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Showing posts from October, 2025
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  The Pros and Cons of Artificial Intelligence (AI): A Guimarães Debate Session ​Artificial Intelligence (AI) is now a vital component of contemporary society. Its influence is perhaps comparable to a formidable force, potentially holding sway over global dynamics in a way not seen since the advent of the nuclear age. The critical question, therefore, is this: How do we successfully harness this enormous power for collective benefit, and how do we effectively mitigate its potential harms? ​The applications of AI are vast and almost boundless. Today, we can utilize AI for a multitude of purposes: to motivate or manipulate public opinion, to provide essential assistance, to facilitate deception, to drive global commerce, to revolutionize fashion and sports, and much more. ​This leads us directly to the central ethical dilemma: Does the ultimate impact of Artificial Intelligence—whether beneficial or detrimental—rest entirely in the hands of the individual or entity that operates it? ...
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  Media Literacy – The Pursuit of the Question, "Are You Sure?" Author: Ferhat Çakır (English Teacher and Novelist at Kartepe Anatolian Imam Hatip High School) Title: Seeking Truth in the Media Vortex: A Critical Lesson from Warsaw 1. The Invisible Face of Media and the Critical Question Today, we are exposed to a vast number of photos, videos, and news items on social media and news sources . Sometimes we laugh at them, we like them, but we cannot be sure whether these contents are real or fake . The media literacy activity we conducted at Zespół nr:18 School in Warsaw, Poland, titled "Are You Sure?" aimed to reveal the "Invisible Face" of the media and to pose a critical question when faced with media that has the potential to deceive us : "Can we believe everything we see in the media?" . 2. Eye Color and Spider-Man: Manipulation Through Two Striking Examples During our activity, the manipulative methods of the media were examined ...

ERASMUS DAYS

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The Effects of the Media's Invisible Face on Psychology

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     Media is one of humanity's most powerful and indispensable communication tools, and it is the most decisive.    Television, the internet, and social media platforms provide opportunities for news, entertainment, socializing, advertising, popularity, and easy money-making. They can also profoundly shape people's emotions, thoughts, and behaviors, both positively and negatively. The invisible face of media is often far from neutral.    It contains reinforcers that act directly or subliminally on the subconscious of individuals and society. This article will explore the effects of the media's invisible face—its distortion, manipulation, and constant exposure mechanisms—on an individual's psychological health and perception of reality. 1. Perception Management, Manipulation, and Lying Media organizations feel compelled to fit unlimited reality into a limited time and space because they have specific ideologies, economic interests, or political...

Reflecting on Online Safety in the Digital Age

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  How can we stay safe in the digital world? Our students and Erasmus+ partners reflected on online safety and created a   collaborative e-booklet with practical tips for everyone.  Discover more! Being online is part of our lives — but being safe online is a shared responsibility. Read how our students celebrated Safer Internet Day with our Erasmus+ partners and turned their reflections into a creative e-Safety booklet. Students from our Erasmus+ project  “The Invisible Face of Media”  joined forces to create an inspiring e-Safety guide for all. Think before you click, share with care! In today’s world, where we are constantly connected, reflecting on  internet safety  has never been more important. As teachers, parents, and students, we all share the responsibility of building a safer and more respectful online environment. Empowering young people — and adults too — to make thoughtful and responsible choices online is essential to protect not only th...

Critical Thinking in Practice: How to Teach Students to Spot Fake News – Best Practices from Mobility in Turkey

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During our mobility trip to Turkey I conducted a workshop focused on developing critical thinking skills among students in the digital age. The main theme was the crucial question: “Are You Sure? How to Spot Fake News Like a Pro” . Below, we share proven methods and materials that can help educate young people on how to navigate the world of information safely. What Exactly Is Fake News? To start, it is crucial to define the problem. Fake news is false or misleading information presented as news, often to manipulate opinion or attract clicks . During the workshops, various types of false or misleading news that students encounter daily were discussed: Made-up Stories (Fabricated News): The whole story is false—it never really happened. Clickbait: A shocking or exciting headline intended to make you click, but the story is not what it says. Jokes or Parody (Satire): Funny or fake news meant to entertain, but some people think it’s real. Tricky Headlines or Pictures: The tit...

The Importance of Collaborative Work in the Development of Erasmus+ Projects

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Social networks have become one of the main means of communication and dissemination of information in contemporary society. However, easy access to information and the speed at which it circulates present significant challenges in terms of veracity and reliability. In this context, the need to be critical of the truth or falsehood of information on social networks becomes increasingly important. Social networks are undoubtedly one of the largest spaces for interaction and dissemination of content. Millions of posts, videos, memes, and articles circulate every second, addressing topics from different areas of knowledge, from news about politics to tips on well-being. However, along with the vast amount of content, comes the problem of misinformation, disinformation, and even fake news. Studies have shown that false information has a greater potential for virality on platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, and WhatsApp, which puts the formation of a well-informed public opinion at risk. In...

GUESS THE NEXT STEP

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    "One of the activities developed during the Mobility to Romania within the scope of the Erasmus+ Project KA210 “Invisible Face of Media” was “Guess the Next Step”. The activity was presented by the teacher from Turkey, Serife Seyran and the teacher from Portugal, Benjamim Sampaio and began with some warm-up suggestions among the participants. The activity aimed to analyze two media situations in Turkey and Portugal and to involve students and teachers from the partner schools in international working groups, with each group consisting of students from different countries and a tutor teacher. The situation in Turkey was related to a famous reality show that analyses real cases. This case presentation was divided into 3 parts. We read each part and asked the international teams to 'Guess the next step'. At the end of the whole case, we asked the different teams to draw conclusions about what they learned from this case. The main conclusions were related to being more sec...

Critical thinking – a mental compass

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          Let ' s break the ice with a question: Which is the capital of Australia – Sydney    or   Melbourne? In a room plenty of students, no one answered correctly: Canberra. What did the students learn from this? Once, which is the capital of Australia and then how the manipulation is constructed. We give them two false options and their mind assumes that they have to choose between them. That's exactly how manipulation works: it gives you a fake frame and lets you believe you're choosing freely. Critical thinking is the power to ask: Is there a third option? How do we develop critical thinking in the age of AI? The question is often heard nowadays – because it's about us and the world we live in, about the era in which Artificial Intelligence does almost anything: it writes texts, makes illustrations, composes music, generates codes, corrects mistakes, answers history questions... What is left for people? The answer w...