There has been an influx of reading lists for white Americans to more deeply understand the long history and enduring egregious examples of systemic racism in our country in response to the Black Lives Matter movement. This is a rational and important reaction: we know that reading increases knowledge, understanding, and empathy. I am a white educator in a predominately white county and school. Too often, segregated white spaces are insulated from needing to do the urgent work of dismantling...
My name is Jane Bannester and I’m a teacher at Ritenour High School in St. Louis, Missouri. On Aug. 9, 2014, Michael Brown Jr., an 18-year-old black man, was fatally shot by 28-year-old white police officer Darren Wilson in the city of Ferguson, a suburb of St. Louis. It happened on a Saturday. Our school began its first day of a new school year that Monday. Ritenour High School was in the circle of protests that ran several weeks. It is only 13 miles from Ferguson, separated by an airport. At...
Presidential election years present ample opportunities for lessons in media literacy; depending on your outlook and your class dynamics, this is either exhilarating or terrifying. Either way, it’s necessary for us to play a role in helping students navigate the overwhelming messages that surround them. As I have written about in the past, I’ve found rooting my media literacy lessons in classic rhetorical analysis has been the most successful in eliciting meaningful class discussions....
Over the course of the pandemic, many of us have become attached to our pets. There has been a boom in the number of pet adoptions as more and more people have sought out ways to stay happier at home. Our pets became an excuse to take a walk. They made mealtimes more entertaining. My dog certainly made fetch happen. Inspired by Bailey For me, my dog served a special purpose. Last year, I was diagnosed with limbic encephalitis, an incredibly rare disease, and spent two weeks in a medically-induced coma. After that experience, I needed an emergency tracheotomy at Mt. Sinai Hospital. To add an additional stressor, a pandemic broke out. Throughout this experience, my dog, Bailey, was by...
Quarantines, Zooms, Hybrid Schedules, Virtual Classrooms and Meet Ups, oh my! To say teaching during COVID-19 has been a challenge would indeed be an understatement. However, five Journalism Advisers from the Midwest have offered their tips for surviving and at times thriving under these circumstances. Dane Erbach, adviser of The McHenry Messenger in McHenry High School in McHenry, IL has been fully remote all school year (so far). Dane’s tips: Find the balance between freedom and support. All teachers think about this in all learning scenarios, but teaching remote has tipped the balance—and teaching journalism complicates it further. Giving kids time to work in breakout...
A message from MediaNow Advisers, we know this year has been tough. It’s been tough for everyone. Hopefully, we’ve got a couple offers here to help the new year not be so crazy and give you some fresh content to use in your classes. ON-DEMAND VIDEOS FOR CLASS For starters, we have decided to make all of our 2020 Media Now courses available on-demand. Each course offers a variety of videos from award-winning advisers to professional journalists -- all catered to help you. We've made more than 140 different videos available and we’re giving you access to them for a full year! You can purchase a single course for $49 or purchase them all for the low price of $199. You can use the...
