user connected
3. Social media has gone from being a place to
interact to an endless cycle of mind-blowing and
addictive content
4. Social media is becoming a place where we are
almost all the time
5. We get little value and can't seem to get off the
platforms
https://contenttu.com/blog/redes-sociales/por-que-mi-empresa-debe-estar-en-redes-sociales

6. Digital Cocain
TikTok is Slowly Destroying a New Generation
https://medium.com/yardcouch-com/tiktok-is-slowly-destroying-a-new-generation-804cfdfbae03
Mental Illness Factory
Dopaminic effects
Dopamine is a neurotransmitter
Helps control the brain centers of pleasure and satisfaction
It's like a Switch that tells the brain "This feels good, do it again”
An almost hypnotic effect, which keeps the person watching their
screen
https://bradhuddleston.com/shop/pre-order-available-in-april-
2020-cocaina-digital-spanish-version

7. Psychological factors: Platform developers
1. According to an article in Social Cognitive and Affective
Neuroscience, accumulating likes on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram
causes "activation in the Brain Circle Involved in Reward.
2. This includes the striatum area and ventral tegmental area,
regions also involved in the experience of receiving approval signals
in the real world.
3. Receiving a lot of likes on the Instagram photo itself leads to the
activation of this brain network.
4. When social media users receive positive feedback (likes), their
brains activate dopamine receptors, whiche is facilitated in part by
the ATC.
https://neuromarketing.la/2021/02/psicologia-de-las-redes-sociales-y-su-efecto-en-el-cerebro/

8. • Study monitored with magnetic resonance imaging
•
• Results "Seeing photos with many likes" was associated with
increased activity in neural regions involved in:
•
• Rewards Processing
• Social cognition
• Imitation and
• Attention
Teen brains – Instagram
Citado en: https://neuromarketing.la/2021/02/psicologia-de-las-redes-sociales-y-su-efecto-en-el-cerebro/
https://www.sdpnoticias.com/opinion/los-riesgos-de-las-redes-sociales-y-de-instagram/

9. Algorithms – Artificial Intelligence
1. Algorithm: "Set of operations and decisions [logical and mathematics] that, from
certain rules, results in a product"
2.
2. Algorithms aim to keep the user connected and addicted
3. Objective: Monetize network usage (money)
4.
4. The more time the user spends online, the more
money is paid for advertising
5.
5. It does not matter if the information is true, false or
manipulative
6.
6. Difficult for the user to disconnect even though
content is irrelevant
https://gaceta.cch.unam.mx/es/inteligencia-artificial-en-el-arte

10. Naked Minds - Factors
• Massive data compilation
•
• Artificial intelligence: Massive data processing
•
• Storage capacity
•
• Privacy of individuals
•
• Data mining

11. 01
UNESCO MIL Alliance

12. MIL Alliance: A UNESCO Network
https://www.unesco.org/en/media-information-literacy/alliance

13. Objectives of the UNESCO Alliance
● Articulate concrete alliances to promote the development and impact of
MIL worldwide;
●
● Allow the MIL community to speak as one voice on certain critical issues,
particularly as it relates to policy;
●
● Further deepen the strategy for MIL to be treated as a composite concept
by providing a common platform for MIL-related networks and
partnerships globally.

14. How Can We Foster Critical Use of Information?
● Decision making
●
● Learning
●
● Research
●
● Entertainment

15. 02
UNESCO MIL curriculum
New 2021 Second Edition

16. Curriculum MIL, 2nd. Edition
https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377068

17. Curriculum Structure
• Modules (14)
•
• Units (Vary by module 3 – 6)
• Keywords
• Learning objectives
• Pedagogical approaches and
activities
• Evaluation and recommendations

18. Module (1):
Core module: an introduction to media and
information literacy and other key concepts
UNITS
1. Understanding Media and Information Literacy: An
Orientation
2. MAI, Citizen participation and the right to information
3. Interaction with media and other content providers, such as
libraries, archives, and Internet communications companies
4. MIL, digital skills, cultural participation, creativity and
entrepreneurship
5. MIL teaching and lifelong learning
https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377068

19. Module (2):
Understanding information and technology
UNITS
1. Technology Media and Society
2. Freedom, Ethics Social Responsibility
3. What makes news: Exploring the criteria
4. The News Development Process: Beyond
EWS and 1H
https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377068

20. Module (3):
Research, Information Cycle, Digital Information
Processing, Intellectual Property
UNITS
1: How Academic and Scientific Information is Constructed
2: Search: Strategic exploration of information
3: Evaluation of Academic and Scientific Information
4: Concepts and Applications of Information Literacy
5: Learning Environments and Information Literacy
6: More about digital information processing
7: Intellectual Property and Acknowledgement of Authorship
https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377068

21. Module (4):
MIL Competencies to Address Disinformation
and Hate Speech: Advocating for Truth and Peace
UNITS
1: Truth Matters
2: The ecosystem of disinformation and disinformation
3: Media and disinformation
4: Impacts of false and misleading content on individuals and
society
5: Disinformation about media and information literacy
https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377068

22. Module (5):
Audiences as citizens
UNITS
1: Understanding Global Citizenship
2: Audience National and Global Contexts
3: MIL, digital media and civic engagement
4: Citizen Information and Citizen Journalism
https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377068

23. Module (6):
Media and information representation:
highlighting gender equality
UNITS
1: The Concept of Representation
2: News reports and the power of the image
3: Institutional Codes on Diversity and Representativeness
4: Television, film and print publications
5 Performance and music videos
https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377068

