1. Where Do I Stand?
Each time we engage with a message or platform, we should ask where we stand in relation to this content/space and how our lived realities shape how we interpret this information. In other words, we must ask: What’s my standpoint?
“Standpoint” is a concept developed to help us understand how our perspectives and ideas about the world are shaped by our lived experiences. What we know and don’t know is not based on the knowledge we acquire from school or books alone. Rather, it is informed by our personal identities, social identities, and life choices based on the resources and circumstances within which we live.
Our personal narratives matter. They influence how we understand and respond to media messages and interpret their impact on our lives, communities, and the world.
Standpoint acknowledges the following:
- The physical spaces we inhabit
- The way we view things
- Our worldviews
- Social inequities or differences in opportunities*
Equity-driven media literacy practices should start with self-reflection by asking: Where Do I Stand?
What each individual brings into a media literacy learning environment shaped how they engage with media, with co-learners, and with the information and ideas around them.
- Rolin, K. (2009). Standpoint Theory as a Methodology for the Study of Power Relations. *Hypatia, 24(4), 218-226. Retrieved May 13, 2021, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/20618192
Questions To Consider for Standpoint and Media Literacy Practice:
- What is my standpoint? What interpretations of standpoint listed above speak to you the most?
- How does my standpoint influence my communities?
- What is the relationship between my standpoint and my media habits?
PROMPT:
Exploring Standpoint - Three Approaches:
1. Where do I stand?
Whether interrogating news content, advertisements, or producing a short film, it’s important to consider our own position in relation to this media. To do this, ask the learners to complete a short reflection on their standpoint as they enter into a media literacy experience.
For example, here’s a prompt to help onboard all learners to standpoint theory in media literacy.
Prompt: Who we are today is largely based on where we come from, our experiences as we grow in life, the events that shape us, and the relationships we build, keep, and change. These collectively make up our standpoint. For this exercise, take some paper, and markers, and write down what people, experiences, places, environments, and resources shape who you are and how you see the world. Be as creative and open as you can, (writing, drawing, speaking), to consider: What is your standpoint, and what resources (people, places, things) have helped inform this position?
Be open, and honest!
2. What's at stake?
Our standpoint is not only influenced by our experiences in lived environments, it's also informed and influenced by the media habits we keep. The media we engage with offer representations about the world, which we constantly negotiate. In considering our Standpoint, we must ask how media informs our beliefs and worldviews, and what’s at stake in these messages, for us and those around us.
In this exploration, build on your standpoint exercise, but this time, think about the media messages we encounter. Think about a media outlet, platform, network, show, film, etc. that you engage with. Take that piece of media, and answer the questions in our “what’s at stake” table.
Use the questions in the table to the right as your guide. Start with the top half and then move to the bottom. As you progress through the quadrants, take notes. How do your thoughts develop? Do they come in conflict with your personal beliefs and values or reaffirm them?
3. Why does this matter?
The final exploration in our “Where do I stand” Stop is to consider how our standpoint and our media habits influence how we see the world and understand our place in it.
Based on your own standpoint, and the media representations that you explored, engage in a think/pair/share exercise where you reflect on the questions below, pair together to talk about your reflection, and share out with our larger community.
- How do media impact how I see the world?
- How do media impact my relationships?
- How does my standpoint impact my media habits?
- How do my media choices influence my attitudes and behaviors?
- Why does this matter?
Using Standpoint in Your Learning Environment [Template]
IT'S YOUR TURN!
Introduction
Using the template here, create your own media literacy learning experiences around the following learning goals:
How can we use standpoint to help learners realize how their experiences in the real world shape their experiences using media? How can we use standpoint to help learners build strong self-awareness of how their media habits influence them, and those around them?
Template for Your Where We Stand Workshop
Time Needed:
Materials Needed:
Part One: Introducing Standpoint Exercise
Part Two: Core Activities [use from above or create your own!]
Part Three: Debrief [what questions do you want your learners to reflect on after this experience]
Part Four: Educator Reflection