Using memes to teach multimodality, literacy, and creativity

Memes are a particular form of multimodal, user generated, online content which is shared virally. Though the origin of the term dates to the seventies and to theories of cultural evolution, today memes signify chunks of online content expressing views,attitudes, commentary or feelings. Students are accustomed to creating and sharing memes, therefore using memes for teaching purposes seems intuitive and beneficial. This paper provides a brief, selective literature review on memes’ usage for teaching purposes and then focuses on class exercises designed and implemented to foster analytical and critical skills, as well as creative skills. Students can analyze memes to foster their critical thinking, visual and media literacy, especially around the broader area of misinformation and disinformation. Students can create memes to demonstrate understanding of key terms and ideas in cultural, media, and social studies, as well as to express their thoughts and ideas while fostering their creativity and enhancing their ability towards multimodal expression. Both approaches, critical and creative, should be combined with writing assignments, especially for lower-level students who need to develop fluent, articulate writing. Preliminary evidence suggests that students may sometimes overestimate their critical skills and their understanding of the context in which memes appear. On the other hand, students find meme-making intuitive, helpful, and pleasant, in a variety of topics including advertising, storytelling, literary studies, and media theory. Further systematic empirical work is needed to document the results of such activities. The examples presented may be of use to participants in a variety of teaching contexts, as memes increase engagement while fostering learning.