The Challenge

The Oslo Challenge to teachers is:

• to acknowledge and support the rights of children to have access to media, participate in it and use it as a tool for their advancement;

• to provide a protective and supportive environment in which children can make choices as media consumers that promote their development to their full potential;

• to be as informed as possible about trends and directions in the media and, where possible, to contribute actively to forming such trends and directions through participation in focus groups, feedback mechanisms and by using procedures laid down for comment and complaints on media content.

Find out more

The following websites and sources of further information will be useful for teachers in fulfilling the above goals. They are a starting point, and we would be interested to hear what educators would like to see featured on this site. We are also collecting details of weblinks that are useful teaching resources for all those involved in media education for children and young people. Just fill in this simple form.

• Search in the MAGICbank under 'Media training', 'Media studies' or other categories for media initiatives involving children. Please also add your projects to the bank.

• Search in the Links and contacts section of this site under country or region of origin.

• Guidelines, and useful weblinks, are available on this site for teachers who want to use the Internet as a teaching resource, but are concerned about Child protection on the Internet.

• The BBC World Service I Have a Right To has learning materials that educators can use when teaching children about their rights, including their right to express their views.

• The Canadian-based Media Awareness Network website has a section for educators, which includes a clearing house of ideas, teaching units and 'teachable moments'.

• The Center for Media Literacy website has resources for educators and a section on international training events.

• The Childnet Awards reward children - and those working with them - who are using the Internet to benefit others. Further information, including closing dates for the current awards, can be found on their website.

• The following sections of the UNICEF website provide useful teaching resources, and enable educators to share ideas with each other.

- Teachers Talking About Learning - TTAL offers a collection of articles: briefings and overviews on the Rights of Children; teaching strategies aligned with a Child-Friendly approach; and overviews on related learning theories.

- Water Alert! Interactive Game - An interactive game that explores real life situations with regard to water, environment and sanitation.

- UNICEF World Heroes - Help kids worldwide by delivering supplies from UNICEF!

- Halloween Coin Toss - Help to raise money for UNICEF in the Halloween Coin Toss!

- Cartoons for Children's Rights - Cartoons for Children's Rights is a UNICEF broadcast initiative that aims to inform people around the world about children’s rights. So far, the effort has forged partnerships with many well-known animation studios that have developed more than 80 half-minute public service announcements (PSAs).

- Join the Global Campaign for Education - a worldwide coalition of teachers' unions and development organizations.

• The Children and the media section of this site provides a full briefing on trends and directions in the media involving children.

• The MAGICchildren section of this site has resources to help children to learn about their rights, have their say and get involved in the media.

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