Project summary

In a context where low levels of media literacy and critical thinking are becoming a prominent issue, the lack of media-specific citizenship education enables the attack on democracy, peace and the rule of law. The “Faker Fighters” project aims to increase the level of media literacy among young people in Europe.

The “Faker Fighters” Work Plan 2019, supported by the Council of Europe European Youth Foundation, has at its core a focus on media literacy, critical thinking, and combating disinformation in a European perspective. The work plan will mainly take the form of a training for facilitators and trainers, to be followed by several regional and local activities. It will also incorporate citizenship education actions throughout the course of the year, and a follow-up event to present the results to relevant partners and stakeholders involved in the project.

Aims and goals

The main aim is to increase the level of media literacy among young people in Europe. The specific objectives are:

• Developing the capacities of JEF members and other youth workers interested in delivering high quality media literacy and critical thinking education in a non-formal education context;
• Initiating the development of a pool of trainers in political youth work and citizenship education with a media literacy focus;
• Advancing high quality youth media about Europe through our volunteer-led online youth media (The New Federalist);
• Contributing to a better understanding of the fields of media literacy and critical thinking within the European perspective through engagement in advocacy activities at the European level;
• Outreaching to different groups of young people and raising awareness about fake news in Europe today and their impact on democracy.

Main activities

Drawing on these objectives, the “Faker Fighters” work plan relies on 5 interconnected activities.

Expert and resources development meeting (Jan 25th-27th, Brussels, Belgium)

Expert group meeting that took place in Brussels to develop the training for trainers and the follow-up modules. Counting on trainers and experts from several pools of trainers, the event developed the different modules for the following events and trainings.

Training for Trainers (Feb 20th – 27th, Novi Sad, Serbia)

Aimed at developing a pool of facilitators/trainers in the field of media literacy and critical thinking, and to enable the 24 participants to deliver trainings and sessions about the same issues in a non-formal education context. The training focuses on the interrelated skills of non-formal education, project management, and media literacy and critical thinking education.

3 Regional Schools (to be organised until the end of October 2019)

The regional schools will allow the people who attended the Novi Sad training to put their skills into practice. These 3 regional schools will take the form of 4-day seminars organised in different parts of Europe, bringing together between 16/20 participants each. They will aim to raise awareness among participants about the fight against disinformation, and to provide a better understanding of the media landscape in Europe.

12 Local Workshops (to be organised until the end of November 2019)

These workshops will follow an “Europe at School”-like pattern, and will also be organised by the participants of the Training for Trainers. With these local workshops, supported by JEF local sections, the objective is to provide critical thinking and media literacy education opportunities to a wide group of young people across Europe.

Faker Fighters Final Event (5th-8th December 2019, Strasbourg, France)

This closing event will be the place to exchange experiences of the different activities and to evaluate the project. It will help to gather feedback about the work plan, and it will also provide a space to envision its follow up. Moreover, it will allow presenting the results of the project to the relevant partners and stakeholders, ensuring its ultimate political impact.

Aimed at developing a pool of facilitators/trainers in the field of media literacy and critical thinking, and to enable the 24 participants to deliver trainings and sessions about the same issues in a non-formal education context. The training focuses on the interrelated skills of non-formal education, project management, and media literacy and critical thinking education.