24. Module (8):
Privacy, Data Protection
https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377068
UNITS
1. Understanding Privacy at MIL
2. Privacy, Data and Development
3. Awareness of institutional obligations to protect your
privacy and data

25. Module (9):
Internet Opportunities and Challenges
https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377068
UNITS
1. Youth in the Virtual World
2. Challenges and Risks of the Virtual World
3. Online learning, networking and social engagement
4. Media and Information Literacy Footprints: More on Managing
Your Online Presence

26. Module (10):
Advertising and media and
information literacy
https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377068
UNITS
1. Advertising, Revenue and Regulation
2. Targeted advertising and the political arena
3. Public Service Announcements (PSAS)
4. Advertising: The Creative Process
5. Transnational advertising and 'Superbrand'

27. Module (11):
Artificial Intelligence, Social Media and MIL
Competencies
https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377068
UNITS
1. Understand the basics of Ai and the use of Ai
in social media
2. Mil Competencies in the Age of AI and Social
Media
3. Individual and social rights, choices and
technology
4. Using Ai Social Media in development

28. Module (12):
Digital Media, Games and Traditional Media
https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377068
UNITS
1. From traditional media to digital media technologies
2. Uses of new media technologies in society: social
opportunity
3. Uses of interactive multimedia tools, including digital
games in classrooms

29. Module (13):
Media, technology and the Sustainable
Development Goals: the MIL context
https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377068
UNITS
1. The role of MIL in the Sustainable Development Goals
2. Social, cultural and political dimensions of media AND digital
media companies
3. Media ownership and commodification of information
4. Promotion of alternative media through digital technology
5. Uses of new media technologies in society: social opportunity

30. Module (14):
Communication and Information, MIL and
Learning: A Final Module
https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377068
UNITS
1. Communication and Information, Teaching and
Learning
2. Learning theories and MIL
3. Change management to foster an enabling
environment for MIL in learning spaces

31. 03
Conclusions

32. Conclusions
1. Media and informational skills determine our quality
of life.
2. UNESCO's new MIL curriculum is a training tool to
develop MIL competencies
3. UNESCO's MIL Alliance aims to promote joint efforts
to build a society with critical thinking skills in the use
of information.

33. References 1
• Barrio, Á., & Ruiz F., I. (2014). Adolescents and the use of social networks. International Journal of Developmental and Educational Psychology,
3(1),571-576. ISSN: 0214-9877. https://www.redalyc.org/articulo.oa?id=349851785056
•
• Brooke, A., Anderson, M. (2021). Social Media Use in 2021.Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2021/04/07/social-
media-use-in-2021/
•
• Cortes, J.; González, D.; Lau, J. et al (2004). Standards on Information Literacy in Higher Education. UACJ: Ciudad Juárez Chihuahua, Mexico.
http://bivir.uacj.mx/dhi/DoctosNacioInter/Docs/Directrices.pdf
•
• Curriculum Pilot Initiative: New curriculum to pilot MIL in formal education in Albania - https://en.unesco.org/news/new-curriculum-pilot-mil-
formal-education-albania
•
• Curriculuma Standards. Global Standards for Media and Information Literacy Curricula Development Guidelines - Preview of the document:
https://en.unesco.org/sites/default/files/global_standards_for_media_and_information_literacy_curricula_development_guidelines_-
_outline.pdf
•
• Guest, A. (2019). Social networks: what they are, how they work, what types exist and how marketing strategies influence.
https://rockcontent.com/es/blog/que-son-las-redes-sociales/
•
• The Basque newspaper (2019). What is monosodium glutamate and what harm does it cause? The pantry.
https://www.diariovasco.com/gastronomia/despensa/glutamato-monosodico-debemos-20190713164013-nt.html
•
• The Sun of Toluca (2018). The use of cell phones causes accidents at work, plus those caused by alcohol.
https://prevencionar.com.mx/2018/10/14/uso-del-celular-trabajo-
accidentes/#:~:text=Los%20empleados%20que%20utilizan%20el,fin%20de%20cuidar%20su%20integridad.

34. References 2
•
• Mena, M. (2022). Addiction to social networks in the world. Statista. https://es.statista.com/grafico/18988/tiempo-medio-
diario-de-conexion-a-una-red-
social/#:~:text=A%20nivel%20global%2C%20los%20usuarios,de%20un%20pa%C3%ADs%20a%20otro
•
• Melgar, J. (2020). Psychology of social networks and their effect on the brain. Neuromarketing.
https://neuromarketing.la/2021/02/psicologia-de-las-redes-sociales-y-su-efecto-en-el-cerebro/
•
• Olguín, M. (2020). Ten consequences of cell phone use. UNAM Global. https://unamglobal.unam.mx/diez-consecuencias-del-
uso-del-celular/
•
• Orlowski, J. (Executive producer). (2020). The Social Media Dilemma [TV Series].
•
• UN MIL Resolution: United Nations Resolution of Media and Information Literacy: United Nations 75th General Assembly
unanimously adopted resolution A/75/RES/267, reaffirming the urgency of media and information literacy as international
development intervention. The resolution calls on countries around the world to, "to develop and implement policies, action
plans and strategies related to the promotion of media and information literacy, and to increase awareness, capacity for
prevention and resilience to disinformation and misinformation...”
•
• UNESCO (2021). Media and Information Literate Citizens: think critically, Click Wisely (Second Edition of the UNESCO Model
Media and Information Literacy Curriculum for Educators and Learners).
https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377068