So much to be proud of...

In the first half of our year, we have managed to put out 3 issues of the paper, each one gaining in content, style and design and correctness.  We have so much to be proud of, but still  have much to go...

We need to continue to work on deadlines, using layout time wisely (starting with mock ups - section leaders will be mocking up their sections on paper... you must be aware of what is coming in and what art/pictures are going with your spreads), and coverage... most notably, we are going to start discussing advertising in January when we return.

I need the editorial board to set up an appointment with Schneider about DOE regulations and/or contracts for accepting advertising.

We will be looking to put out a 4th issue in January before the Regents break, which means all pieces set to go into the issue must be finished BY and NO LATER than Tuesday 1/5/2010.

Timeline for 4th - January issue

Right now you should be working on your article for the 4th issue... the Hard Deadline is Tuesday, January 5th.

You need to make sure I see 2 drafts prior to the that hard deadline.  Get in touch with your section leader -
Anastasia - opinion
Livianette - news
Sarah B - feature
Georgina P - entertainment
Lisa marie - sports
Melissa - Layout

You should already have topics

More opinion articles

http://www.nytimes.com/pages/opinion/index.html?8dpc

More opinion articles -

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/13/opinion/13sun3.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/05/opinion/05sat2.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/04/opinion/04fri3.html

Opinion pieces - period 3

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/14/opinion/14mon2.html?_r=1&ref=opinion

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/category/allison-arieff/

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/12/opinion/12sat1.html?ref=opinion

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/13/opinion/13sun2.html

Hard deadline for 4th issue - newly dubbed the January issue

All final drafts of articles will be due on Tuesday 1/5 when we return from break...

it is your responsibility to get me at least 2 drafts before then... you set the schedule and you do the work... check in with your section leaders and me often.

Thanks,
Ms. S

Online newspaper

I am in need of someone or people to maintain the content on our new online newspaper through my.hsn.org.

Please contact me if you are interested.

New sections - new expectations

Layout section - leader - Melissa.Iachetta@wjps.org
Ariana M
Pria Nahal
Shazia Rahaman
Jamie Torney
Alyse Green

all section leaders will be expected to provide mock ups for their section to Melissa at the beginning of each layout for the new issue

News - leader livianette.cabrera@wjps.org
Shanza Kushnood
Raymond Arroyo *
Divya Desai
Paula Barbosa
Sherlyn Gonzales
Ashley Liszka
Eleni Dangenis
Marlyn Sanchez

Feature -leader - Sarah.bianchi@wjps.org
Erica Castagliola
Brian Melendez
Olivia Kuros
Shazia Rahaman *
Zandalee Gomez
Ciera D'Aguillar
Alexander Rubildo

Sports leader -lisamarie.ludford@wjps.org
Erin O'Driscoll
Amneet Singh
Chris Caraballo
Claudia Chevez
Richard Williams
Victor Rivera

Opinion - leader -anastasia.papis@wjps.org
Raymond Arroyo *
Kaylin Soucy
Mia Martinez
all section leaders may write for opinion

Entertainment - leader- Georgina - gpapazafiropoulos@wjps.org
Gisselle Bonilla
Fernando Echevaria
Tanya Castillo
Jordan Montell
Jamie Torney
Kristina Papa

You will be expected to meet with your section leaders regularly...
Section leaders are responsible for:

• Approving your topic ideas
• Sending drafts (when you send your drafts to me, CC your section leader)
• give guidance to you when you are writing
• keeping track of where your progress.

More to follow

Next newspaper before break

Because we ran so far behind on the trying to get the third issue, we are going to combine the 3rd and 4th issues and put one out before December.  We will try to get the 4th one out in January.

Moving forward, when you finish an article, there will be a rolling deadline to get things done.  There will be a hard deadline to make the issue, but all earlier drafts will be at your discretion.

When you finish, you will get it to me and I will get it back to ASAP so you can continue on to your next draft.

writing contest

"Why are free and independent news media important?" The Society of Professional Journalists want to know what your students think and are sponsoring a national contest to find out.






I thought this might be a good essay for a journalism class and/or exam, extra credit. National first place is $1,000 scholarship; second is $500 scholarship; third is $300 scholarship.







I am the Michigan coordinator for the contest. Michigan advisers should contact me for the information and entry form.





Those in other states should go to http://www.spj.org/a-hs.asp for information on where to send your essays.





Postmark deadline is March 5, 2010.

Pride for the 2008-2009 Blazer

The awards are in and in addition to placing Bronze with  Columbia Scholastic Press Association (CSPA)

The ESSPA awards are in too (Empire State Scholastic Press Association)

Congratulations to the Blazer for placing Silver overall and the following students:
Raisa Balabanova - Gold in Editorial B category for "Mayor Bloomberg beleives school budget cuts..."

Sarah Bianchi and Livianette Cabrera - Bronze in Editorial B category for "Current grading system confuses WJPS students"

Shazia Rahaman - Bronze in Feature B category for "Everyone can be a stereotype"

Anastasia Papis - Bronze in Sports feature B category for "Enter the mind, body and soul with Kung Fu martial arts"

Eric Vasquez - Honorable Mention in Feature B category for "Eunice Kennedy Shriver founder of the Special Olympics"

Maggie Todaro - Honorable Mention in sports news B category for "WJPS and Francis Lewis join forces"

I'm so proud of all of you and your hard work... we can do it.

Have a very Happy Holiday

I would like to wish everyone a very happy Thanksgiving.  There is so much to be grateful for every day.

Press Credentials

Press credentials give journalists access to outside events... Gives you the right to get into and cover events

http://horseracing.about.com/cs/miscellaneous/ht/credentials.htm - this one is for sporting events

http://freelancewriting.suite101.com/article.cfm/how_to_get_a_press_pass_for_a_concert_or_event - this one is for concerts and events

http://factoidz.com/how-to-get-a-photojournalist-press-pass/ - photo press

http://www.nyc.gov/html/nypd/downloads/pdf/press_relations/Press_Credentials_Application.pdf - police department press application

http://offwing.com/2006/08/guidelines-for-issuing-press-credentials-to-bloggers - the Guidelines that businesses use to issue press credentials

More censorship around the country

 http://www.jeasprc.org/fighting-scholastic-media-censorship-must-start-locally/

The Blazer is online through my HSJ online

Is anyone interested (or a group of you) in running the online content for the newspaper?

Please see me if you are...

Censorship in other high schools

Full ViewCensorship at Stevenson HS



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



This morning, student editors of The Statesman at Stevenson High School are scheduled to meet with the superintendent to discuss the censorship that occurred there last week. This is a story that involves an "exemplary" school and therefore can have profound implications far beyond a local community. This is the second censorship this year at Stevenson, the first resulting in the loss of a distinguished adviser.





Our high hopes go to the courageous students who are challenging arbitrary censorship. The JEA, other scholastic journalism organizations, the professional news media, parents and other members of the school community MUST HOLD SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS ACCOUNTABLE for their censorship decisions. WE MUST BE PERSISTENT. OUR PROFESSIONAL NEWS MEDIA BRETHREN MUST BE PERSISTENT. Teachers, parents, board members and others must rally to discover exactly what's happening in the Stevenson school district. They should demand that prior review be lifted and student autonomy within the parameters of Tinker be restored.





My reflection is lengthy, but I wanted to present a detailed response to Stevenson administrators. Thanks for your patience.


Randy Swikle

JEA State Director, Illinois

Johnsburg, IL 60051

Censorship at Stevenson High School

Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire, Ill., has long boasted a national reputation as a premier school, but continuing incidents of censorship, incredibility and unaccountability are baffling and jeopardize the school’s claim of superiority. Nationwide, more and more are associating Stevenson High School with a suppressive word: CENSORSHIP. The school administration is urged to reevaluate its actions of prior review and prior restraint of The Statesman, national award-winning student newspaper, and to pursue a course that will heighten student and teacher morale, inspire intrinsic motivation, cultivate free and responsible student news media and restore confidence in the decision-making of school officials.



CENSORSHIP



Last winter, administrators challenged The Statesman’s coverage of several topics as being unbalanced, improper and unprofessional. Longtime adviser and renowned journalism educator Barb Thill was publicly rebuked, disrespected and advised to keep quiet. Student journalists, who were chief stakeholders in the controversy, said they felt bullied and largely left out of the loop by administrators who seemed to prefer clout over collaboration as the strategy for resolution. To increase its control of the student press, administrators imposed a policy of prior review and later divided The Statesman staff into two classes with two different journalism teachers. Administrators gave no convincing rationale for how separating the student staff is in the best interests of efficient communication and exemplary education.



