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“Russia's disinformation campaigns help highlight one of the biggest and most dangerous challenges in Western society: an inability to think critically about information.” (Zakem, 2017). Since late 2013, a sharp increase in disinformation and propaganda from the Kremlin has threatened to upend democratic progress and political stability in Ukraine. (Murrock, Amulya, Druckman, & Liubyva, 2016). More than ever, developing critical thinking skills related to media is imperative to people living and attending school in Ukraine. I will be looking at the National Ukrainian Curriculum for Secondary School which was developed in 2016 to identify what frameworks are in place on a national level to create more critically engaged classrooms.
When compared to Finland, “Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania — as well as other former Soviet countries like Ukraine and Georgia — have been less successful in pushing back against Russian disinformation” (Standish, 2017). Because of Finland’s successes in developing an education system that focuses on critical thinking and media literacy, I will be using best practices from the Finnish education system when making policy recommendations.
The Foundation for Critical Thinking, based out of Tomales, California, defines critical thinking as the “intellectually disciplined process of actively and skillfully conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and/or evaluating information gathered from, or generated by, observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication, as a guide to belief and action…In its exemplary form, it is based on universal intellectual values that transcend subject matter divisions: clarity, accuracy, precision, consistency, relevance, sound evidence, good reasons, depth, breadth, and fairness.” (Defining Critical Thinking, 2017).
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The concept of critical thinking, however, is not just a 21st-century buzzword.
Dating back to 1941, Edward Glasstoer offers the following definition: “...critical thinking calls for a persistent effort to examine any belief or supposed form of knowledge in the light of the evidence that supports it and the further conclusions to which it tends.” (Glasser, 1941). Being engaged with information and ideas is imperative to making smart and well-thought-out decisions. This has been much easier said than done.
It is worth mentioning that although both countries share a border with Russia, and have been under Russian rule throughout their histories, the ethnographies, GDPs, and cultures vastly differ between Ukraine and Finland. Unlike Ukraine, Finland is often referred to as a pioneer when it comes to education and quality of life. Despite differences, much can be learned from Finland when taking a stance against misinformation and developing critical thinking skills.
Since the annexation of Crimea by Russia in 2014, like other countries along the Baltic Sea or in Eastern Europe, Finland has seen a notable increase in fake news stories and propaganda (Standish, 2017). When discussing the March 2016 closure of Russian state-owned media outlet Sputnik in Helsinki, Markku Maniladirector-general, director general fdirector-generalor government communications at the Finnish prime minister’s office, noted that “Finns are well-educated and because of that, we are very resilient to such attempts. Nothing has been very harmful for the public so far.” (Standish, 2017). So what is happening in Finnish classrooms that make Finns more resistant to falsehoods than other nations?
Country of Misinformation. (2022, May 26). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/country-of-misinformation-essay
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