Journalism Course - Feedback/Ideas

[SnowDay]

Hi...

I am teaching a Journalism & Mass Media course at my high school this semester. I am excited about the course. It was previously under the English department, but I requested to have it moved to the Social Studies department so I could teach it. The request was granted and now I am teaching the one semester course. I want to teach it because -- I am the school newspaper advisor and I have about 10 years previous experience in the media (television news).

I have a great group of students and plenty of ideas. I guess my problems are bigger than that though...there is no curriculum. I have planned my own, but I have virtually no resources. I want the first half of the class to cover print journalism and the second part to cover broadcast journalism.

I guess what I am wondering is...does anyone have a curriculum already done that might cover the basics of journalism. There is so much, it is hard for me to narrow down what to cover. The beginning will be all writing, but without resources, it is hard to know where to go next. If this makes sense and anyone has ideas, please respond.

Thanks...:cool:

[Unregistered]

I've got a MA in Electronic Media Production, and I've been teaching broadcasting and journalism at the HS and college level or the last 3 years.

In order to give better suggestions, I'd need to know one thing-

What is the purpose of the class?

Is it to inform the students on how the press and media function in the united states, or is it to give the students practical skills in the field? (will you be talking about the development of the forms of mass media, or will you be showing the kids how to write for the school paper?) A mass media/journalism class could go either way, and probably should go one of the two directions. Be a bit more specific with your intent, and I'll do my best to give you some great ideas and direction for your class.

[SnowDay]

Good question...

The purpose of the class is actually two-fold...

1.) to give students some practical experience and knowledge of the media in the United States. I am a current member of the media, so I would hope to give them an introduction to newspaper, tv, internet and other forms of media

2.) to help students become better journalists... I am the advisor to the student newspaper and I am looking to expand our school's program in this area

Like I said, I've never taught a class in journalism before...I've got some knowledge, I'm just unsure about how to structure it. I guess I'd like to give students a little bit of everything (with the hopes of more selective classes in the future)

Thanks for your help.

[dhom]

I saw a book on journalism in the Prentice-Hall catalog, but I never got a sample of it from them. They usually offer a lot of extra resources on CD and the entire book online for an additional fee, which can be pretty useful for high school students.