The latest censorship of The Statesman occurred when school officials prohibited distribution of the Nov. 20, 2009, issue. An unattributed news release printed under the school seal cited the following reasons for the censorship:



(1) Reporters used anonymous sources discussing alleged illegal activity.



(2) The principle of in loco parentis obliges the school to “report such activity to … parents, and possibly, legal authorities.”



(3) The content of the newspaper did not meet “the curriculum standards laid out by the journalism teachers at the beginning of the school year.”



No mention was made of articles on teen pregnancy and shoplifting, which editor Pam Selman said also factored into the censorship. No compelling evidence was presented to show that the censorship was anything more than arbitrary suppression of protected student expression. The release said the censorship was “not because the subject matter of certain articles was sensitive or deemed harmful to the school’s reputation.” Ironically, the author of the release was left anonymous.



INCREDIBILITY





In measuring credibility, one may weigh different perspectives alongside undisputed facts, logic and transparency to reach more objective judgments.



In last winter’s censorship, administrators denounced the quality of student reporting in several articles, most notably in coverage of “hooking up,” a trend among teenagers to engage in sexual encounters with no commitments attached. The Chicago Tribune, the Daily Herald, other news media, professional journalists and journalism educators around the country took issue with Stevenson administrators and praised the student coverage as balanced, responsible and in the best interests of the school community. Who can better judge the quality of journalistic works and ethics than expert professionals in the news media and respected journalism educators?



Additionally, administrators publicly questioned the competence of adviser Barb Thill, despite her exemplary reputation, which is fortified by a long list of state and national awards for her achievements as a journalism educator. Most recently, Ms. Thill received the “Peter Algeld Award” from the McCormick Freedom Project and the “Courage in Student Press Award” from the Student Press Law Center. Leaders in both the scholastic and the professional press joined the civic and First Amendment organizations in praising Ms. Thill for not cowering to those who prioritize PR image above the most basic mission of education—enlightenment. As Mark Goodman, Knight Chair in Scholastic Journalism, Center for Scholastic Journalism at Kent State University’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication, said in a statement: “Her school cared more about its image than the truth. All of the students who are missing her training are the ones who ultimately suffer. Her courage and dedication has affected thousands of young people over the course of her career.”



When administrators imposed a policy of prior review upon The Statesman as a result of its “hooking up” coverage, superintendent Eric Twadell announced at a school board meeting the policy would be only temporary. Today, almost nine months later, the policy is still in effect, which raises a question regarding not only credibility but also the degree of trust and respect school leaders show toward The Statesman, which is honored by scholastic journalism organizations as one of the best student newspapers in the nation.



In the current censorship, Frank LoMonte, executive director of the Virginia-based Student Press Law Center, chastised Stevenson administrators for their suppression of free speech. “It is irresponsible to withhold this information so they can protect their fantasy image of Stevenson as a place where no one has ever gotten pregnant or shoplifted,” he said.



In the Stevenson press release, two anonymous faculty advisers were alleged to be the people who determined “that an article featuring anonymous sources discussing alleged illegal activity was not fit for print.” That “assignment of accountability” is in sharp contrast with media reports that “… administrators on the paper’s review board warned editor Pam Selman, a senior, not to submit a front-page story by senior managing editor Evan Ribot about students in the National Honor Society and freshmen mentors program.” Media attempts to clarify who initiated the censorship and what role superintendent Eric Twadell may have played went unanswered last Thursday.



In an attempt to justify the censorship, the press release stated these three reasons for the suppression:



(1) “The cloak of anonymity does not guarantee truthful statements from a source.” If the point of that statement was to suggest that the identification of a source guarantees truthful statements, the flawed logic is apparent. News media ethically use anonymous sources to protect citizens from retribution for disclosing information that serves the public interest but can put the source in jeopardy. That is exactly what The Statesman editors were doing, and the Stevenson news release demonstrates the point when it states that if administrators learned the names of the sources, they would be obligated “to report such activity to [students’] parents, and possibly, legal authorities.” The student journalists knew their sources and judged their testimony to be sincere. Readers are capable of judging the credibility of the anonymous sources for themselves.



(2) “Stevenson is legally bound by the principle of in loco parentis—acting in place of the parent.” The application of that rationale is rejected by at least two U.S. Supreme Court Justices who supported school censorship in Morse v. Frederick (2007). Justice Samuel Alito, joined by Justice Anthony Kennedy, wrote in concurrence with the Court’s opinion: “The public schools are invaluable and beneficent institutions, but they are, after all, organs of the State. When public school authorities regulate student speech, they act as agents of the State; they do not stand in the shoes of the students’ parents. It is a dangerous fiction to pretend that parents simply delegate their authority—including their authority to determine what their children may say and hear—to public school authorities. It is even more dangerous to assume that such a delegation of authority somehow strips public school authorities of their status as agents of the State. Most parents, realistically, have no choice but to send their children to a public school and little ability to influence what occurs in the school. It is therefore wrong to treat public school officials, for purposes relevant to the First Amendment, as if they were private, nongovernmental actors standing in loco parentis.”



(3) “The Statesman’s publication was delayed because [curriculum standards] were not being met to the satisfaction of the journalism teachers and the director of the Communication Arts Division, and not because the subject matter of certain articles was sensitive or deemed harmful to the school’s reputation.” The Stevenson press release did not provide specific, convincing evidence that its “curriculum standards” argument is anything more than self-serving rationale invented to cloak another, covert purpose for the censorship. The accusation that The Statesman fails to meet high standards is outrageous in light of its long history as one of the nation’s best student newspapers. It has repeatedly won the National Scholastic Press Association’s Pacemaker Award, known as the Pulitzer Prize of scholastic journalism. Its staff has won countless awards for excellence in writing and reporting. Stevenson administrators must show they are not setting arbitrary standards and making arbitrary evaluations that serve their own agenda at the expense of the best interests of learners, the school community and the civic mission of school. Furthermore, if The Statesman serves by policy or practice as a public forum, which all evidence supports that it does, it falls under the jurisdiction of Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School Dist., a U.S. Supreme Court case that defines parameters within which students may control the content of their student newspaper. The administration’s “curriculum standards” argument clearly does not justify censorship under Tinker. Consider also that in its attempt to micromanage the content of The Statesman, the administration jeopardizes the newspaper’s standing in the competitive dimension of scholastic journalism. How can the newspaper be evaluated as student work when its content is inappropriately influenced by the intervention of school officials? For yet another consideration, the administration’s “curriculum standards” argument is likely discriminatory when used to deny access to a public forum by students who may be well-intentioned but who lack superior communication skills, who disseminate controversial and unpopular views, who challenge school policies/decisions/actions, who advocate a single rather than a balanced view and who simply may be wrong. (The First Amendment protects a person’s right to be wrong as well as right.) Finally, when administrators require prior review to edit, micromanage and unjustly censor a student publication, they deny student autonomy and steal responsibility that belongs to the students. Are the actions of Stevenson administrators teaching responsibility or obedience?



UNACCOUNTABILITY



The Stevenson administration properly holds the student newspaper staff accountable for its actions. Is the administration willing to allow the students to hold them—the administrators—accountable too? Is every stakeholder in a school community allowed to hold all other stakeholders accountable?



Where is the accountability of administrators? Why are administrators keeping their distance, refusing to meet with media and citizens to answer direct questions about their censorship practices and roles? Why are they pointing to the two advisers as originating the censorship—subordinates who may feel intimidated by the attitudes of their supervisors? Does evidence exist that officials are being vague, inaccessible, arbitrary, autocratic and intimidating? Does evidence exist of effective partnership, mutual respect and collaboration fueled by rationale rather than by rank?



The press release’s ambiguous statement, “A collaborative decision was made by the leaders of the journalism program to delay the issue’s publication … ,” suggests to some that students may have participated in the decision to spike their newspaper. Did they? Were they even consulted before the censorship decision was made? Or, more pointedly, does the statement really mean, “Administrators decided to censor.”?



The press release repeats it ambiguity: “… the journalism program wisely decided to delay the paper’s publication … .” Who decided to delay publication? Once again, accountability is cloaked behind ambiguity.



