Integrated language and media literacy education to enhance Kazakh students’ 4Cs skills

Abstract

The sustained technological development has urged fostering social skills such as critical thinking, creativity, communication, and collaboration for a person's success in a media-driven environment. The proliferation of those skills has been the aim of education contexts worldwide, particularly in Kazakhstan. Our research aims to study didactic scenarios for mastering 4Cs (communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and creativity) skills in classrooms by acquiring integrated language and media literacy. It attempts to understand how best to integrate these notions into the daily classroom so that Kazakh students can confidently communicate their ideas and adequately interact with their external stakeholders. Results showed that suggested didactic strategies can support the development of language learners' abilities to think critically, communicate creatively and collaborate adequately in global information space. The results of the study suggest that global mediatisation of society gives input in the positive dynamics of socialisation of youth in a media-saturated environment when the 4C skills are mastered through language and media-integrated literacy, where media materials are used as a modern authentic, informative source of immersion in the language environment. The study found that students have significantly improved their ability to read and interpret specific texts, view media critically, examine sources of information, and communicate their opinions and ideas using various multimedia tools. The study also provides practical recommendations for educators who want to enhance students' critical communication skills by implementing media literacy instruction.