Date: June 2020
The Greek teacher, Mr Sofias, has asked all partners to send to their pupils a questionnaire about Fake News and Misinformation. 173 pupils (82 Erasmus+ members and 91 no Erasmus+ members) responded to the questionnaire and after he has analyzed the responses, he developed an assignment which was published as a paper by the "International Journal of Educational Innovation" with the title "Teenagers, Fake News and Misinformation"
(https://journal.eepek.gr/
The responses of the questionnaire as they appear in the google form:
(https://docs.google.com/
Abstract
The Fake News issue has become rather intense recently and, despite the fact that it is not a new occurrence, the omnipresent use of online media, especially by young people, offers fertile ground for the quick spread of this kind of news. The aim of the present research paper is to show the sensitivity level and the attitude of students from four European schools (Greece, Finland, Germany and Spain) towards the existence of online, fake news and misinformation, their level of engagement in creating and reproducing it as well as their ability to make out true and verified information from fake. What comes out, despite demographic variations, is that youngsters, generally, get informed by online means and messaging apps which, however, they do not completely trust. They admit to coming across fake news quite often, they reckon motives behind them as well as possible dangers and threats, but they consider themselves able to track down. A substantial differentiation ensues for the students who participate in European program Erasmus+ as opposed to those who don’t.
Conclusion
This research examines then sensitization and the attitude of students of 15-18 years of age, of four European schools that participate in a common Erasmus+ program, towards the existence of fake news and misinformation on the internet. Findings of this research are compared to corresponding research of the Eurobarometer and the Institute Reuters, which, of course, refer to the age group 15-24.
The research shows that the overpowering majority of students of the particular schools gets informed by social media and the messaging applications but also from television, which is also an important information medium. Generally, of course, what is observed is a degree of distrust towards the Mass Media with the Greek students trusted them the least while the Finish the most. Traditional media are considered by the students, regardless of sex, as the most valid source of information in contrast to the internet. The above findings are reinforced both by the research of the Eurobarometer and by that of Reuters Institute, according to which young people below 24 years old prefer to be informed by the internet. In particular, the Reuters Institute report refers to the social media as the main source of information (28%) for the young people, with the role of the Facebook being that (44%) for someone to look for, read, observe, share or comment on the news. According to the Eurobarometer, while the level of trust to the traditional Means of information is 70%, with the Finns trusting them the most and the Greeks the least, the level trust to the internet is only 26% with the Germans trusting them the least, something which ours research highlights, too.
As far as the frequency of meeting fake news, almost one out of two teenage students responded that they locate them at least once a week, boys more often than girls, with the Finish students less often and the Greeks most often than all. According to the Eurobarometer, the percentage of locating fake news at least once a week for the young people aged 15 to 24 in Europe is even greater (68%), with the Finns being at the last position (50%), the Spanish and Greeks at the first places (78%) and (74%) correspondingly.
It is noteworthy, according to Eurobarometer, that more than 77% of Europeans aged 15-24, state that they are "somewhat capable or very capable" of distinguishing a fake news with the corresponding percentage in our research being 66% and that of research of the Hellenic Center for Safe Internet for Greek students to be 58%. In addition, more than half of our research students answer that they have never or rarely been fooled by fake news. However, according to research from Stanford University (The Wall Street Journal, 2016), 80% of pupils and students were unable to distinguish a true article from a fake or a journalistic article from an advertisement. In the same survey, the criterion for validity for young people is the large photo in an article and not its source, which is highlighted by the present research since 60% of students state that they do not control at all or occasionally control the source of the publication that republish. Taking into account that more than 2/3 of the students state that they use social media to read or listen to what others are posting and share material that they have found themselves and / or others have shared with them, we conclude active participation of young people in the use and reproduction of fake news.
The majority of students see the economic and for-profit news as a motive for spreading fake news and as the main body for reducing them, the social media itself and journalists. Most see the spread of fake news as a problem for both their country and democracy in general. The above conclusions do not differ significantly from the relevant Eurobarometer survey.
Continuing, regardless of the area where the students live, they trust to inform them, less online social networks and more traditional media, with students in semi-autonomous areas declaring that they come in contact with fake news more often than others. Particularly high (MT 3.25) is the level of trust of students in rural areas towards traditional media, which may be related to the lower frequency of their deception by fake news.
Finally, there is a significant difference for students participating in the Erasmus + program compared to the rest. These students, due to the general knowledge and training they have received through this program, show more confidence in the traditional media, can more successfully detect fake news and have been deceived less often.
In conclusion, the widespread use of online social networking applications among young people and the poor control of the source of the publication, contribute to the rapid spread of fake news. The students, of course, who participated in the Erasmus + program and were involved in media literacy training, seem to have developed education and skills related to this topic. This is even more promising as the program is only in its first year of implementation. The answer, therefore, to tackling the phenomenon of the dissemination of fake news by young people, is none other than the cultivation of critical thinking and vigilance (Hellenic Center for Safe Internet, 2019) which should be a concern of the educational policy of each state.