PROJECT DESCRIPTION

European Centre for Media Literacy (ECML) was a 24 months project, which started in 2004 and ended in 2006, co-funded by the European Commission within the "eLearning Initiative" Programme.

Objectives
With media technology becoming so prevalent in homes, and with multi-media education more possible now with student access to computers and the Internet, "media literacy" expands the basic concept of literacy (i.e. "reading" and "writing") to all forms of communication - from television to T-shirts, from billboards to multi-media environments.

In our world of multi-tasking, commercialism, globalization and interactivity, media education isn't about having the right answers-it's about asking the right questions. The result is lifelong empowerment of both the learner and the citizen.

ECML project would like to help stakeholders to understand why teaching media literacy is so important and give students new education tools. Therefore, the main objectives of ECML are focused on its target and will give it the possibility to:

	Understand that media are constructed to convey ideas, information and news from someone else's perspective;
	Understand that specific techniques are used to create emotional effects;
	Identify those techniques and their intended and actual effects;
	Be aware that the media benefit some people, but leave others out;
	Pose and answer questions in the ECML Community about who benefits, who is left out, and why in media literacy education;
	Seek alternative sources of information and entertainment;
	Use the media for their own advantage and enjoyment;
	Know how to act, rather than being acted upon;
	Preparing for the new learning culture, digital literacy.

Approach
The aim of the project is to create an European Center for Media Literacy (ECML) as a nonprofit educational organization that provides leadership, public education, professional development and educational resources nationally.

Dedicated to promoting and supporting media literacy education as a framework for accessing, analyzing, evaluating and creating media content, ECML works to help citizens, especially the young, develop critical thinking and media production skills needed to live fully in the 21st century media culture.

The European Center for Media Literacy is dedicated to a new vision of literacy as the ability to communicate competently in all media forms, print and electronic, as well as to access, understand, analyze and evaluate the powerful images, words and sounds that make up our contemporary mass media culture.
Indeed, we believe these skills of media literacy are essential for both children and adults as individuals and as citizens of a democratic society.

Our mission is to help children and adults prepare for living and learning in a global media culture by translating media literacy research and theory into practical information, training and educational tools for teachers and youth leaders, parents and caregivers of children.

Expected results

	Public Report on the state-of-the-art analysis;
	Statement of Educational Philosophy;
	Guidelines for media literacy introduction in the European education field;
	ECML website;
	Database linked to the website where it is possible to find public articles on media literacy;
	ECML On-line Community;
	ECML On-line Review;
	To ensure that the vision and results of ECML become as widely known and understood as possible in Europe and all around the world.