"Combining an innovative mix of traditional chapters, autoethnography, case studies, and dialogue within an intercultural framework, the handbook focuses on the future of media education and provides a deeper understanding of the challenges and affordances of media education as we move forward. Topi
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cs range from fighting disinformation, how vulnerable communities coped with disadvantages using media, transforming educational TV or YouTube to reach larger audiences, supporting students’ wellbeing through various online strategies, examining early childhood, parents, and media mentoring using digital tools, reflecting on educators’ intersectionality on video platforms, youth-produced media to fight injustice, teaching remotely and providing low-tech solutions to address the digital divide, search for solutions collaboratively using social media, and many more." (Publisher description)
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"This volume breaks down disciplinary walls in numerous ways. First, it combines information about the intrapersonal, interpersonal, group, and societal levels of communication into a single resource. At the intrapersonal level, new issues are raised about communication between individuals and deity
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: Why is religious experience difficult to explain in rational terms? Why is silence more sacred than spoken prayer in some religious communities? What is the nature of “thought communication” in religious meditation? Why is the use of profanity justified in some religious circles? How does idolatry reinforce religious customs and values? Why was chanting one of the first forms of religious communication?
Religious information is also exchanged between individuals at the level of interpersonal communication. This volume identifies rituals that have not been adequately analyzed in terms of communication aspects: Why do some sects require public confession? Why is body decoration an acceptable form of worship in some religious groups, but not in others? How does dance communicate the sacred through metaphoric movement? What are the multiple forms of communication with the dead? Why are feasts a form of religious worship in all major religions? How does the study of organizational communication apply to religion?
This volume also aids study of mediated communication to larger groups both inside and outside religious denominations. Throughout history, technology has simultaneously aided and impeded communication processes; this also applies to religious culture: How did religion change during the historical transition from orality to literacy? How did printing contribute to the diffusion of religious values in the world? Why have religious novels grown in popularity? Is television considered a religious medium? How has the Internet affected religious congregations and communities? What is religious media literacy?
These are only a few of the questions addressed by this encyclopedia. Articles also deal with (1) concepts such as information, communication, and censorship, (2) denominations which exhibit different communication practices, and (3) the various media used in religious worship. Entries were contributed by scholars from various disciplines, including religious studies, communication, anthropology, sociology, ancient studies, religion and modern culture, theology, and many others." (Introduction, page xiii-xiv)
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"INASP-Health is a UK-based programme that promotes international networking amongst all those involved in the provision and use of health information including librarians, publishers, biomedical researchers, funding agencies, development professionals, frontline healthcare providers, public health
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specialists, social scientists and others, in order to improve access to relevant and reliable information for health professionals in developing and transitional countries. It was launched in 1996 as a programme of the International Network for the Availability of Scientific Publications (INASP). It has one full-time staff member, with some support for administration and finance from INASP. Since its inception, its activities have grown to include an Advisory and Liaison Service, bi-monthly Health Information Forum (HIF) meetings, the HIF-net at WHO email discussion list, the INASP Health Links Internet gateway, the Health Library Partnerships Database, and the INASP-Health Directory. INASP-Health's success has been to develop a set of real resources with expectations around their potential for further development. In the period reviewed for this evaluation, the work of INASP-Health has contributed to the improvement of access to reliable, relevant information for health professionals in developing countries. But demands on its services are growing and INASP-Health has now reached a stage where some fundamental decisions need to be made on its future development." (Executive summary)
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