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Scholastic Journalism Week: A chance to showcase your voices. Updated daily

Posted by on Feb 19, 2018 in Blog, News, Scholastic Journalism, Teaching | 0 comments

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Student voice, student choice.

JEA’s Scholastic Press Rights Committee works to promote this theme of the 2018 Scholastic Journalism Week. We’ll take the week to highlight some SPRC materials daily.

Monday, teachers who are looking for some last-minute lesson plans to fit with the theme of embracing students’ First Amendment rights, should check out these lessons from Constitution Day:

 Amendment School Dialogue, by Jeff Kocur: Guide your students through a class-sized (or whole-school) dialogue about the five freedoms of the First Amendment. Students will identify and evaluate the impact of the First Amendment in their own lives and the lives of others.

The Importance of an Independent and Active Press, by Matthew Smith: Expose students to the many possible benefits of independent media in a democracy through quotes and video excerpts of world leaders espousing the necessity of a free press. Students will evaluate and discuss their own reaction to these arguments.

Introduction to News Literacy, by Kristin Taylor: The freedom of speech and of the press come with responsibilities, too, and this lesson provides materials for recognizing different types of news media and coverage. Students will examine the credibility of news sources as well as examine their own media habits in order to beef up their news diets and avoid “fake” news.

What’s in Your State Press Law?, by John Bowen and Lori Keekley: As New Voices laws spread across the country to protect student journalists, help your students understand what their state does or does not cover when it comes to student press rights. Students will examine their own law and create a dialogue with stakeholders about the benefits of protecting student publications.

Sharing Your State Law with Others, by John Bowen and Lori Keekley: State laws protecting student press rights mean nothing if students, administrators, school boards and others don’t know what they mean or how they impact the community. For this lesson, students will create an action plan for the various groups in their community about the state legislation.

Student voice, student choice.
JEA’s Scholastic Press Rights Committee works to promote this theme of the 2018 Scholastic Journalism Week. We’ll take the week to highlight some SPRC materials daily.

Tuesday, the Making a Difference project showcases the efforts of scholastic journalists around the country. The goal of the Making a Difference project is to highlight instances of scholastic journalism at its best. 

The student editors of The Tower, student newspaper at Grosse Pointe South High School (MI) are MAD (Making a Difference.) In their Jan. 31 editorial, “The End to a Destructive Cycle,” they tackled the Larry Nassar public testimony and the #MeToo movement.

The student editors of Uncaged Student News/UncagedOnline at Stockbridge High School (GA) are MAD (Making a Difference.) Their Feb. 13 editorial, “Sexual harassment is your issue, too” points out that sexual harassment impacts everyone.

Please share your published work showing how your student media covers gun control and how this coverage inspires conversation and, perhaps, promotes change in your school community.

If interested, please use this submission form, which asks for the following:

PDF or URL link to your story or broadcast

  • A short statement explaining why this topic was chosen and how it impacted your school community.
  • Names of student authors and editors, with email contacts. Permission to post links or PDFs to the JEA Scholastic Press Rights Committee website

The Scholastic Press Rights Committee applauds all student media with the courage to tackle tough issues and to Make A Difference.

WEDNESDAY: Editorial leadership may be the most important aspect of a student media program. This recent Quick Tip explains why staff editorials are a much-needed aspect of any robust journalism program.

Check here tomorrow for material from the SPRC

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