Facebook has launched its Digital Literacy Library this week, targeting children ages 11 to 18 to address eight different topics.
The purpose of the library is to engage the roughly 830 million young users online on topics such as privacy, reputation, identity exploration, security, safety, wellbeing, community engagement, and content production, according to TechCrunch.
It also is meant to give teachers the educational resources that will allow them to discuss the topics in a classroom setting or other forums, the tech website stated. Facebook said that the library includes learning resources made available by Youth and Media at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University.
The center has an array of research, advocacy, and development initiatives centered around youth and digital technology, according to its website. The center's team has worked to build insights into the creative, educational, and revolutionary possibilities of youth activity in the digital space while addressing the genuine concerns that come with life online, its website noted.
The lessons connected with the Digital Literacy Library are based on more than 10 years of academic research from the center, with a concentration on reflecting the voices of young people from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds, ethnicities, geographies, and educational levels, Facebook said, according to Tech Crunch.
The website The Verge pointed out that one topic remained missing from the library and may have seemed obvious.
"Though it feels like a step in the right direction, curiously missing from the lesson plans are any mentions of 'fake news,'" The Verge wrote. "Facebook has worked on a news literacy campaign with the aim of reducing the spread of false news before. But given the company's recent announcements admitting to the discovery of 'inauthentic' social media campaigns ahead of the midterm elections, it's strange that the literacy library doesn't call attention to spotting potential problems on its own platform."
Facebook efforts received a various range of views on social media.