What evidence exists that the administration truly has been proactive in building rapport with student journalists and supporting their efforts and the notion of free and responsible student news media? Does the administration and school board continue to recognize The Statesman as a public forum? What evidence exists that trust, student empowerment and collaboration trump bullying, intimidation and clout as the administration’s strategies for influencing students? How accessible and interactive are the superintendent and principal to/with students? Do top school authorities descend their pedestals, visit the classroom and speak at eye level with students?



A hundred other accountability questions need to be asked, not just to administrators but to faculty advisers and student journalists as well. Accountability requires candid questions and complete answers. Stevenson High School has a serious problem that, more than tarnishing its reputation, is demoralizing students, teachers and other members of the community. Anyone who denies there is a profound problem is too caught up in school cosmetics when candor and collaboration should rule the day.



A PHILOSOPHICAL ATTITUDE



Offered because it seems relevant, this selection from Schools of Fish! (Welcome Back to the Reason You Became an Educator):



Control vs. Commitment



“In 1977, psychologist Carl Rogers described the traditional classroom: ‘The teachers are the possessors of knowledge, the students the expected recipients; the teachers are the possessors of power, the students the ones who obey.’



“We adults spend a lot of time in school teaching students about the strengths of democracy: freedom, choice, and responsibility. We tend to spend less time providing them opportunities to actually practice those skills—the same skills they need to become successful citizens and parents. As the poet John Keats noted, ‘Nothing ever becomes real until it is experienced.’



“‘It seems to be an oxymoron,’ researchers Mary McCaslin and Thomas L. Good note, ‘a curriculum that urges problem-solving and critical thinking and a management system that requires compliance and narrow obedience.’



“This strategy of showing students ‘who’s boss’ often forces them to choose between being robots or rebels. Some kids withdraw from academic participation altogether. Others negotiate a live and let-live relationship where they agree not to disrupt the classroom as long as they are left alone. Even high achievers sometimes join in text-burning parties at the end of the year or use words like ‘escape’ to describe their feelings about school.



“Many educators continue to push control because it was the way they were taught. When pressed, however, these same teachers admit that this approach is as unsatisfying as when they were students. It is no more fun to control than to be controlled.



“So how much control should a teacher give students? One way to start is to ask yourself, as noted author Alfie Kohn suggests, ‘What do you want your students to be like, long after they’ve left you?’ Most of us would say caring, responsible, independent, and creative—not docile, compliant, and unquestioning.



“It’s helpful to think about roles, not just rules. Some teachers use the FISH! philosophy to spark discussion about what each member of the classroom wants the culture to be, and the role each plays in creating such a place. These discussions are the basis of a social contract in which each person is accountable to everyone else for his or her behavior. As teacher Jason Pelowski says, ‘It’s not my control. It’s not their control. It’s our control.’ In this environment the FISH! principles are important life skills to work on, not rules to work against.



“It’s often as frightening for students to accept control for their part in the classroom as it is for teachers to give them the opportunity. Having been given little practice in making such choices, they don’t always know how to respond. But students don’t have to become totally independent overnight; we can help them learn gradually, as with math or any other subject.



“There is the chance that, given the choice, kids will at times select the opposite response of the one we want. More often than not, however, with accountability, patience,, and respect, chances are kids will arrive at the same place we’d like them to be. And when they get there, they’ll be even more committed to their choice because they made it, even if the path wasn’t always a straight line.



“There may be times, Kohn admits, when teachers need students to just do what they say—period. But, he comments, students are more ‘apt to trust … and go along if blind obedience is the exception rather than the rule.’”



CALL FOR DIALOGUE



Finally, would superintendent Eric Twadell, principal Janet Gonzalez, school board president Bruce Lubin and director of communication arts Joseph Flanagan be willing to participate in a public, round-table discussion with journalism teachers Matt Lockowitz and Lisa Lukens, student editors Pam Selman and Evan Ribot, and a member of the Journalism Education Association who advocates for free and responsible student news media to discuss the school district’s philosophy and practices regarding scholastic journalism? How better can accountability be safeguarded, transparency secured and the principles of democracy inculcated? Say the word, and we can make it happen.



Stevenson High School is a dynamic educational institution with good, talented people who are pursuing excellence. The school administration is sincere in its desire to sustain an exemplary environment of quality teaching and learning. However, the words “Stevenson High School” are becoming synonymous with the words “arbitrary censorship,” and that is a tag for no educational institution welcomes.



Let’s make lemonade.



Signed,



Randy Swikle



State Director (Illinois), Journalism Education Association



5605 N. Woodland Dr.



McHenry, IL 60051



H: 847-497-3651



C: 847-656-6735



E-mail: randyswikle@comcast.net



To unsubscribe to this listserv, send a message to listserv@listserv.kent.edu. In the message space simply type SIGNOFF JEAHELP

Teacher loses job because of online comment

 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/11/18/kurt-greenbaum-man-loses_n_362406.html

100 things journalists should always do

Care to chime in? What are 100 things journalists should never do? What are 100 things journalists should always do? Tweet your responses with hashtag #100things.


What do you think journalists should never do? What do you think they should always do?

Here is what Poynter has tweeted so far:


#1 Know the audience, what information they want/need & how they want to learn & share it. News is an activity, not a product. #2 Always be willing to let any answer -- including one on deadline -- completely change the story's direction. #3 Journalists should be available. Let people know how to e-mail you, call, IM, DM or otherwise get in touch. #4 Journalists should be active community members. If you aren't of the people, you aren't by the people or for the people. #5 Get out of the office & out of the house. Don't hide behind your job or computer. Rediscover the "local" in "hyperlocal." #6 Remember your purpose. The best stories lead to well-informed people who make better decisions for a better democracy. #7 Be responsive. When a reader gets in touch, listen & follow up. Without an engaged audience, you’re talking to yourself.



Here's our article about the project: http://www.poynter.org/column.asp?id=101&aid=173225

a call to service... Let's Make NY an ant-Hazelwood state

http://www.landmarkcases.org/hazelwood/state_enact.html

http://www.studentpress.org/nspa/trends/~law0101hs.html

I'd like to put together a team of students dedicated to this cause for the next few months -

You will need to research -
Local high schools and colleges, get on the phones and survey these schools, (not just in the city, but Long Island and rural areas as well)

• what are their rules about censorship and prior review?
• can they write about whatever they want?

You will also have to talk to Marjorie Fineberg in Tweed at the DOE about policy
You will talk to people in Albany

After we have done the research, we will start a letter writing campaign to the local politicians to try and make NY an anti-Hazelwood state.

Who is up for the challenge?

Investigative Feature - elements and structure -

Investigative features are well-researched pieces that traditionally take longer to work on.

They take a regular feature and bring more research and ideas to the table...
You MUST use surveys and polls for sidebar stats and other information (this is a practice of conducting primary research)

tips for surveys

• talk to as many people as possible
• create neutral questions that don't influence answers
• use both factual and opinion questions
• you can use both anonymous and cited sources
• Make sure to let people know how the poll was conducted when putting info into a sidebar

Writing the story

• examine the topic
• outline and plan
• make sure to continually check for tone, balance and fairness

Different ways

Revision - in class activity - 11/17/09

I notice that despite my efforts as a whole class to give you tips on specific revision points, most of you don't really get the idea of revision unless I'm working one on one with you...

In class today, I'd like you to go back through the many articles you have written so far in class this year and in your notebooks write down the things I've asked you to work on based on revision history in google.docs.

I'd like you to first write a list of issues in your notebook.

Then write a list of goals specifically related to those issues.  I want you to have this prepared for when we conference this week and next.

4th issue

As we are now, wrapping up the 3rd issue (all final drafts are to be submitted by tomorrow)

We are brainstorming for the 4th issue - I'd like us to start putting work online as well as in print, so depending on how quickly things get done, we will see how it can go up.

there is another open house tomorrow night and Ms. Neier would like for some students to stay and represent the newspaper.  If you are interested, please let me know so that I can forward your information to her.

