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JOUREDIS Workshop 5

Workshop 5: Fact-checking as a means of addressing misinformation and its role in contemporary journalism

Date: 5 May 2022, 16:00-18:00 (online)
Guest speakers: Andronikos Koutroumbelis & Stamos Archontis, Fact Checkers at Ellinika Ηoaxes
Trainer: Christiana Varda, Research Associate and PhD Student at the Department of Communication and Internet Studies, Cyprus University of Technology

Registration

In this workshop we will explain what the term fact-checking entails at a practical level, and how a modern fact-checking team operates. We will also present the tools used for verifying information and the dangers that emerge from misinformative contexts such as the pandemic. We will also elaborate on how Facebook’s third party fact-checking program (3PFC) operates, and the misconceptions that exist around the role that different groups on social media play (e.g. fact-checkers, journalists, news organizations). Finally, there will be a discussion with the public to clarify concepts related to the fact-checking process and to resolve any questions that may arise during the presentation.

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Admission for PhD studies, starting September 2022

The MCL Research Group (Cyprus University of Technology) accepts applications for one post at Doctoral level (PhD) that will begin September 2022.

The MCL Research Group (Cyprus University of Technology) accepts applications for one (1) post at Doctoral level (PhD) that will begin September 2022.

Deadline is Monday, 2nd of May 2022. For applications, click here.

For more information, click here.


One (1) post in the following topic: “Digital competencies for promoting the self-regulation of learning and teaching in distance or hybrid learning settings”.

Description: The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the role of digital education in modern times and emphasized the importance of digital competencies for educators and students of all levels. The need to change traditional learning and teaching models is now more evident than ever; at the same time, it is evident that there is a need to explore the elements that can contribute to upgrading the quality of online learning and teaching. The aim of this dissertation is to explore the digital competencies and skills that can contribute to collaboration and the self-regulation of learning and teaching, in the context of technology-supported hybrid learning environments. A potential area of inquiry may, for example, be the kinds of support that teachers (at the higher, secondary, or primary school level) need to identify and support the needs of students in distance or hybrid learning settings. The exact topic will be determined in collaboration with the student. Fields of application can be university courses, MOOCs, gamified learning environments, or a combination thereof.

Required Qualifications: Applicants must hold an undergraduate degree from an accredited university on a topic that is relevant to the advertised area (e.g., Education or Psychology or ICT), and a Master’s degree in a subject which complements the knowledge and skills acquired during the basic studies in any one of the above three areas (e.g., educational technology). Applicants should demonstrate strong academic and methodological background, as evidenced by their CV and university transcripts, and a very good knowledge of spoken and written English. The applicants are requested to submit: (a) A cover page briefly explaining their interest in the position, (b) their CV in English or Greek, (c) a preliminary research proposal in relation to the description of the position, in English and Greek (up to 2 pages), (d) two letters of recommendation, preferably from university professors.

Funding: For the above position there is the intention by the Department to involve PhD candidates, contingent on their background, as teaching assistants, or offer them employment in research programs for partial coverage of tuition fees.

Research Advisor: Eleni A. Kyza, Associate Professor

EARLI SIG 8 & 16: Summer School Acceptance

Christiana Varda, PhD student and Research Associate at the Media, Cognition and Learning Research Group, has been selected to participate at EARLI Joint SIG 8 & 16 Summer School 2022, where she will present her ongoing work focused on “Informal learning on social media: Understanding the role of emotions in supporting epistemic engagement during online information evaluation”.

The Summer school is offered as part of the European Association for Learning and Instruction Special Interest Groups for Emotion and Motivation (SIG 8) and Metacognition (SIG16) will take place in Dresden, Germany in August 2022.

ISLS Conference 2022: Papers Acceptance

We are happy to announce that the Media Cognition and Learning Research Group will be presenting two papers at the International Society of the Learning Sciences Conference (ISLS 2022), which will take place 6-10 June 2022, online. The theme of the conference was International Collaboration toward Educational Innovation for All: Overarching Research, Development, and Practices.

Christiana Varda and Dr Eleni A. Kyza’s paper “The Role of Epistemic Emotions During Engagement with Online Information Encounters” has been accepted to be presented for the International Conference of the Learning Sciences segment of the ISLS 2022 as a Full Paper Presentation.

Additionally, Dr Eleni A. Kyza and Christiana Varda will also be participating in a symposium presentation. Their contribution is titled “Data literacy and social design implications of algorithmic, socio-technical solutions to combating misinformation on social media” and it will be part of the symposium “Cultivating Critical, Justice-Oriented Data Literacies in a Post-Truth World”. The symposium was submitted to the International Conference of the Learning Sciences of ISLS 2022 and was organized by Dr Joe Polman (University of Colorado Boulder), Dr Iris Tabak (Ben-Gurion University of the Negev) and Dr Trang C. Tran (University of Colorado Boulder).

JOUREDIS Workshop 4

Workshop 4: Engaging readers through live blogging

Date: 7 April 2022, 16:00-18:00 (online)
Guest speaker: Dr Konstantinos Makris, Associate Professor of Environmental Health, Cyprus International Institute for Environmental and Public Health, Cyprus University of Technology
Trainer: Christiana Varda, Research Associate and PhD Student at the Department of Communication and Internet Studies, Cyprus University of Technology

Registration

Ready access to immediate information online, has increased audiences’ voracity for news as it happens. However, in an ongoing flow of online information which values speed over reflection, there can be a blurring of the line between evidence-based reporting and speculation. Reporting on science can be challenging, especially for issues which seem to be far removed from citizens’ daily concerns. How science is communicated, especially on social media, can influence what people think about and how they act in response to a scientific issue. This can have tremendous consequences for issues that affect societies at large.

