The challenge
Citizens exposed to online disinformation need the skills to judge sources and content.
The case
Finland treats media literacy as a lifelong civic skill. A 2013 national guideline was updated in 2019 by the Ministry of Education and Culture and the National Audiovisual Institute (KAVI) in the policy 'Media Literacy in Finland', which covers all age groups. In schools, media literacy is woven into many subjects from early childhood to upper secondary level rather than taught as one course; students learn to ask who made a piece of content and why. KAVI coordinates national efforts such as Media Literacy Week. Finland has ranked first on the Open Society Institute – Sofia's European Media Literacy Index every year since the index began in 2017, scoring 74 out of 100 in 2023, ahead of Denmark and Norway.
Why it worked
Spreading media skills across subjects and age groups, backed by a national agency with a clear mandate, builds broad resilience; but the index measures likely vulnerability, and the gains cannot be credited to schooling alone.
Sources
- European Commission EACEA (n.d.). Youth Wiki – Finland: 6.8 Media literacy and safe use of new media.
- Open Society Institute – Sofia (2023). Bye, bye, birdie: Meeting the challenges of disinformation. Media Literacy Index 2023.
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