We need a corrections box for the 3rd issue based on the 2nd issue... can someone please volunteer to comb through the issue to find errors that need public apologies?  Thanks (things like byline errors and misspelled names i.e. Mr. Mailman)

Layout Editor

Hello WJPS newspaper classes. My name is Melissa Iachetta and I am the layour editor. I am the person that oversees the layout section. Ms. Sacktein and I talk about how many pages each issue should be, based on the articles that are finished in each section, the amount of pictures we have, etc. Your job is to send me your completly finished drafts of your articles. This final draft should include the correct headline, your name completely spelled out, and the section you are writing for. There should be no comments from Ms.Sacktein because that means it is not your final draft and you still have to work on your piece. There should be no spelling errors, repeated sentences, etc. If your including a picture please put it in the article with a caption of who took the picture, if their in the school what grade their in, and what the picture is about in relation to the article. Also please send a seperate picture to my email in an attatched file because sometimes the pictures dont copy from google doc efficiently. When you send me your articles I send them to the person laying out that section, so if you dont get me your articles I cant give them to my section. I look foward to working with everyone this year and just hope that from now on my directions are follwed thoroughly :)

Copy Editor

Hey everyone,

My name is Raymond Arroyo and I'm the copy editor for the Editorial board of the Newspaper. I am here to check articles for spelling and grammatical errors. So once someone is done with their article please invite me to it through google docs. My email is RaymondArroyo@gmail.com. Please do not send it to my wjps email I rarely check that email.

Legal and ethical issues of Journalists

In an effort to make everyone more aware of what responsibility every journalist has, you will all be completing investigative feature articles regarding one of the following topics... (this will ensure the school's understanding as well as your own on the important matters)

• First Amendment
• Plagiarism
• John Peter Zenger Trial
• Public Forum Theory for School publications
• Prior Review
• Editorial policy: Its relationship to censorship
• Censorship
• Press law legistlation in Post-Hazelwood Era
• Unprotected Speech
• Libel: Definitions and defenses
• Protecting Privacy
• Responsible newsgathering
• Shield laws
• Reporter's Privilege
• Electronic media regulation
• obscenity, indecency and pornography
• intellectual property
• Code of ethics for journalists (society for professional jouranlists, American society of newspaper editors, etc.)
• Implications of the Use of technology
• Court cases:
• West Virginia STate Board of Education v Barnette, 1943
• Tinker v Des Moines Indendent Community School District, 1969
• Bethel School District v. Fraser, 1986
• Kuhlmeier v Hazelwood Board of Education, 1987

Interesting article about how colleges are using facebook and twitter in the classroom

 http://mashable.com/2009/11/03/hotseat/

2nd issue

There were many improvements in the second issue, but there were also many errors...

Today in class we will be looking at the paper closely to see what can be improved and why we had the issues we did...

Setting standards is essential as we move forward in our quest to get our paper up and running seamlessly.

Very interesting article... worth looking at

http://www.onlinecollege.org/2009/10/27/100-educational-twitter-feeds-for-journalism-students/

leads - the most important of any article...

taken from Bobby Hawthorne

Remember to avoid cliches

Kinds of feature leads:

Literary allusion - relates a person or event to some character or event in literature
Historical allusion - relates a person or event to some character or event in history
contrast - compares extremes
Miscellaneous freak leads - employ ingenious novelty to attract the reader's eye
pun - a novelty that uses a pun to quirk the reader's attention
one word - uses a blunt, explosive word to summarize the most newsworthy
parody lead - mimics as well-known proverb, quotation or phrase
starting statement - consists of a single powerful statement meant to startle the reader
description - sets a tone and puts the reader inside a place, situation or shows a person
capsule or punch lead - uses a blunt, explosive statement to summarize teh most newsworthy feature
anecdotal lead - uses an event to represent teh universal experience
then and now - shows progress
twist of fate - reveals an odd turn of events or unusual twist on an old story.
question -serves best when a problem with reader appeal is the crux of the story.
quote - as a general rule, avoid quote leads.  When used, the quote should be dynamic and capture the theme of the story.

Good Feature Article

Hey guys just putting this link of an excellent feature article I found on the Times yesterday.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/26/us/26runaway.html?_r=1&scp=2&sq=kid%20runaways&st=cse

College applications... this is a great website

http://www.collegeessaywhiz.com/

Olivia Fundraiser... taken from Facebook...

Ok guys ms.mcgrath had some ideas to raise money for Olivia one that a bunch of people agreed on was mr.tesler's band would have a concert one night in november and he would charge $10 a ticket. that's going to happen later on but this week we are planning on having a bake sale during parent teacher confrences.

thursday around 5 bring anything you could bake or coffee or things like that and if you can do the same for friday but the confrences start earlier i will get the full details but we were just asing a few things from you uys

1. if you could print out any pictures you have of olivia or with her by monday

2. if you could let me, monica, or ms.mcgrath if you are going to bake anything or bring something this week


that it and please let everyone know so we can raise a lot of money for her family!

feature writing

http://www.squidoo.com/feature-article#module32608402

this one outlines structures and language... breaks it down...

What is sidebar?
a typographically distinct section of a page, as in a book or magazine, that amplifies or highlights the main text. (according to dictionary.com)

Mainbars vs sidebars:
http://journalism.about.com/od/reporting/a/mainbar.htm

Feature writing and revision

Remember while writing feature, you are writing an extended analysis of some topic...

It should be objective, and extensive
It should provide sidebars/pictures
It should have primary and secondary research
It should be applicable to readers
Timeliness shouldn't be an issue...

http://www.connorsgradstudent.com/learn/index.html

http://www.anthologiesonline.com/Articles/12%20Point%20Checklist%20for%20Writing%20Feature%20Articles.htm - checklist

3rd issue - due dates

First draft - Friday, 10/23
2nd draft - Friday, 10/30
final drafts - Tuesday, 11/10 (day before Veteran's day)

Article assignments...
News
food drive - georgina
extended day - Eleni
senior prom - Gigi
editorial boards - Sarah
College fairs - Shanza
Environmental club trip - Livi
Online portfolios - Jamie
AP classes - paula
Talend show - Kristina
School Store - Chris
Nobel (Obama) -Claudia
... still need coverage : middle school briefs and news, election day, intrepid internships, election day

Feature -
Teen programs - Lisa L
Teens cover up - Richard
Teen fads - Divya
sleeplessness - Marlyn
Virginity - Ciera
parental involvement - Erica
Kids political knowledge - Raymond
homophobia - Mia
Scary movies - Kristina P
Kindle - Shazia
still to be covered: Veteran's Day

Opinion
American views of teens -Eric
Cliques -Livi
paperless - Sarah
Detention - Zandalee
Wednesday (still needs coverage)
Open Lunch - georgina

Entertainment
Restaurant review - Tanya
Underage R movies - rating systems - Victor
Fashion -Sharon
Advertisements - to be determined

Sports
gym class - Shanza
World Series - Erin
Misconduct in NFL - AMneet
more sports topics needed

Resources and good websites from Asne

This collection of links is for student journalists and their teachers. With them, we aim to give you insight into the world of scholastic journalism -- and reach beyond into the professional world.

AllThingsD
News, analysis and opinion on the Internet, technology and the media. Featuring two prominent Wall Street Journal journalists and other experts. http://allthingsd.com/

American Journalism Review
Covers analyzes and monitors print, television, radio and online media. http://ajr.org/

American Press Institute
Founded by newspaper publishers in 1946, API is the oldest and largest center devoted solely to training and professional development for the news industry and college journalism educators. http://www.americanpressinstitute.org/

Center for Public Integrity
Produces investigative journalism in the public interest. http://www.publicintegrity.org/

ChannelOne
Broadcasting since 1990, 12-minute news broadcasts are delivered daily to more than 6 million teens in middle schools and high schools across the country. http://www.channelone.com/

Coalition of Journalists for Open Government
An alliance of more than 30 journalism-related organizations concerned about secrecy in government and the increasing closure of public records and meetings at all levels of government. http://www.cjog.net/


Columbia Journalism Review
Covers analyzes and monitors print, television, radio and online media. http://cjr.org/

Content Bridges
Blog by Ken Doctor, a former news executive who is a news analyst a market analytics firm. http://contentbridges.typepad.com/

C-SPAN Classroom
C-SPAN Classroom is a free membership service that offers resources to assist educators, and specifically civics and U.S. government teachers, in their use of C-SPAN's primary source, public affairs video. http://www.c-spanclassroom.org/

Daniel Pearl Foundation
Honors the legacy of The Wall Street Journal reporter who was slain in Pakistan in 2002. Includes PEARL World Youth News, an international web-based student news service run by secondary school students from around the world. http://www.pearl.iearn.org/pearlnews/
Detroit Free Press Jobs Page
Great career development tips. http://www.freep.com/legacy/jobspage