Humanizing science stories, and grounding scientific evidence in people’s everyday experiences can amplify the impact of news stories, especially when it comes to environmental stories. In this workshop we will explore how evidence-based approaches can connect the environment with public health. Additionally, we will examine the value of balancing what is known and what is uncertain about an evolving scientific issue or a breaking news story during a liveblogging event.

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JOUREDIS Workshop 3

Workshop 3: Communicating science and the power of the crowd in digital journalism

Date: 17 March 2022, 16:00-18:00 (online)
Guest speaker: Dr Myrtani Pieri, Assistant Professor in Human Physiology, Department of Life and Health Sciences, School of Sciences and Engineering, University of Nicosia
Trainer: Christiana Varda, Research Associate and PhD Student at the Department of Communication and Internet Studies, Cyprus University of Technology

Registration

The popularity of social media and the increasing reliance on the internet to access information has reshaped how journalism is conducted and how news reaches audiences. The online context provides ample opportunities to engage in dialogue with experts, as well as other professionals; the same context can also allow journalists to interact with audiences in order to gain insights regarding their own scientific concerns or interests. This workshop will first present basic communication principles for communicating science effectively to a general non-expert audience. Following this participants will have the opportunity to become familiarized with crowdsourcing as a tool that can foster professional collaboration between journalists, between experts and journalists, or between journalists and the audience.

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JOUREDIS Workshop 2

Workshop 2: Let the data do the talking: Tools and good practices for data journalism

Date: 10 March 2022, 16:00-18:00 (online)
Guest speaker: Dr Costas Christophi, Associate Professor of Biostatistics and Epidemiology at the Cyprus International Institute for Environmental and Public Health (CII) at the Cyprus University of Technology and an Adjunct Assistant Professor of Occupational and Environmental Health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Trainer: Christiana Varda, Research Associate and PhD Student at the Department of Communication and Internet Studies, Cyprus University of Technology

Registration

The pandemic has inundated the public with data on a daily basis: the number of daily COVID-19 infections, hospitalizations, deaths. But how can access to so much data be harnessed to engage audiences and help them make informed decisions based on evidence? Making issues that relate to environmental and health usable, accessible and comprehensible is important, as is often communicating the risks, especially for topics such as climate change or the recent technological developments in vaccines. This workshop will focus on how data journalism can help journalists tell a complex story in an engaging way. Participants will learn best practices for visualizing data using infographics. They will also explore a tool that could be used to create data visualizations, as well as a tool that helps journalists track data on the spread of misinformation on Twitter.

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New MCL publication

New MCL publication: “Investigating the Processes of Teacher and Researcher Empowerment and Learning in Co-design Settings”.

MCL announces a new publication by Eleni A. Kyza and Andria Agesilaou, titled “Investigating the Processes of Teacher and Researcher Empowerment and Learning in Co-design Settings”. The paper is part of the special issue “Teacher-Researcher Collaborations as Contexts of Learning”, edited by Susan R. Goldman, Cindy E. Hmelo-Silver, and Eleni A. Kyza. The special issue is published in Cognition and Instruction’s first issue of 2022 (Volume 40, Issue 1).

Wednesday Webinars on Teacher Education in Digital & Media Literacy in Europe

The Media & Learning Association (MLA) announces a webinar series titled Wednesday Webinars on Teacher Education in Digital & Media Literacy in Europe.

Associate Professor Eleni Kyza will participate in the first webinar, which will take place on Wednesday, 23/2/2022 from 14:00-15:15 CET. The webinar is titled “Teacher Education in Digital & Media Literacy – the challenges in Initial Teacher Education”. You can register for free here: https://media-and-learning.eu/event/teacher-education-digital-and-media-literacy-the-challenges-in-initial-teacher-education/

Webinar description

Teacher training colleges all over Europe are facing an increasing demand to ensure they put in places digital and media literacy programmes for their student teachers. This comes on top of the many demands they already face in preparing teachers for the ever-changing educational system. During this webinar we will be hearing from a variety of researchers and teacher educators about their views and experiences of tackling this challenge. Should digital and media literacy be part of the formal programme in all teacher training colleges? what are the best ways to introduce and evaluate such programmes? Who should be responsible for introducing such programmes and then evaluating their success.

Speakers will include:

JOUREDIS Workshop 1

Workshop 1: Journalism in action: Developing competencies for mobile journalism

Date: 24 February 2022, 16:00-18:00 (online)
Guest speaker: Dr Nikolas Dietis, Assistant Professor of Pharmacology at the Medical School, University of Cyprus
Trainer: Christiana Varda, Research Associate and PhD Student at the Department of Communication and Internet Studies, Cyprus University of Technology

Registration

The pandemic has laid bare the value and relevance of accurately reporting science in the media, especially for controversial topics that may be prone to misinformation (e.g., COVID-19 vaccinations, climate change). This is not without its challenges, considering that journalists often need to translate complex scientific findings into comprehensible stories that a general, lay audience can understand. This workshop will look at the common challenges that journalists face when reporting on socio-scientific issues and will focus on a journalist’s most accessible asset: their mobile device. Participants will explore how to make the most of their mobile devices to deliver “social-first” stories that can be shared with audiences directly and that create new forms of storytelling to engage with online users. The workshop will also present best practices for communicating science effectively, and ways in which misinformation can more effectively be corrected on social media. Finally, participants will have the opportunity to explore a tool that allows drafting, scheduling and monitoring engagement on threaded social media posts on Twitter.

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