Photo via: Facebook
Facebook Malaysia has partnered up with Teach For Malaysia (TFM) to bring Facebook’s global literacy program ‘We Think Digital' to Malaysia. The program covers privacy, safety, security, digital discourse and knowing your digital footprint. It hopes to empower Malaysian youth with digital skills that would help foster a positive and safe online culture.
The launch follows a successful pilot programme with 950 students across 6 different schools nationwide. By April 2021, Facebook Malaysia and TFM aim to train a further 2,500 students across the nation.
According to Nicole Tan, Country Director of Facebook Malaysia, “Malaysia has one of the fastest growing internet populations.” Therefore, “developing skills around digital literacy and digital citizenship is vital to creating a positive and safe culture on the internet.”
Chan Soon Seng, CEO of TFM, noted that “most active internet users in Malaysia are young people.” However, he expressed concern that there may be a lack of critical thinking skills when navigating the digital world.
A survey of Malaysian internet users by YouGov showed that only 59% of the people surveyed checked article sources before sharing and only 29% would report fake news that they encounter.
He believes that the We Think Digital program will help “students in Malaysia to develop basic digital literacy and citizenship skills to thrive in the digital 21st century world.”
In recent years, the issue of fake news has been getting worldwide recognition. Viral “fake news” and misinformation has been an ongoing issue across social media and instant messaging platforms alike. Analysis by the Malaysian Communications Multimedia Commission (MCMC) in 2018 showed that Whatsapp (84%) and Facebook (8%) were main sources of fake or unverified news in Malaysia.
Social media and instant messaging platforms have become an undeniable and integral part of the daily lives of Malaysians.
The importance of education and awareness about navigating the digital world has only become more evident during this global pandemic where schools and learning are conducted on digital platforms.
Click here for more information on We Think Digital and the learning resources available.
Keep learning, keep growing.
By: Catalina Hubbard
