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Seattle High School teacher Shawn Lee is advocating for internet literacy to become a key component of modern education, identifying it as a skill necessary for contemporary life. He has implemented lessons in his classroom on critical thinking, double-checking sources, and diversifying news feeds, as well as created an organisation for teachers to share resources. Lee’s efforts are part of a growing movement of educators and researchers working to counter the online dissemination of political and scientific misinformation. However, given the politicisation of such topics and the multiplicity of classroom demands, teaching internet literacy can be a challenge. Consequently, the internet curriculum varies considerably among countries. Finland, for example, has a long history of combating propaganda and misinformation spread by neighbouring Russia and includes media literacy from preschool onwards as part of a broad anti-disinformation program. Several US states have recently implemented new standards for internet literacy teaching, pointing towards its growing recognition as a fundamental skill.
