At an almost alarming rate, students these days are unable to determine news writing from opinion writing. In my two Journalism I classes, I conducted a pre-assessment experiment where students evaluated a news article and opinion article from the local newspaper. I asked students to read both pieces, underline the facts and opinions in each article and then decide which piece was from the news section and which piece was from the opinion section. Students were able to accurately identify facts...
One of the most exciting aspects of weaving media literacy instruction into the classroom is the rich source material that we are able to glean from news and entertainment media, pop culture and social media. It can also feel overwhelming to try to keep our instruction on pace. When Beyoncé dropped “Formation” on Feb. 6, 2016, and the next day gave a Black Panther-inspired performance during the Super Bowl halftime show, there was backlash on social media and from political pundits. I quickly...
Fake news. Bias. Alternative facts. Journalism is under attack, and our students certainly feel the apathy that results in this constant cycle of distrust. For students who might be interested in journalism, the job market seems dubious and there’s been increasing vitriol about mainstream news outlets being “fake news.” These realities and fictions affect morale about the field, to be certain, but larger trends in education also threaten the ways in which young people could and should be encouraged...
Teaching the basics of Photography can be challenging. Here are a few resources to assist you with the process. HANDOUTS Joshua Nistas has taken some of the “challenge” out of teaching photography by sharing his handouts with SchoolJournalism. Nistas started as a photographer in the Navy for six and a half years, then attended the University of Arizona to study photography. He is now a photography educator in Tucson, AZ. All three documents are PDF files that can be downloaded for use. Shutter Speed handout: Shutter Speed Photo Handout Aperture handout: Aperture Handout (1) ISO handout: ISO Handout copy VIDEO CLIPS These videos have been highly recommended to SchoolJournalism...
Madison Carter is the noon anchor for 7 Eyewitness News in Buffalo, N.Y. She's a Syracuse University alumni. Madison is also a member of the National Association of Black Journalists. She recently visited with SchoolJournalism about her career and provided many tips for Journalism teachers and students. SJ: How did you first get interested in journalism? Madison: "I wasn’t interested in journalism my whole life like many of my colleagues. I wanted to become a lawyer, and eventually a judge. I actually only became interested my junior year of high school when someone introduced me to the idea of using a different medium to fight for justice. In journalism, we don’t necessarily get to...
The need for greater knowledge and understanding of the First Amendment is vital to our democracy. If this instruction does not occur in our classrooms, where is it taking place? In social media forums where misinformation and disinformation run rampant and unchecked, or within partisan realms where it is adapted to support political leanings? Recently, the First Amendment Center of the Freedom Forum Institute announced the results of its annual State of the First Amendment survey. Out of approximately 1,000 adults, 21% could not name any of the five freedoms guaranteed by the First Amendment. According to a Freedom Forum release about the survey, “Of concern for First Amendment advocates...
Multiple surveys and studies have shown that Americans remain unaware of the five freedoms the First Amendment guarantees. When more Americans can name characters from an...
MIPA is a state organization working in association with the Missouri School of Journalism; Journalism Educators Association, JEA; and the National Scholastic Press Association,...
January 14, 2017
