Building Media Literacy in the Math Classroom and at Home

In both my roles, as a high school math teacher and as a father to a fourth-grade daughter and a seventh-grade son, I’ve become increasingly aware of how media shapes the way young people think, communicate, and interact with the world. While media literacy might not seem like a natural fit in a math classroom, I believe it's essential for educators in every subject area to help students navigate today’s digital world with critical eyes and thoughtful minds.

We live in a time when students are constantly bombarded by information, videos, memes, social media posts, influencer commentary, AI-generated content, and much of it feels authoritative, whether it actually is or not. The challenge isn't just to “stay informed” anymore; it’s to know how to think about the information that’s out there.

Image Source:  https://ssir.org/articles/entry/strengthen_media_literacy_to_win_the_fight_against_misinformation#

Renee Hobbs’ Five Core Competencies of Media Literacy

Renee Hobbs offers a clear and practical framework for media literacy through her five core competencies:

1. Access: locating and using media content across platforms
2. Analyze: examining media messages for bias, purpose, and audience
3. Create: producing responsible, ethical, and effective media
4. Reflect: being aware of how media affects one’s thoughts, beliefs, and behaviors
5. Act: engaging thoughtfully and respectfully in digital and public conversations

Image Source: https://reneehobbs.medium.com/educators-all-around-the-world-are-engaged-in-the-process-of-online-learning-during-the-time-of-3e8c0beb982b

As a math teacher, I’m constantly encouraging my students to think critically about numbers and data. When we examine graphs, headlines, or infographics in class, we are often working within Hobbs’ “analyze” and “reflect” competencies. I want students to ask: Who made this? What are they trying to show me? What’s not being said?

At home, these competencies come into play in different ways. My seventh-grade son is starting to explore YouTube more deeply, and my fourth-grade daughter recently asked why some videos she sees keep repeating similar themes. These are perfect moments to talk about the algorithms behind platforms, how media is curated and how it can shape what we believe. We’re not just talking about screen time, we’re talking about the meaning behind that screen time.

The Continued Relevance of Rheingold’s Social Media Literacies

Howard Rheingold’s social media literacies, Attention, Participation, Collaboration, Network Awareness, and Critical Consumption, still hold up well, even though his article was published back in 2010. However, I think the stakes have grown higher. The rise of misinformation and AI-generated content means students must develop sharper tools for discernment.

Image Source: https://pressbooks.pub/buckscollegesuccess/chapter/8-3-communication-and-technology/

Rheingold's ideas echo in Hobbs’ work, and both speak to something Marshall McLuhan hinted at decades ago: The medium is the message. The way a message is delivered, whether through TikTok, Reddit, YouTube Shorts, or a news app, can impact how students interpret it. Understanding how content reaches them is just as important as what the content says.

Why It Matters in a Math Classroom

I’ve seen firsthand how statistics or charts can be manipulated to tell misleading stories. That’s why part of my math instruction includes helping students interpret data critically, not just compute it. For example, when we discuss a study in the news that claims “90% of students prefer X,” we stop and ask: How many students were surveyed? Who funded the study? Were the questions biased? This is media literacy in action, even in algebra class.

Teaching My Students (and My Kids) to Verify and Reflect

I teach my students and my own children to think critically about media by encouraging them to ask who made it. I prompt them to consider the source and its intentions, to cross-check information by comparing multiple reputable sources before forming conclusions, to recognize persuasive techniques, (such as emotional appeals) selective statistics, misleading visuals, and to pause and reflect. All of these skills alow them to create space in the constant flow of information to ask themselves, “Do I believe this? Should I?”

Ultimately, I believe all of Hobbs’ competencies are necessary, but in this moment, analysis and reflection feel particularly urgent. Our students and our own children are growing up in a world that rarely encourages slow, careful thinking. As educators and parents, we have a responsibility to help them develop these habits of mind.

So while media literacy might not have its own spot on the math syllabus, it’s become a fundamental part of how I teach and how I parent. Because the better they are at thinking critically about what they see and hear, the better they’ll be at thinking critically in every part of their lives.