Editor and Publisher
Reports on all facets of newspapering: newsroom/editorial, new media, advertising, circulation, promotion, public relations, production, news services/syndicates, technology, legal, campus journalism and finance. http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/index.jsp

First Amendment Center
A project of The Freedom Forum, the site features coverage of First Amendment issues and topics, daily First Amendment news, a First Amendment Library and guest analyses by legal specialists. http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/default.aspx

The Freedom Forum
This nonpartisan foundation is dedicated to free press, free speech and free spirit for all people. The foundation focuses on three priorities: The Newseum, the First Amendment and newsroom diversity. http://www.freedomforum.org/

Future of the First Amendment
This project surveyed more than 100,000 high school students, nearly 8,000 teachers and more than 500 administrators and principals at 544 high schools across the United States. http://firstamendment.jideas.org/  

Illinois First Amendment Center
Offers free materials for classroom use. http://www.illinoisfirstamendmentcenter.com/

International Education and Resource Network
IEARN enables teachers and youth to use the Internet and other new technologies to collaborate on projects that enhance learning and make a difference. http://www.iearn.org/

J-Ideas
Created at Ball State University to develop and encourage excellence in high school journalism through on-site activities, tailored programs, distance learning and digital activities and scholarship. http://www.jideas.org/

J-Lab
Programs to help journalists and citizens use digital technologies to develop new ways for people to participate in public life. http://www.j-lab.org/

Knight Citizen News Network
A one-stop training center for citizen journalists and a showcase for all of the Knight Foundation's online training endeavors. http://www.kcnn.org/

Knight Digital Media Center
A partnership of the Annenberg School of Communications at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, and the University of California at Berkeley's Graduate School of Journalism. http://www.knightdigitalmediacenter.org/home/

Knight News Challenge
A competition devoted to development and distribution of neighborhood and community-focused projects, services, and programs. http://www.newschallenge.org/

Learning to Finish
See projected graduation rates for individual school districts, states and the United States as a whole. This site measures the likelihood that a ninth-grader will complete high school on time. http://learningtofinish.org/calculator  (The site works best with Internet Explorer.) 

Robert C. Maynard Institute for Journalism Education
The Maynard Institute, Oakland, Calif., has helped the nation's news media reflect America's diversity in staffing, content and business operations. http://www.maynardije.org/

McCormick Tribune Freedom Museum
The Freedom Museum, located in Chicago, is the nation's first museum dedicated to freedom and the First Amendment. hrough interactive explorations, visitors can gain a greater understanding for the struggle for freedom in the United States and the role the First Amendment plays in our daily lives. http://www.freedommuseum.us/

PBS Media Shift
MediaShift tracks how new media, from weblogs to podcasts to citizen journalism, are changing society and culture. http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/

National Council for the Social Studies
NCSS is the country's largest association devoted solely to social studies education. http://www.ncss.org/

The National Council of Teachers of English
NCTE works to advance teaching, research, and student achievement in English language arts at all scholastic levels. http://www.ncte.org/

The National Press Photographers Association
"The Visual Student" blog is a resource for students in all areas of visual journalism. http://blogs.nppa.org/visualstudent/  

The New York Times Learning Network
Resources for students and teachers in grades 3-12 http://www.nytimes.com/learning/index.html

The News Literacy Project
Fosters partnerships between journalists and social studies, history and English teachers in middle and high schools to help students sort fact from fiction in the information they consume and create. http://www.thenewsliteracyproject.org/  

News University
Tightly focused, interactive learning through Web-browser based courses that can be completed anytime and anywhere. These interactive, free or inexpensive courses appeal to journalists at all levels of experience and in all types of media. Students and advisers should check out the "Be a Reporter" game. http://www.newsu.org/  

Newseum
A "news museum" that provides visitors with a deeper understanding of the role of the First Amendment: http://www.newseum.org/. 
Front pages from news organizations: http://www.newseum.org/todaysfrontpages/

Newspaper Association of America Foundation
Scholastic journalism is a priority of NAA Foundation, which strives to develop engaged and literate citizens in our diverse society through investment in and support of programs designed to enhance student achievement through newspaper readership and appreciation of the First Amendment. http://www.naafoundation.org/

NewsHour Extra
Using the standards and resources of PBS's "NewsHour with Jim Lehrer," NewsHour Extra provides students and teachers with quality educational resources based on current issues and events. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra

Online Journalism Review
Focused on the future of online journalism. http://www.ojr.org/index.cfm

The Paley Center for Media
The center explores alternative economic models for independent documentaries and other investigative journalism. http://www.paleycenter.org/

Poynter High/Poynter Institute for Media Studies
A school for journalists, future journalists and teachers of journalism. Web site is a key resource for professional and aspiring journalists, with stories about the media industry, reporting, writing, visual and multimedia journalism, ethics and values. http://www.poynter.org Special content for scholastic journalists, with story ideas, reporting and writing tips and a place to showcase students' best work: http://www.poynter.org/poynterhigh

PressThink
Blog by New York University journalism professor Jay Rosen. http://journalism.nyu.edu/pubzone/weblogs/pressthink/

Prime Movers
The program enables mentors - professional journalists - to connect with with young minds. http://www.gwu.edu/~primemovers/

Reflections of a Newsosaur
Blog by Alan Mutter, a veteran news executive who is now an analyst and consultant. http://newsosaur.blogspot.com/  

RezNet
Trains Native American journalism students and helps them get internships and jobs. http://www.reznetnews.org/  

Stony Brook University
Established the nation's first Center for News Literacy to educate current and future news consumers on how to judge the credibility and reliability of news. http://www.sunysb.edu/journalism/index.shtml

Stardust High School Journalism Program
The program, housed at Arizona State University, is aimed at revitalizing high school journalism programs. It installs multimedia newsrooms in underserved high schools and supports the creation of student news Web sites. http://stardust.jmc.asu.edu/Stardust/Home.html

More fundraising ideas - let's become self-sufficient

Teachers attending the 2001 ASNE High School Institute at the University of Texas at Austin say finding stable sources of funding for student newspaper is among their most pressing needs.

 

• See if your local newspaper will print your paper at cost.
•  Create special issues of the paper on topics (such as graduation) that will draw certain types of ads (flowers, limousines, formal wear, etc.).
• Ask local newspapers and other businesses to donate old computer equipment.
• Seek out ads for part-time or summer jobs (such as McDonalds and Wal-Mart) and ads from the military and technical colleges.
• Create a special classified section built around fun things like song dedications or cute couples.
• Host and charge admission for a yearbook signing party.
• Charge other departments at school for desktop publishing jobs, such as designing and printing invitations for a sports team dinner, etc.
• Host a pizza and/or karaoke night at a local restaurant.
• During spirit week, set up a both so students can have their picture taken with a cardboard cut-out of someone famous; before Christmas, do photos with "Santa."
• If there is not already a designated vendor, consider selling snacks a couple of days a week during lunch or taking/selling photos from the prom or homecoming.
• Host a powder puff or faculty-student sporting event.
• Create and sell a faculty cookbook or calendar.
• Sponsor a "donation drawing" for a limo ride and dinner. Note the specific wording -- some schools do not allow raffles!
• Cake and ice cream sales and car washes are tried and true fund-raisers.

18 practical solutions to your funding problems - from www.hjs.org

Read below... what do you think???? (5th period in particular)



Valerie Kibler  -Newspaper Adviser
Harrisonburg (Va.) High School

The number one problem most staffs will face as they begin a new year is how to come up with the funding to pay for producing their publication. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. If you are committed to making it happen, the money will follow. Your enthusiasm will spark your kids into action! Here are some ideas that can bring in the dollars.



Charge a journalism fee. Students pay fees for many other classes in school. Why not journalism? I charge $15 per student and use the money for staff items like reporter’s notebooks, press passes, t-shirts, business cards, portfolios, mailboxes etc.

Exchange ad sales for services. Realize that you have a marketable product that you can use to barter for whatever you need. In the past, I’ve given free advertising in exchange for t-shirts for the entire staff or a meal for the staff.

Patron ads. While you will make a considerable amount of money selling ads to area businesses, anyone can be a patron and it doesn’t cost you a thing! Patrons can include teachers, students, parents, family from far away, or businesses who don’t really benefit from advertising in a school publication like funeral homes or huge corporations. Email me if you would like a copy of my patron ad contract.

