MO HB1792

Establishes the "Media Literacy and Critical Thinking Pilot Program" to be administered by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education during the 2027-28 and 2028-29 school years

Requires selection of 5-7 diverse school districts to participate, with sites developing strategies for teaching news content literacy, visual literacy, digital fluency, and digital literacy across preschool through grade 12

Mandates pilot sites report to DESE by August 1, 2029, with the department submitting a summary report to the General Assembly by January 1, 2030, including proposed statewide media literacy standards

Curriculum must address social media use, cyberbullying prevention, misinformation identification, understanding of algorithms, and First Amendment protections for online speech in school settings

Pilot program terminates June 30, 2029, and the entire section expires December 31, 2029