Potsdam – Prevention is usually not the top priority in this society. For example, prevention is not the most urgent task when it comes to health issues. Usually, action is only taken when the problem – the disease – has already broken out. It is not much different when it comes to crime and security issues. There it is usually more about punishing the criminals after the crime, rather than informing and protecting possible victims beforehand. That is why the idea of prevention is to be strengthened with the Brandenburg Prevention Prize. This year’s winner was announced on Wednesday.
The prize goes to a children’s and youth home in Trebbin in the Teltow-Fläming district. The responsible interior minister, Michael Stübgen (CDU), praised the media project there as an important contribution to digital prevention work. Stübgen said: “The award winner won over with a media project in which children and young people learn how to use the various possibilities of the Internet appropriately and safely,” he said.
That sounds very general. But the specific topics show how current the approach is. In a two-week project, the participants focus on the problem areas of fake news, conspiracy theories and talk about addictive behavior and the media.
Minister Stübgen said: “Media competence is the key to political judgment and participation.” Today, the Internet and smartphones are a matter of course for children and young people. The trend has intensified in times of corona, pandemic, distance requirements and distance teaching.
“However, dealing responsibly with the digital world and critically questioning content is now more important than ever,” said Stübgen. The winners recognized this and made an important contribution to digital prevention work.
The prize was awarded for the 17th time. The winners receive 5000 euros. According to the ministry, special attention was paid to projects related to the pandemic in the second Corona year.
The teachers at the Trebbiner Heim also came up with the idea for their model project through distance learning. They found that the media literacy of the children and adolescents was very different. In addition to group discussions, the participants visited a police prevention officer and a specialist agency for consumer skills.
The highlight was a camping trip with adventure educational offers – the decisive factor: It was about recreational activities that managed entirely without digital media. “We would of course be happy if other institutions would adopt our idea,” said home manager Peter Borowiak of the Berliner Zeitung.
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