Chapter 2: For an Integrated View of Media Education: Media Practices, Their Specific Facets and the Interplay Between Them in Educational Environments

This chapter explores how media and education intersect, focussing on media practices and their role in educational settings. It emphasises the importance of media literacy in formal education due to the pervasive influence of digital media and information and communication technologies (ICTs). As a starting point, it highlights the evolution of media education since the Grünwald Declaration on Media Education in 1983 and the current endorsement of media literacy by international educational organisations and governmental policies. The chapter also addresses the challenges of integrating media into formal education, particularly the potential misconception that using ICTs automatically translates to students learning about media. It outlines three main teaching practices involving media: fostering students' media competencies, using ICT for instruction and social mediation of students' media use. These practices are discussed in the context of promoting media literacy in formal education, with a focus on the role of teachers in organising and conducting these activities. It discusses the fields of media pedagogy and educommunication, discussing how they contribute to our understanding of the intersection between communication and education. It underscores the importance of integrating the systematic study of communication processes into educational practices to enable students to navigate media positively. The proposal emphasises the need for an integrated view of media education to promote media literacy effectively in educational environments.