Fostering Scientific and Numerate Practices in Journalism to Support Rapid Public Learning
Journalism has the potential––and arguably the mandate––to expand public understanding of societally important phenomena. However, some methods for more effectively educating the public have been persistently underutilized: in particular, embedding informative numerical rates and efficient scientifi...
Main Authors: | , |
---|---|
Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
Published: |
National Numeracy Network
2017-01-01
|
Series: | Numeracy |
Online Access: | http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/numeracy/vol10/iss1/art3/ |
id |
doaj-803e8d3249444c1ca6dec3920ff9e1b7 |
---|---|
record_format |
Article |
spelling |
doaj-803e8d3249444c1ca6dec3920ff9e1b72020-11-25T00:25:30ZengNational Numeracy NetworkNumeracy1936-46601936-46602017-01-011013http://dx.doi.org/10.5038/1936-4660.10.1.3Fostering Scientific and Numerate Practices in Journalism to Support Rapid Public LearningLouise Yarnall0Michael Andrew Ranney1SRI InternationalUniversity of California, BerkeleyJournalism has the potential––and arguably the mandate––to expand public understanding of societally important phenomena. However, some methods for more effectively educating the public have been persistently underutilized: in particular, embedding informative numerical rates and efficient scientific explanations in news reports. In the current era of disrupting and downsizing the news business, the challenges to using such methods have only increased. To address this problem, this article seeks to (a) raise awareness about the psychological reasons that help explain why it is crucial to use such elements in news reports, and (b) exhibit some methods for doing so that require modest effort. Building on a review of relevant psychological literatures, principles, and existing reporting methods, we describe findings from a series of cognitive-scientific studies that demonstrate how using key––and relatively minimal––scientific and numerical elements can enhance public learning from news reports. We conclude by also describing curricula and resources designed to help journalists and bloggers use these methods. http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/numeracy/vol10/iss1/art3/ |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Louise Yarnall Michael Andrew Ranney |
spellingShingle |
Louise Yarnall Michael Andrew Ranney Fostering Scientific and Numerate Practices in Journalism to Support Rapid Public Learning Numeracy |
author_facet |
Louise Yarnall Michael Andrew Ranney |
author_sort |
Louise Yarnall |
title |
Fostering Scientific and Numerate Practices in Journalism to Support Rapid Public Learning |
title_short |
Fostering Scientific and Numerate Practices in Journalism to Support Rapid Public Learning |
title_full |
Fostering Scientific and Numerate Practices in Journalism to Support Rapid Public Learning |
title_fullStr |
Fostering Scientific and Numerate Practices in Journalism to Support Rapid Public Learning |
title_full_unstemmed |
Fostering Scientific and Numerate Practices in Journalism to Support Rapid Public Learning |
title_sort |
fostering scientific and numerate practices in journalism to support rapid public learning |
publisher |
National Numeracy Network |
series |
Numeracy |
issn |
1936-4660 1936-4660 |
publishDate |
2017-01-01 |
description |
Journalism has the potential––and arguably the mandate––to expand public understanding of societally important phenomena. However, some methods for more effectively educating the public have been persistently underutilized: in particular, embedding informative numerical rates and efficient scientific explanations in news reports. In the current era of disrupting and downsizing the news business, the challenges to using such methods have only increased. To address this problem, this article seeks to (a) raise awareness about the psychological reasons that help explain why it is crucial to use such elements in news reports, and (b) exhibit some methods for doing so that require modest effort. Building on a review of relevant psychological literatures, principles, and existing reporting methods, we describe findings from a series of cognitive-scientific studies that demonstrate how using key––and relatively minimal––scientific and numerical elements can enhance public learning from news reports. We conclude by also describing curricula and resources designed to help journalists and bloggers use these methods.
|
url |
http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/numeracy/vol10/iss1/art3/ |
work_keys_str_mv |
AT louiseyarnall fosteringscientificandnumeratepracticesinjournalismtosupportrapidpubliclearning AT michaelandrewranney fosteringscientificandnumeratepracticesinjournalismtosupportrapidpubliclearning |
_version_ |
1725348694628237312 |