Young people are growing up in a world where information is increasingly disputed, and where the spread of conspiracy belief, misinformation and disinformation is increasingly alarming, with seismic implications for the future of our democratic society.
To understand this in more detail, the Commission on Countering Online Conspiracy in Schools, funded by the Pears Foundation, spoke to parents, teachers and - crucially - young people themselves.
Partnering with our team of researchers at Public First, the commission’s objective was to understand just how widespread conspiracy beliefs, misinformation and disinformation have become among young people, and to begin to think about how school staff should respond.
The findings from this unique study are powerful, and somewhat terrifying. They paint a picture of mass consumption of online content from a very young age.
Low-trust environment
Our research found 77 per cent of 11- to 12-year-olds use social media, despite the age limit on most social media platforms being 13.
Young people’s consumption of online content is influencing their worldview, behaviour and relationships. Nearly four in 10 young people (36 per cent) said they had changed their opinions or beliefs about a mainstream news story based on information found on social media. This figure rises to 44 per cent among those aged 17-18.
And they are operating in an extremely low-trust environment. Some 35 per cent say they do not trust the government “at all†- and, perhaps even more worryingly, young people have more trust in so-called online influencers, with just 29 per cent saying they don’t trust influencers at all.
Yet, despite this bleak picture, teachers were identified by both parents and young people as adults who should deal with issues surrounding conspiracy belief, misinformation and disinformation.
Strikingly, teachers also saw this as an issue they themselves should tackle, with 77 per cent of teachers agreeing that it was their responsibility to address conspiracy theories when they came up in the classroom.
But there’s a catch. While teachers felt it was their responsibility to address conspiracy beliefs in the classroom, our research found that nearly half of teachers (49 per cent) are at least moderately worried about a pupil expressing belief in a conspiracy to them in the classroom.
Teachers were concerned that the requirement for them to be politically neutral was often seen to come into conflict with the desire to address some conspiracy theories. During our focus groups, many school staff described specific occasions when they had felt ill equipped to deal with examples of conspiracy belief, or misinformation and disinformation.Â
Given that young people, parents and teachers all agree that conspiracy belief, misinformation and disinformation should be tackled by teachers in the classroom, what can we do to ensure that teachers have the resources, training and support to do just that?
Three areas of action
The commission makes 11 recommendations spanning those for policy and training, those for schools and communities, and those for further research.
Critical among these recommendations are three that focus on training and supporting teachers in the classroom.
- Teachers want expert-led, research-informed professional development that provides foundational knowledge for all staff, regardless of their role or experience. While led by experts, this training should be developed in collaboration with teachers to ensure it meets their needs.
- Training on conspiracy beliefs, misinformation and disinformation should be embedded into early career and trainee teacher programmes. While there are constraints in the initial teacher training curriculum, the rise of online content makes this increasingly important.
- Teachers need up-to-date resources and best practice guides to keep pace with evolving challenges. Short, practical guidance should be regularly refreshed to share the latest sector insights and research-backed recommendations.
We know that as conspiracy belief, misinformation and disinformation evolve, our work to address it must do the same.
We are committing to continuing the work of the commission, sharing research and working to deliver our recommendations in conjunction with schools and the wider sector to ensure that we can support young people to be able to navigate, understand and critically evaluate their online world in the future.
It is not an overstatement to suggest that the future of our democracy depends on it.
The commission’s full report, including .
Sally Burtonshaw is a director in the education practice at Public First
