Getting back to basics

There is also a movement toward media literacy, and the governor signed a bill authored by our Assemblymember Marc Berman, D-Palo Alto, to ensure media literacy instruction will be integrated into the four core subjects all students learn from K-12th grade. Berman authored the bill because of concern that children, families and our society are being “inundated with misinformation and disinformation on social media networks and digital platforms.”

As someone in the media, I welcome discussion and education on what constitutes real news from trusted sources, but also recognize that we live in a very fluid society with constant advancements, most recently with artificial intelligence. There have even been some recent reports that AI is being incorporated into some online news sources with varying success. Since ChatGPT launched in November 2022, there have been a number of advancements but also concerns about legitimacy of information — that’s a real concern that should be addressed early and often. There could be a path forward for new legislation to address that in the classroom, but there could also be a trust established in our educational system and its local leaders.

I am absolutely certain there have been ongoing and wide-ranging discussions on AI by our educators, particularly in contending with work submitted by students. It is only natural that there are current events discussions on media, media literacy, AI, social media and how to best discern fact from fiction. I am not finding fault with Berman’s legislation, which solidifies the need and provides a broad template for all schools in the state, but I gather much of the content described in the bill is likely already being discussed in many places.

The same could be the case for financial literacy. It is likely already being discussed, but not in the detail it needs to be as evidenced by early support for the proposition. But it is also likely that those in support are parents who have had to share their knowledge with their children, thus negating the need. Again, I’m not finding fault with the proposal, just pointing out the discussions are already taking place, just not in every instance and this would solidify that.

The basics of financial literacy are readily found on the internet by those with that particular interest, and anyone with knowledge of savings and investing would be absolutely delighted by questions from younger folk on the topic. Still, I have been perplexed at times by the basic lack of understanding of relatively simple finance concepts by some young people who are extremely bright. So some basic knowledge would be useful in an academic setting.

The calls for more robust education in both media and financial literacy, however, do point to an underlying societal concern — that we may not be doing enough to prepare our young people for the world. If that’s the case, it is our fault, and not theirs, and these efforts aim to rectify that. Our current educational system is often burdened by outside requirements and standards, which often limit the ability to incorporate emerging academic needs. It is with a bit of irony that we would consider adding requirements that could already be aged and could limit the ability of individual teachers to be flexible enough to engage in topics that are both important and emerging.

One of those could be, at least in my opinion, civics discussions that focus on local government structures. At times, I believe some think the only elected official in the United States is the president; there are significantly more at the state, regional and local levels who have more direct impact and accountability. The more youth know how their immediate surroundings operate, the better they can move successfully in that environment.

But again, my own desire is similar to those pushing for other types of literacy. Media and financial and, for me, civics. All these ideas are rooted in the renewed emphasis on the basics, of which we may have lost sight. I know people in their 70s who learned more about grammar in high school than I did in college. So where did we go wrong? Perhaps we haven’t provided sufficient direct input and support at the local level and instead relied on overarching mandates from above which limits the freedom of our teachers to do what we all know is best. And that’s a tough knot to untangle.

Jon Mays is the editor-in-chief of the Daily Journal. He can be reached at jon@smdailyjournal.com. Follow Jon on X @jonmays.