Brick project. I used fundraisingltd.net to do a personalized brick sales fundraiser and made over $6000. You can set the parameters! The company offers a zillion options and you can work to beautify your campus by selling bricks in memory /honor of students/teachers/alumni or simply supporters of the community. Use the bricks to build benches or planners outside, to line a sidewalk, or to decorate an area inside your building. Easy and a cool community service project at the same time!

Coffee shop. Combine efforts with a marketing program or just do this one on your own! Sell coffee before school to students and teachers. The delicious aroma will draw the customers directly to your room. Make sure you aren’t breaking any food sales rules before embarking on this adventure!

Working concessions at athletic or other events. Volunteer to have your students work the concession stands instead of parents/teachers and work out a deal to receive a portion of the proceeds. In our school, athletic teams take games inside the gym and they get 50% of the profits from the athletic booster club. That way, teams can use the money for whatever they like and there is no favoritism shown because the kids are working for their “extras”. Publications can be teams, too! During football season, our band boosters work those concession stands. Our students help them out by taking concessions up into the stands to sell. We make $100 per game for this and the boosters bring in an additional $200-$300. It’s a win-win!!

Donations only bake sales/car washes. For back to school night or parent teacher conference days, students will run a donations only car wash or bake sale. Teachers will park their cars in a certain area and since students aren’t in school on those days, they wash the cars! We have also gone classroom to classroom with baked items which teachers always buy, not to mention parents who come by the welcome table at the front doors.

Valentine’s Data Match. We use the I-Flurtz company which you can find online. This is a hysterical fundraiser which the kids absolutely love in my school! Everyone fills out the forms provided free by the company and you only pay for what you sell, guaranteeing you a profit. We typically sell to half of the student body and it’s a hoot to watch the kids open these and find their top matches in their grade, the entire school, celebrity matches, best friend matches and ridiculously opposite matches. Teachers can do this, too, and just get matched with other teachers. We distribute teacher results free of charge as just a fun activity for the faculty!

Percentage nights at local restaurants. Many local restaurants will now work with you to sponsor a “special night” at their business. All you do is advertise and get people to go to that restaurant on a specified date that you’ve worked out in advance and the restaurant will give you a percentage of their income that night. We’ve already scheduled dates for this fall with our local Cici’s Pizza, Smoothie King and Chili’s and are waiting to put dates on the calendar for about fifteen more locations. Again, a win-win endeavor since the restaurant will have greater traffic and you will make easy money. Can be a terrific bonding experience for your staff, too, as they wait tables together or stand outside the restaurant with posters trying to get customers to come in and dine!

Selling water/healthy snacks in room. If you can’t sell candy bars anymore, go healthy! Kids will buy water, granola bars, crackers etc. Be careful to get approval for this one first and don’t sell during the hours lunch is being served. We can generally profit $100-$150 per week! Ask Chad Rummel how kids in Oakton love those Ozark lollipops!!!

Madden, Guitar Hero, DDR (Dance Dance Revolution) tournaments. These involve a population at your schools that often times aren’t going to ball games or participating in ANY after school events. Host a Guitar Hero tournament and watch those kids come out of the woodwork to pay an entry fee and compete at what they know so well. It’s amazing to watch one of these events!!!!

Hypnotist (Tom Deluca) Bring a hypnotist to your school and run an evening fundraiser. We had Tom Deluca a few years ago and he was absolutely amazing! I’ve NEVER in 21 years seen the entire student body pay attention as closely as they did to this one!

Womanless beauty pageant. Get your guys involved in this elaborate and hysterical event. Don’t ask for volunteers, make the guys feel as if they are representing a group. Have a “Mr. National Honor Society”, a “Mr. Junior Class”, a “Mr. Faculty”. Get as many as you can. The more you have in the competition, the more spectators you will have to come view it! Run it like a real pageant….evening gown, casual wear, interview…have judges, a crown, a money prize, a sash! Do it up right!

Regular beauty pageant. Beauty is a big venue! Again, girls can compete for the coveted title of “Ms. Anytown High School”. Run it just like real pageants are run. Girls will be really competitive and you will need to cover your bases where scoring is concerned! We did this annually when I taught in Marion and would make over $3000 on a packed auditorium every year!

Variety show/ talent show. Use the talent you have in your school and sell tickets! Can work in conjunction with the drama or music departments and showcase student and/or faculty talent!

Longaberger Basket B-I-N-G-O. Use this trendy event to attract your community into your school for a Saturday evening of fun! Find a Longaberger Basket consultant to order 25 baskets that are popular at that time, then have your kids get businesses to sponsor those baskets (pay the cost of them). Kids can then fill the baskets with a theme item (like a chocolate lover’s basket, a reading basket full of books, a Christmas basket full of ornaments, a college student’s basket full of dorm room supplies – you get the idea). Sell food, have raffles in between rounds and make it a lively evening! We do 25 games for $25 and made over $3000 last fall! I’ve seen the Vera Bradley variation on this, too.

Pie in the Face Competition. Get as many teachers as you can to volunteer to be pied in the face at a pep rally. Match every teacher up with one student who will collect money for that teacher. Only commit to putting 10 pies out there. The top five students who collect the most money get to pie the teacher that they were collecting for. The bottom five student collectors get pied BY the teacher. Kids love this! Only costs you the cost of pies, some trash bags and paper towels!!! Every year we do this for homecoming pep rally and make over $500.

Penny Wars. A great school spirit builder and money maker. Homecoming week is again a great time for this. Goal: Students want their class to earn the most points. Every penny is worth a point. So kids need to bring in as many pennies as they can for their class. The catch? Any silver or green money that is placed in another classes jar is SUBTRACTED from that class’s total. So, a dollar bill would mean minus 100 points. I know we spent an entire weekend rolling pennies from this one year and made over $800 on the last day of the competition. Make sure your jars are in a highly visible area!

Convergence - do this webinar on news u

http://www.newsu.org/courses/course_detail.aspx?id=snap_heyward06

I want to talk about Money...

“I want to talk about money!” is a thread from a JEA listserve. The gist of what the questioner is getting at are varying ways different advisers handle earning money for their publication. It seems that most advisers are either completely self-supporting with publications are get a small subsidy from their districts. All of the people on the chat have to earn money through advertising of some sort.




Many of the members of the group discuss their own solutions such as Journalism Patron Clubs, subscriptions, and grading students on how many ads they can obtain. There was much contention on this last issue. Many school districts didn’t allow students to be graded on the money they earned. However, teachers could grade on the process.



Many of the problems that these self-supporting publications faced had to do with buying equipment and updating classroom materials. All of these things are an anomaly to me because my paper is completely supported by my district. My journalism class is as well and I don’t have to sell any advertisements.



The one suggestion that I liked the best was the teacher who talked about the student bringing a portable vending machine to school and/or selling beverages for less than the school vending. I thought this was funny, but I am morally against giving teenagers more sugar because I too find the sale of candy very distracting and I wouldn’t want to be a part of the problem.



Some schools discussed fundraisers like selling bulbs and candles. They also suggested applying for grants and that you could find out where these grants were available by contacting people in charge.



Overall, the article was just a show of support from the high school scholastic journalism community. It offered suggestions and solutions that they use… best practices that often work. I find the listserve to be a very useful tool in becoming more adept as an English and Journalism teacher.

Advertising - the business of newspaper

Please read the following links and let me know what you think -

http://sites.moneymailer.com/agoura/advertise.html 

Newspaper review from Colombia

So Ms Sackstein gave a copy of our newspaper to those at Colombia University and this is the review that they gave us:

Part 1: Overall.

Coverage: We received a 90/100, the Judge said that the newspaper needs to be more interesting "enterprising personality" needed. She said that we really need to localize most of our stories.

News: not too well, but received 40/50. We need to use more sources, give "previews" of upcoming news, and localize what is happening in WJPS. Also that most of the stories weren't timely enough.

Feature: 40/50 but needs a lot of improvement. She says we need more variety of topics, especially when it comes to people's interest. She suggests taking a poll on what people would want to read about ; get teachers more involved and ask if they have any stories to contribute.

Sports: 40/50, she says that the Sports Editor should start to establish connections with people who can keep up the latest in sports. She says we need to talk about what's actually happening in Physical Education class, and not just stories about world sports.

Opinion: 45/50. These pieces require personalization, more of an specific angle. We need to use less quotes and add a "masthead", develop our structure and avoid bylines.

