The fight against misinformation in Finland begins early, with children as young as three years old being taught media literacy within the national curriculum.
This long-standing educational approach equips students with critical skills to analyse media and identify disinformation, forming a core part of a comprehensive anti-misinformation initiative designed to bolster Finnish resilience against propaganda.
Such measures are particularly pertinent given Finland’s 1,340-kilometre border with Russia, a nation frequently cited as a source of such campaigns.
Media literacy has been part of the Finnish educational curriculum since the 1990s, and additional courses are available for older adults who might be especially vulnerable to misinformation.
The skills are so ingrained into the culture that the Nordic nation of 5.6 million people regularly ranks at the top of the European Media Literacy Index. The index was compiled by the Open Society Institute in Sofia, Bulgaria, between 2017 and 2023.
Full text of the article Children as young as three taught how to spot fake news in European country taking on media literacy in the Independent.
