Center for Scholastic Journalism

Comment

Comment by John Bowen on October 13, 2009 at 5:51pm

We are looking for schools to apply for JEA's 2009 1st Amendment Press Freedom Award. Go to: http://tinyurl.com/FAhonor to download the form. We know there are lots of open forum schools out there.....show us where.

Comment by John Bowen on April 23, 2009 at 11:20pm

For additional materials to go with JEA's statement on prior review, go to http://tinyurl.com/cxpfdz

Comment by John Bowen on April 21, 2009 at 10:37am

The Journalism Education Association releases a new statement on prior review of student media.

The Journalism Education Association, as the nation’s largest association of scholastic journalism educators and secondary school media advisers, denounces the practice of administrative prior review as serving no legitimate educational purpose. Prior review leads only to censorship by school officials or to self-censorship by students with no improvement in journalistic quality or learning.

Better strategies exist that enhance student learning while protecting school safety and reducing school liability.

School administrators provide leadership for just about every dimension of schools. They set the tone and are crucial in a meaningful educational process. Undeniably, administrators want their schools’ graduates to be well-educated and effective citizens. Often, school or district missions statements state this goal explicitly. JEA supports them in that effort.

So, when the Journalism Education Association challenges the judgment of administrators who prior review student media, it does so believing better strategies more closely align with enhanced civic engagement, critical thinking and decision-making.

Prior review by administrators undermines critical thinking, encourages students to dismiss the role of a free press in society and provides no greater likelihood of increased quality of student media. Prior review inevitably leads to censorship. Prior review inherently creates serious conflicts of interest and compromises administrator neutrality, putting the school in potential legal jeopardy.

Without prior review, administrators retain better strategies that support journalism programs. Such approaches include:
• Working with students cooperatively to be good sources for stories
• Hiring qualified advisers and journalism teachers
• Building trust in the learning and communication process in a way that also lessens liability concerns of the school system
• Offering feedback after each publication
• Increasing dialogue among school staff and students, thus encouraging outlets of expression that strengthens school safety
• Expanding school and community understanding and appreciation of the value of free – and journalistically responsible – student media
• Providing necessary resources to support and maintain publication programs, including financial support, master schedule preferences, development opportunities and time

These strategies, and others listed below can enhance the influence of administrators without intruding on student control of their media as outlined by court decisions and the First Amendment.

Administrators can and should:
• Foster appreciation for America’s democratic ideals by inspiring students and their advisers to practice democratic principles through free student media
• Hire the most qualified educator to teach and advise or help one without solid journalism background become more knowledgeable. This allows the educator to provide training so students can better become self-sufficient as they make decisions and practice journalism within the scope of the school’s educational mission and the First Amendment
• Trust and respect their advisers, their student media editors and staff as the students make decisions
• Maintain dialogue and feedback to protect and enhance student expression, to afford students real input in the process, and to broaden their opportunities to excel
Teachers and advisers can and should:
• Model standards of professional journalistic conduct to students, administrators and others
• Emphasize the importance of accuracy, balance and clarity in all aspects of news gathering and reporting
• Advise, not act as censors or decision makers
• Empower students to make decisions of style, structure and content by creating a learning atmosphere where students will actively practice critical thinking and decision-making
• Encourage students to seek other points of view and to explore a variety of information sources in their decision-making
• Ensure students have a free, robust and active forum for expression without prior review or restraint
• Show trust in students as they carry out their responsibilities by encouraging and supporting them in a caring learning environment
Student journalists can and should:
• Apply critical thinking and decision-making skills as they practice journalistic standards and civic responsibility
• Follow established policies and adopt new ones to aid in thorough, truthful and complete reporting using a range of diverse and credible sources
• Seek the advice of professionally educated journalism advisers, teachers and other media resources
• Maintain open lines of communication with other students, teachers, administrators and community members
• Operate media that report in verbal and visual context, enhancing comprehension and diverse points of view
• Develop trust with all stakeholders – sources, adviser, administration and fellow staffers

Comment by John Bowen on February 25, 2009 at 11:56am

Check out a student video on the Tinker anniversary at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wjBoo1s8ik .

Comment by John Bowen on February 22, 2009 at 10:27pm

This week, Feb. 22-29, is Scholastic Journalism Week and also honors the 40th anniversary of the Tinker v. Des Moines Supreme Court decision that protects student rights to the Constitutional guarantee of free expression. For a look at the armband and a position statement on why administrators should encourage students to wear armbands Feb. 24, go to http://jeapressrightsorg and click on the newsupdate link at the upper left.

Comment by John Bowen on February 5, 2009 at 9:53pm

Question of the day: Why should students wear black armbands this spring?

Answer: To celebrate.

Not to protest the war.

Not to protest cold winter temperatures nor how the economy is affecting their college plans.

But they wear them to honor a 40-year-old U. S. Supreme Court decision.

Tinker v. Des Moines, originally about the right to wear black armbands to protest an unpopular war, laid the framework for successes in scholastic journalism since then.

Tinker’s spirit contributed as:

• A New Jersey student was allowed to publish his inoffensive movie review the R-rated "Mississippi Burning" after his principal had refused to let him

• Katy Dean successfully fought against censorship in Michigan so she could print an article about the possibility of fumes from a bus garage contributing to cancer among neighbors

• Citizens throughout the nation became more aware of the importance of student freedom of expression because of censorship

• That awareness contributed to the founding of an organization to help students, advisers and school officials better understand the importance of free student expression, the Student Press Law Center

• Then the SPLC and others developed policies that recognize the importance of students learning by using their critical thinking and decision-making skills.

By honoring Tinker and encouraging students to wear black armbands this spring, we reinforce the heritage and civic responsibility our forefathers began by taking a giant chance that we, as a country, could govern ourselves through citizen involvement and decision-making.

Mark Goodman, Knight Chair for Scholastic Journalism at Kent State University, called Tinker the most important Supreme Court precedent supporting the future of the First Amendment.

“The Tinker decision reflects the fundamental belief that young people are a vital part of our national debate and are no less deserving of basic civil rights than any adult,” Goodman said. “In more recent years, some have forgotten that, including some on the Supreme Court. But our future as a nation depends on it.”

And that is why principals and teachers, parents and citizens should allow and encourage students to wear black armbands Feb. 24.



To learn more about how to make your own armbands, go to: http://scholasticjournalismweek.weebly.com/

Comment by Cynthia Mitchell on October 31, 2008 at 4:49pm

Hello everyone!
Glad to see this group started! I work at the college level, but am very interested in researching and writing about all of your efforts to expand First Amendment knowledge at the high school level. (I had an article about FA education in the fall issue of CJET, wherein I talked to many many folks doing great work.) Meanwhile, Quill is picking up a story about all of the efforts -- including John's and Candace's, Sam's, Warren Watson's and others -- now targeted to h.s. administrators. Are there any administrators in this group who attended one of Sam's leadership academies? If so, I'd love to talk to you. Please e-mail me w/ contact info at mitchelc@cwu.edu. (Or if you just know of one, as I suspect most of you are advisers?)
Thanks!
Cynthia

Comment by Kay D. Phillips on October 22, 2008 at 1:46pm

Thanks for the help. I know I'll enjoy the forum.
K

Comment by Kay D. Phillips on October 22, 2008 at 11:49am

Hello, Susan et al,
Great to see this new (to me, at least) forum. One thought before I feel a part: I had not completed the Sign In items when they disappeared, and I don't know how to return to that site. Can someone tell me how to return?
With love,
Kay