The Role of Media Literacy in Human Development (Case study: Book entitled IRIB Executive Policies and Development Document of the Education Ministry')

Human development indicator is a composite indicator which measures three major aspects of life: having access to enough facilities to gain knowledge, having a long and healthy life, and reaching a standard level in life. This indicator, which is published annually by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), has been modified by the lapse of time and used as an acceptable international indicator to assess development of various societies. Human development approach considers consumption of goods and services as only one of the factors of a better life and regards meeting spiritual needs and strengthening of intellectual capacities as another factor of a better life, which is obtained through training mental abilities and potentials especially through education. Today, being literate is no longer confined within the limits of being able to read and write; but it is referred to those who have the ability to use new communication technologies and make a wise choice among the many messages existing in the message market. Accordingly, this research aims to examine the role of media literacy in human development in the Islamic Republic with regards to the policies of the two organizations of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) and the Ministry of Education and analyze the relationship between these policies and human development. This study has used documentation and analytical research methods. The findings of this study show how limited the policies of these two institutions have been in media literacy field and that they lack a process outlook towards media literacy education. Moreover, review of the executive policies of the IRIB indicates that there is no development-oriented outlook towards media literacy in these policies.