「媒體素養」係譯自英文“media literacy”，又稱為「媒介素養」或是「媒體識讀能力」，是大眾傳播領域所關切的議題，係指個體對各種媒體（尤其是圖像媒體如照片、圖畫、電影、電視等甚或電腦網路）所承載的訊息之解讀與運用能力。媒體素養的理念與圖書資訊領域所關懷的資訊素養有相當的共同性，但是二者的重心有些許的不同。
媒體素養在許多西方先進國家政府及民間均受到非常的重視，其中歐洲是最早開始推動的，又以英國為首，其他英語系的國家如美國、加拿大、澳洲等國也非常重視。本研究的主要目的在於瞭解加拿大政府機關及學術團體如何推動媒體素養教育的現況，主要以CAMEO（Canadian Association of Media Education Organizations，加拿大媒體素養教育組織總會）的運作為主要的研究個案。
本研究發現，加拿大媒體素養教育的發展有四個主要的時期，學術團體在學術研究與理念的整合以及實務的推廣上在加拿大媒體素養教育發展上扮演非常重要的角色，在傳統上純以重心主要放在媒體的暴力對孩童影響的層面。但是媒體素養與資訊素養的基本理念在本質上非常接近，但是彼此的論述角度與關注議題不盡相同，但是隨著網際網路的普及，圖書資訊領域及大眾傳播領域所關懷的議題漸漸有了交集，媒體素養與資訊素養漸有結合的趨勢。加拿大的Media Awareness Network於成立之初便開始進行有關網際網路對青少年影響之專案研究，此外並由1999年開始推動“Web Awareness Canada”計畫，結合學校、公共圖書館、家長會與社區組織共同關注青少年網路行為相關議題。並於2000年開始進行“Young Canadians In A Wired World Research”的研究計畫。此等研究方向使圖書資訊領域及大眾傳播領域開始產生較多的對話，是值得我國參考的一個方向。

Media literacy is an area of study of great concern to scholars and educatiors in mass education. The term refers to one's ability to decode and use messages carried through all forms of media (especially visual medium such as photograph, picture, movie, and television.) The concept of media literacy bares great similarities to that of information literacy which the field of library and information science are concerned with.
Media literacy and media education receives great attention in the developed nations of the Western hemisphere. European countries are the first to promote media education, with England leading the way. Other English speaking nations, such as United States, Canada, and Australia also put much emphasis on media education. The main purpose of this paper is to study and analyze the Canadian experience of media education, to realize the role of Canadian government and media education organizations plays in the development of media education in Canada, using CAMEO (Canadian Association of Media Education Organizations) as the subject for case study.
The study finds that there are four distinct phases in the development of media education in Canada, and that the main focus has been on the concern with the effect of violence on children and helping students understand media. Provincial media education associations and CAMEO plays a major part in the role of promoting media education in Canada. Although the concept of media literacy and information literacy bares more similarities than differences, there has not been much interaction between the field of library and information science and the field of mass media on these ssues. However, with recent development of Internet and common concern with the effect of Internet on young children through projects like "Web Awareness Canada" and the "Youth Canadians in A Wired World Research", there seems to be an opportunity for the two fields to merge hteir interest and develop dialg.