Resources for Parents - Finding and verifying information

Reality Check

This public awareness program, created in partnership between MediaSmarts and the Facebook Canadian Election Integrity Initiative, focuses on authentication of online information.

Addressing AI in the Classroom: Tips for Teachers

Teachers can play a critical role in educating their students about AI, even if they aren’t experts on it. By addressing AI in ways that are designed to build students’ skills and teach them about the pitfalls of relying too much on it, teachers can help build the next generation of citizens who are empowered with the skills necessary to succeed in a world infused with AI technology.

Media Safety Tips: Teens

Two important ideas relating to teens are the imaginary audience and the personal fable. The imaginary audience makes them overestimate how much attention other people are paying to them. This makes them more self-conscious and leads them to think of privacy primarily in terms of impression management – trying to control how others see them. The personal fable makes teens see themselves as the main character of a story and, as a result, leads many to believe that bad things will simply not happen to them. 

Break the Fake Tip #4: Check other sources

This step may sometimes be the last one you do, but it could also be the first. The News tab is better than the main Google search for this step because it only shows real news sources. While not every source that’s included is perfectly reliable, they are all news outlets that really exist.

Break the Fake Tip #3: Verify the source

Whether you’re looking at a website, photo, video or news story, what really matters is whether or not the people who originally created it are trustworthy. Even when it has been shared with you by someone you trust, like a friend or family member, you can’t know if they checked the facts. So it’s up to you!