Having students in a Journalism class that don't read the news is like having access to A/C in Phoenix and not using it; it doesn't make sense. Seeing how a news story should look is important, just like knowing how a haiku should look. If we want students to create one, they need to read several to see its structure. Modeling journalistic structure is crucial if we want our students to mimic and, ultimately, know it. I applaud Elaine's post on Facebook about Reuter's Oddly Enough as a method to get students to read the news. I didn't know that site existed, so those of you that have yet to check it out I recommend it, lots of stories that could be of high interest to our teens.
On another note, for those of you that are skeptical about giving News Quizzes, I suggest doing a Current Events assignment once or twice a week. This can be done in various ways. You can assign a category (Local, World, Sports, Entertainment, Politics). You can leave it open-ended. Or, however you see fit. What does not vary is the information the students must find and present. What follows was my criteria this past year:
CURRENT EVENTS ASSIGNMENT
Choose an article of your choice. Attach the article and type up the assignment using the
following format.
HEADING
(Current Events Assignment):
Title of
Article
Author
Source
Date of
Article
BODY:
1) Identify
the lead. Highlight it and write
what type of lead it is (ie. Summary, Direct Identification, etc)
2) Answer
these 5 questions using complete sentences:
· Who?
· What?
· Where?
· When?
· Why?
OPINION
At least 2 paragraphs encompassing why you chose this
article, did you agree or disagree with the content, what would you have added
or removed? Why?
Obviously this can be modified to suit your needs. I was focusing on the 5Ws, and identifying types of leads. Leaving it open allowed for students to pick a story they felt a connection with, and explain why.
So, that is my suggestion for getting kids to read news. It isn't anything fancy, but it works. Any suggestions for modifications for next year?
Bidjan Aminian
Dublin High School
Dublin, CA
I approach this in the same way. I give students a form at the end of the week and ask them to read 3 articles for the weekend. I include a small summary of the article itself. Then on Monday, I have students (without using their notes) explain one of their articles to the rest of the class (just 1-2 minutes) and then the rest of the class can ask any questions about the article. This shows that students didn't just read the information but they also retained the information. If there is time we also talk about what types of writing or journalistic features this article contained. Just a thought, but it definitely takes some time and if you don't have a small class this could take way too much time.
ReplyDeleteI found early on that my kids weren't reading the news when most failed the first two Current Events Quizzes I gave. (So disappointing.) My initial solution was to take 10-15 minutes at the end of our 2 block hours leading up to the quizzes to guide my students through the weeks events as a review. Unfortunately, they were relying on my reviews and STILL not reading the news. Then a moment of serendipity...I had to be gone on a Friday (when I usually give the quizzes). Knowing the kids would probably cheat with a substitute I just wrote the quiz as an "open internet" quiz where they could use the computers in my room. When I got back on Monday...they couldn't wait to talk to me about the news they had "found." I then used a lot more creative ways to test their news knowledge and they started reading it for themselves. While they still aren't where I want them to be...they've come a long way.
ReplyDeleteAs a bellringer activity my class reads at least one article per day along with a short activity. I start off with the Oddly Enough articles, but eventually the students are able to tolerate more serious ones because they've already practiced on the silly ones :)
ReplyDelete