Jeff Share

After a decade of photojournalism, Jeff changed careers and moved into education. He spent seven years teaching bilingual primary school (Spanish and English) in the Los Angeles Unified School District. During this time he also earned his master’s degree researching the potential for teaching students to think critically about media. Through combining his experiences in journalism with his passion for teaching, Jeff ventured deeper into the area of media literacy. For a couple of years, he left the classroom to work for the Center for Media Literacy as their Regional Coordinator for Training. In this position, he wrote curriculum, designed trainings, and led professional development. As grant funding dried up, Jeff went back to school to earn his Ph.D. in the Graduate School of Education and Information Studies at UCLA. Under the guidance of Douglas Kellner, Jeff researched critical media literacy and published several articles unpacking the essence of this new field of education. He served on the Media Commission of the National Council of Teachers of English and was a member of the Japanese American National Museum’s Educators Advisory Committee.

Jeff currently teaches in UCLA’s Teacher Education Program and in the School of Education and Information Studies undergraduate programs. He continues his research and practice focusing on the teaching of critical media literacy in K-12 education and also teaches undergraduates. Jeff presents nationally and internationally at conferences, provides professional development at schools, and writes about critical media literacy. He has trained teachers in critical media literacy in India, Mexico, China, Iraq, and for the Fulbright Foundation in Argentina. In 2015, Peter Lang published the second edition of his book, Media Literacy is Elementary: Teaching Youth to Critically Read and Create Media. He created a course in Critical Media Literacy that has become mandatory for all new teacher candidates in the Teacher Education Program at UCLA. In 2017, Routledge published the book he co-wrote titled, Teaching Climate Change to Adolescents: Reading, Writing, and Making a Difference. Collaborating with Douglas Kellner (2019) they published, The Critical Media Literacy Guide: Engaging Media and Transforming Education.