Part 2: Writing and Editing

Basic Journalistic Principles: We need to work on sentence structure, titles, bylines and using more references. Also learning how to write in third person and overall style for each type of writing. The reviewer said that it would be more appropriate to use AP style in our writing.

All Stories: Doing well in research, but there's too much summarizing and usage of the Internet. More information from WJPS would be useful and better. Localization is important in stories, quotes and transition placement needs to be corrected and more clear. Also that some stories sounded like they've been previously published material.

News: 20/25, very well but need to focus more on WJPS events & community events.

Feature: 15/25, needs more improvement ; there's not enough variety and originality.

Sports: 20/25, focus on WJPS events & what they're doing to help people get active in WJPS.

Opinion: 40/50, there needs to be more structure and more cleaning up at the end of writing these pieces. Reviewer said we need to learn how to approach influence over the students at WJPS to do whatever we convey.

Business Operations: She said that we're pretty flexible, good circulation and frequency but we should start to put Advertisements on the newspaper.

Part 3: Graphic Presentation:

35/50. We really need to work on this section a lot, because some of the pictures aren't matching the stories. There needs to be more clarity and work done onto the pictures themselves, maybe consider using Photoshop. Recommends looking at professional newspapers and get some ideas for design. There needs to be people actually in the picture because it humanizes the situation.

And that's about it :)

Livi.

Teacherease

A note about teacherease and the score that it tabulates as your current class letter grade - it is based on a 4 pt scale and I will be putting in scores of 100 for your independent reading assignments... therefore that final grade is NOT an accurate one. 

I'd like parents/students to please use teacherease as it was meant to be used, as an accountability tool.  You will be able to know how you are doing, what is missing and how did on varied assignments as well as getting personalized feedback... Final "score" grades will be presented as an average of what is on there...

Weighted as followed: classwork -40%, writing and projects 40% and blog work 20%

Please comment that you have read and understand this post... thank you.

Friday, October 16th - Survey Monkey

On Friday, please report to the pub lab room 325 immediately to begin taking the survey monkey to start evaluating your experience of the year so far.

You will need to bring your lit. circle /independent reading book in case you finish early.

Something interesting from the Denver Post

The best part of an interesting commentary in today's Denver Post...




"Gen Y: Strive for a more complete skill set" -- http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_13527584

By John Bersia

McClatchy-Tribue



Next, she (Gillian Sorensen, senior adviser at the United Nations Foundation, and a former high-level official under two U.N. secretaries-general, Kofi Annan and Boutros Boutros-Ghali) turns to writing. To write clearly and succinctly, what Sorensen calls "lean prose," is critically important. The ability to produce a memo, research report, speech, persuasive letter, statement or other item — and to do so quickly and accurately — is absolutely essential, she says.



Finally, Sorensen urges, students should get into the habit of reading, on a daily basis, the news of the world. One of her personal preferences is her hometown newspaper, but she fully understands young people gravitate toward the Internet, where they can find similar information — and electronic versions of many newspapers free of charge. She cautions, though, they should consult serious sources of news and more than just one. If reading the news of the world becomes a habit over time, you build your knowledge base, awareness and ability to question and challenge, she says; it is a form of continuing education.



In a period of uncertainty, rapid change and economic disruption, I cannot think of better advice for young people.

1st issue - what do you think? debrief

I spoke to Ms. Schneider and she wants us to do a debrief in the next issue...

What did we do well?  What do we need to fix? Be constructive...

Cyber Security Month - need someone to write about this for Oct. issue - if you are interested, please see me

The City of New York City of New York


Information Security Awareness

NEWSLETTER



October 2009



Cyber Security Awareness Month



October has been designated by the Federal Government as Cyber Security Awareness Month. City employees handle a great deal of sensitive and private data in order to provide services to the public. The City of New York has a formal information security program that establishes policies and standards; audits agencies for compliance; provides identity management services; and protects the City's networks and hosts from external and Internet threats. This program is administered by the Department of Information Technology and Telecommunication. You can read more at http://cityshare.nycnet/infosec and http://www.nyc.gov/infosec .



Every City employee should be familiar with and comply with the "User Responsibilities Policy." This policy shows some of the ways that you, as a user of City information systems, can help to uphold the public trust in our ability to protect private data. There are also some things that every home computer user should be aware of in order to protect your own personal data.



The National Cyber Security Alliance has provided a list of 14 practical tips for staying safe online. Please take a moment to visit Cityshare, the City's intranet, and review this list: http://cityshare.nycnet/html/cityshare/downloads/cyber_security_home_users.pdf



Cyber security is our shared responsibility

front page news

http://www.nytimes.com/

Writing movie reviews...

http://www.spiritofbaraka.com/how-write-a-movie-review

Sample reviews:
http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20252486,00.html?xid=rss-movie-reviews-Good

http://movies.nytimes.com/movies/intheaters.html

Period 5 - changes are on the way

Period 5, we are a big class and the structure has to change...

We will be discussing this change on Monday.  Remember, you must have your first drafts ready tomorrow...

If you never finished your first article, what are you waiting for?

Local school... what do you think? - Period 3 - please finish by the end of class on Monday.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/29/nyregion/29crowded.html?ref=education - read this news article...

What do you notice? Look at the lead... look at the quotes, attribution...

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/04/health/04cherry.html?ref=todayspaper - Flu article

What do you notice? Look at the lead... look at the quotes, attribution...

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/04/nyregion/04limits.html?ref=todayspaper - Mayor Bloomberg

What do you notice? Look at the lead... look at the quotes, attribution... What about the structure of all of the articles?

Comment on this post...

Texting while driving

 http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/02/technology/02distracted.html?ref=technology

Why only for federal employeeds? Someone want to tackle the idea of texting while driving for students?

"Will books be Napsterized?"

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/04/business/04digi.html?_r=1&ref=technology

What do you think?  What will happen to books?  Anyone have an opinion about this?

Opinion Piece from the times worth reading... what do you think?

The Public Editor: Notes About Bias, From Opposite Points of View


http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/04/opinion/04pubed.html

Interesting story in the NY Times - No More Bake Sales in City Schools

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/03/nyregion/03bakesale.html  - anyone care to write a news article about this piece and/or an opinion piece about it...

you can be gathering ideas about what we write about from the newspapers... that is why you must keep reading what others write.

3rd period - if you aren't working on your article right now...

you can be signing up for an account on http://www.newsu.org/

look into one of the following web courses:
Cleaning your copy

Get me rewrite: the craft of revision

News Sense: The Building Blocks of News

What makes an idea or event a news story? Explore the who, what, when, where, why and how of news.

send me a copy of your work when you sign up... you shouldn't just be sitting around because I am not there... :)

5th period - today 10/2

Your first drafts of new articles are due on Monday, 10/5.  Please make sure you send them to me via google.docs.

All those of you, whom I asked to fix the pages you were working on, please do as I need them to send to the printer ASAP.

Anastasia, Erin, Sarah, Georgina, Livi and Eric are going to be leading class today... please be cooperative and start to plan the second issue...

Those of you who still haven't finished your first article... what are you waiting for???? please turn it in soon.

3rd period - Today, 10/2

I conferenced with most of you yesterday or have written comments on your google.docs.  Your second drafts are due on Monday and I expect to see major changes in drafts... get the student voice and NOT just of the senior class.  These articles must speak to our entire readership.

Please post what you writing about to this post so that the other class knows what not to cover.

Have a great weekend...

Period 3 - News articles

Please make sure that you continue to work on drafts today - check your google.docs.  I've started commenting on all of your work.  I need to see whatever you've done by the end of class today.

Your second news drafts are due on Monday, Oct.5.

Please make sure you get pictures for your articles as well.  Raymond, I'm fairly certain we have pictures from clubs from last year you can use, but everyone else should try to take pics for their articles.

Be certain to concider the most important thing in your article.  Make sure it comes up first.

National Punctuation Day

http://www.nationalpunctuationday.com/

Design / layout / indesign

http://ittraining.iu.edu/ematerials/samples/INDBAv2.0.0.TRUNC.pdf -  handbook

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ouEj__cbeGw - video tutorial on layout

http://www.newsdesigner.com/blog/ - for ideas...

http://www.bestfrontdesign.com/ - inspiring designs

http://www.ronreason.com/

http://www.tpub.com/journalist/72.htm

wrap your brains around these - remember design is another way to get people to read what you write... we need to be interesting and innovative...

