Kholod O. THE IMPACT OF SOCIAL PRECONDITIONS FOR CRITICAL THINKING. Appendix to the article.

This study investigates the impact of social preconditions, such as family environment, university context, and online communities, on the development of critical thinking and the application of innovative methods in teaching media literacy within Ukrainian higher education institutions. Employing a mixed-method approach, the research involved 23 journalism students and 8 media literacy instructors from various Ukrainian universities. Through surveys (Questionnaires A and B) and an experiment, the study assessed students’ ability to identify disinformation in a fabricated text claiming a "revolutionary cancer-curing drug" developed from Chernobyl bacteria. The results revealed that 91.3% of students successfully recognized the text as disinformation, citing unrealistic claims, lack of credible sources, and sensational language, demonstrating a high level of critical thinking. The average score of 13.47 out of 20–30 on Questionnaire A, which evaluated social support for critical thinking, indicated moderate encouragement from family, university, and online environments, with higher scores correlating with more accurate identification of manipulative elements and suggestions of credible verification sources, such as PubMed, WHO, BBC, and Scopus. The experiment highlighted the effectiveness of innovative teaching methods, including multimedia projects, interactive debates, and media content analysis, particularly when adapted to students’ sociocultural contexts. Comparative analysis with prior research, such as the 2024 Media Literacy Index by Detector Media, shows that educated youth exhibit significantly higher media literacy (91% vs. 72% in the general population), underscoring the critical role of education and demographic factors in combating disinformation. The study emphasizes the necessity of integrating social and cultural factors into media literacy curricula to enhance critical thinking and resilience against information manipulation. Recommendations include tailoring teaching methods to regional and cultural nuances, prioritizing training in source verification, and incorporating digital tools to address disinformation challenges effectively. These findings provide educators with empirically grounded strategies to optimize media literacy teaching practices, fostering a robust information environment amid the challenges of information overload and disinformation threats. The research contributes to the broader discourse on media literacy by highlighting the interplay between social preconditions and innovative pedagogical approaches in higher education.