The Journal of Media Literacy Education is an online interdisciplinary journal that supports the development of research, scholarship and the pedagogy of media literacy education. The journal provides a forum for established and emerging scholars, media professionals and educational practitioners in and out of schools. As an extended conceptualization of literacy, media literacy education helps individuals of all ages develop habits of inquiry and skills of expression needed to become critical thinkers, effective communicators and active citizens in a world where mass media, popular culture and digital technologies play an important role for individuals and society. The Journal of Media Literacy Education is sponsored by the National Association for Media Literacy Education (NAMLE). Visit NAMLE at www.namle.net

HASTAC ("haystack") is a network of individuals and institutions inspired by the possibilities that new technologies offer us for shaping how we learn, teach, communicate, create, and organize our local and global communities. We are motivated by the conviction that the digital era provides rich opportunities for informal and formal learning and for collaborative, networked research that extends across traditional disciplines, across the boundaries of academe and community, across the "two cultures" of humanism and technology, across the divide of thinking versus making, and across social strata and national borders.

Guest authors Daniel Hickey and Brian Nelson argue that the opportunity to institute true reform in assessment practices is now, and the Race to the Top Assessment Initiative should think more broadly about how we measure progress in the classroom. They welcome comments on findings from the MacArthur 21st Century Assessment Project.

The Race to the Top Assessment Program provides competitive grants to encourage and reward States that are creating the conditions for education innovation and reform.

The Media Education Foundation produces and distributes documentary films and other educational resources to inspire critical reflection on the social, political, and cultural impact of American mass media.

More than three-quarters (76 percent) of K-12 educators say they use digital media, up significantly from 69 percent in 2008.

from NCTE's Monthly Intellectual Property Reports, Troy Hicks writes: "In November 2008, educators were introduced to the "Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy Education," and our concept of how to deal with copyright issues in the classroom has, literally, been transformed. As the official policy of NCTE related to fair use in the teaching of English, it is a document worth our attention as students learn to comprehend and compose texts utilizing a variety of forms of media."

"For years, the secrets to great teaching have seemed more like alchemy than science, a mix of motivational mumbo jumbo and misty-eyed tales of inspiration and dedication. But for more than a decade, one organization has been tracking hundreds of thousands of kids, and looking at why some teachers can move them three grade levels ahead in a year and others can't. Now, as the Obama administration offers states more than $4 billion to identify and cultivate effective teachers, Teach for America is ready to release its data."