2nd issue

Period 3 - your first drafts of news stories are due on Tuesday, 9/29 via google.docs.  If you send it to me early, I will try to get it back to you before Tuesday.

Reminders -

The inverted pyramid - most important info in your lead ---->  to the least information
the 5 ws (who, what, when, where, why) and H (how)
student voice/teacher/staff voice/community voice in the form of quotes
even transitions
it should be objective NOT subjective... there is no room for your opinion in news... only the voices and opinions of others... you are a mere reporter, not a columnist
an active headline that gets right to the point
Do not use the first (i) or second (you) person.... only the third person, objective

Looking forward to your drafts

new news added: Flu vaccination, the student draft letter, terrorist scare, talent pageant

Ayn Rand Essay Contest - deadline 4/26/2010

Please see http://www.anyrandandeducation.com/ for specific guidelines and directions.

If you are interested and would like help, please see me.

2nd issue

This week we layout period 5 - 8 pages and period 3 is already working on News articles for the second issue set to come out October 30th (Friday)

We need to start brainstorming ideas for next issue and we need both classes communicating better. 
So far the news section has the following stories being covered:
local sex offenders
lack of school clubs
school budget
construction
overnight college trip
spirit week
college seminar
environmental club
francis lewis athletics and players

Start thinking about your story ideas for the next issue...

We need to start getting pictures too... and art.

Writing opportunity

www.nanowrimo.org -check out this writing opportunity :)

News U

If you find yourself without something to do in class or at home you want practice, a great free site is

www.newsu.org

set yourself with a free account and make use of their online courses that interesting, engaging multimedia learning experiences... these are good supplements to our conferencing and your writing in class.

Sports Writing

http://www.notrain-nogain.org/List/spt.asp

Good sports writing examples:
http://www.bestsportswriting.com/

Post links to good sites you find.

Review and column writing

Secrets to writing a good review:
http://jonathandeamer.com/2007/06/12/how-to-write-great-reviews/

Film Reviews:
http://www.essortment.com/all/writingfilmrev_ralk.htm

Tips:
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/658881/tips_how_to_write_a_good_review.html?cat=31

Column Writing:
http://oonyeoh.squarespace.com/column-writing-tips/

Getting Started:
http://novelwritingsoftwares.com/articles_novel_writing/Getting%20Started%20in%20Column%20Writing.htm

Alot of varied resources:
http://www.projo.com/words/past.htm

Editorial/Opinion Writing tutorial

How to write one:

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/62658/how_to_write_an_editorial.html?cat=9

Tips for writing editorials:
http://www.docstoc.com/docs/3640717/TIPS-FOR-WRITING-AN-EDITORIAL

Samples from the New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/pages/opinion/

Feature Writing tutorial

http://www.snn-rdr.ca/snn/nr_reporterstoolbox/featurewriting.html

http://www.poynter.org/content/content_view.asp?id=67829

http://www.freep.com/legacy/jobspage/academy/blundell.htm

http://www.gsspa.org/students/2009/04/five-tips-for-great-feature-wr.html

Sample Feature writing:
http://bigbigfeat.blogspot.com/

Writing tutorials: writing news

Follow the links below for tips on news writing:

http://www.northernstar.info/nina/highschool/write.html


http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/resources/educational/handouts/newspapers_magazines/news_writing_tips.cfm

Examples of bad writing
http://instruct.westvalley.edu/lafave/writsamp0.htm

looking forward

We will beginning to break up into sections over the next week...

I want us to consider permanent beats among sections...
http://www.notrain-nogain.org/Train/Res/Report/cbeat.asp

Read up what a beat is and then let's brainstorm a list of appropriate beats for our school community... post your ideas.

2nd drafts are due tomorrow

Reminder that second drafts of articles for the first issue of the paper are due tomorrow...
It should be sent to me at ssackstein@wjps.org as a google.doc

If you are feeling like you want to start working on your next article too, please come see me.

We will begin to start breaking things into sections and beats once we finish this first issue.

Deadlines for the first issue

First drafts were due today as google.docs -
Second drafts are due on Friday, 9/18
Final drafts ready for publication are due in on Tuesday, 9/22

Layout will be happening from 9/23-9/25 in school
The issue will come out on Wed. 9/30

First drafts of articles

Your first drafts of articles for the first issue are due on Monday, 9/14 - on google.docs. Please invite me to collaborate with you on your document on google.docs as soon as it is ready. I will give you feedback.

Be ready for a conference on Monday.

Thanks,
Ms. S

My ideas for the first WJPS issuse

My ideas for the first issue of WJPS are the Following: Why WJPS had budget cuts , The return of the swine Flu and the fear that it's going to be a bigger outcome than last year, The new schedules if students (like or Dis-like) there new schedules. These are some ideas I have thought about if anyone has any suggestions I am in the fifth period newspaper class.

Andrew Jimenez

1st issue due to come out September 30th

I'm hoping for 8 pages. I think we can do it... Between both classes, I believe we can put it together.

If you are interested in being on the editorial board which will meet on Wed. 3rd period, please let me know...

Post your story ideas on this post...

Course Syllabus

Course Syllabus for Newspaper II
Ms. Sackstein room 325 (pub lab) and 351 (office)
ssackstein@wjps.org

Newspaper is a course designed to give CTE elective credit in Journalism, keeping within all of the learning standards for NY City and NY State. This class will be run like a real newspaper and publication will be its intention from day one. Everything we do is for the good of the paper. This year there will be a focus on fine tuning writing and editing and well as continued variety of coverage. We will begin to consider the business side of newspapers with the addition of advertising and development of design.

Supplemental texts:

• Newsday and/or NY Times subscriptions
• Relevant magazine articles and newspaper articles
• Self-paced reading on relevant issues
• Field Trips, possible JEA convention, field work

OVERALL COURSE GOALS:
• To teach the student skills necessary in communication in the print media today with emphasis on writing, but including interviewing, observing, reporting, reacting and synthesizing.
• To help the student to become an intelligent consumer of mass media
• To give the student the opportunity to discover and explore the various forms of writing utilized in journalism
• To provide students with opportunities to critique their own writing, the writing of others and to have his writing evaluated by a teacher
• To help the student understand and accept the legal, moral and ethical responsibilities inherent in a free press
• To help the student learn the copy rules and tools necessary for preparation of copy for newspapers, yearbooks and broadcasting
• To help the student to develop responsibility for punctuality in meeting deadlines
• To teach the student the necessity of research to add validity, emphasis and depth of writing
• To teach the student the practical aspects of producing a school newspaper and yearbook, including financial and advertising problems
• To help the student develop the verbal, written, personal and social skills needed to publish a school newspaper.
• To give the student an outlet for creativity not found in other classrooms
• To awake in the student an awareness of the world around him, both social and political
• To stimulate an interest in journalism as a career

Topics that will be covered:

• Technology - indesign/google.docs/email/photoshop
• Teamwork - working together is essential
  • Laws, Ethics and Policy
  • Editing for newspaper
  • Source checking/ fact checking
  • Interviewing – getting quotable bites
  • The News Story
  • The Right Way to Quote
  • In-Depth Reporting
  • Journalistic Style
  • Features
  • Editorials
  • Columns and Reviews
  • Sports writing
  • Photojournalism
  • Headlines
  • Copyediting and production
  • Advertising and Business

GRADING:
This course is designed primarily (not everything) as a group project based course. There will be several projects assigned over the course of the term. Because this is a project based course, students are expected to use their class time wisely in order to complete their projects on time. I am available to answer questions and to provide help to those students who are actively working on their assignments. Many of your projects will be writing based. Learning how to write journalistically is different than essay writing, therefore all assignments are subject to revision. You can always rewrite an article or assignment if you aren’t pleased with your grade. There will also be several opportunities for self-evaluation. We will be using google.docs for everything… all submissions will be electronic. You are responsible for checking the class blog www.newspaperatwjps.blogspot.com daily (here)

Deadlines are a major part of producing publications. Therefore, journalism students should think of assignment due dates as deadlines. If a student (group) needs and extension of time, they must request it from me in advance of the stated deadline. Extensions will be granted at my discretion. Late work causes problems (not to mention fees) for everyone.

Welcome to Newspaper

Good afternoon 11th and 12th grade students. I hope everyone has had a wonderful summer and is now ready to work. This space will be a resource for all of you to discuss class work, examine resources, add supplemental help to each other.
Please feel free to post thoughts and ideas and try to check in at least once a day.

I look forward to another successful and productive year.