Preservice Social Studies Teachers’ News Consumption Habits and Perceptions of News Media and News Media Literacy

Abstract

As the landscape of news media continues to evolve, preservice teachers today may have a unique set of understandings of what it means to be news conscious; may engage with different forms of news media than previous generations; and may have different reasons for including (or not) news media in their classroom. This qualitative study utilizes semi-structured interviews and artifact data to explore the news consumption habits of preservice social studies teachers, how their habits reflect their perceptions of news media, and their ideas for incorporating news media and news media literacy in the social studies classroom. Findings indicate that, although there were variances in their news consumption habits, the preservice teachers exhibited similarities in their engagement with and perceptions of news media. While they see the importance of news media literacy, they do not feel prepared to tackle such practices with their future students. This study indicates the need for a dedicated space in social studies teacher preparation for preservice teachers to interrogate their news media habits and perceptions to better prepare them for engaging with and navigating the evolving news media landscape with their future students.