Media literacy education and teacher confidence in addressing violent extremism: a longitudinal professional development study

Political polarization and online extremism pose new challenges for educators committed to peace education, yet little is known about how teachers build the confidence to use media literacy education (MLE) to address them. This mixed-method longitudinal case study followed 54 K– 12 and college educators (who collectively reached over 10,000 students) across three waves of data collection spanning the nine months after a 10-hour professional development program. Educators showed statistically significant gains in confidence across MLE’s core pedagogies: media analysis, dialogue and discussion, and creative expression. Most sustained these practices nine months later, though only one in five continued teaching violent extremism directly, gravitating instead toward adjacent themes such as disinformation and civic responsibility. Findings highlight modeling dialogic practice, peer collaboration, and teacher agency as keys to sustainable MLE integration.