March 2005 Stet

Stet

March 2005 Vol. 32, No. 3

Michigan Interscholastic Press Association

About the Photo Armed with her school’s Canon 10D digital camera, Fenton HS sophomore Melissa Miller set out to find inspiration at the Ingham County Fair. The 10D is the first digital camera to offer Canon’s exclusive DIGIC Image Processor with a wide area 7-point auto-focus system for precise focusing. “All I had to do was look for when the time was just right,” Miller said. “They were having fun on the Scrambler.” At the summer workshop students in the digital photography classes spend an evening shooting at the fair. Melissa was in Jim Redding’s class.

Inside Grading: How one adviser does it

Join the Student Press Law Center

Be prepared: Keeping censors at bay

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Stet The President’s Column

Thoughts on the First Amendment survey

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Brian Wilson Waterford Kettering HS

ver the last few weeks I’ve heard from many different sources how our future is in peril because so many students don’t know that flag burning is legal. Or because they believe that the press in this country is afforded too much freedom. I keep being bombarded by e-mail messages, TV newscasts, and newspaper articles explaining to me how the results of the “Future of the First Amendment” survey should scare the hell out of me. How could it be that the youth of today has such little respect for the First Amendment?

And then I looked at the ‘faculty’ section of the survey and I really got frightened.

If you didn’t read all 90(!) pages of the report, you might not know that 38% of your teaching colleagues believe that the press has too much freedom. Forty percent of them think that musicians shouldn’t be allowed to sing songs with lyrics that people might find offensive. Over 60% believe that high school students should not be allowed to report controversial issues in their student newspapers without the approval of school authorities.

teachers are just as clueless, and it Maybe we should be just as worried about the views of our doesn’t even rate a mention? contemporaries. At least the stuBy now you’ve probably seen “key finding” number one. I’m dents can use the excuse of being young and naïve. assuming it’s number one because it’s important. It states that “high One of the lines being bandied about that is supposed to shock us school students tend to express litas educators is the one that reads tle appreciation for the First as follows: “75 percent of students Amendment. Nearly three-fourths incorrectly believe that flag burnsay either they don’t know how ing is illegal.” In this, the land of they feel about it or take it for the free, that’s a horrible statistic granted.” to have to face up to. It’s supposed Hey, what’s wrong with these students, anyway? Maybe you’re to make us queasy, right? But buried a bit further in the report, I thinking “Thank goodness we have found another one that’s just as teachers who appreciate their First scary.

Amendment rights!” Perhaps you’re Forty percent of their teachers even tossing the First Amendment believe the same thing. around in your head right now. But unfortunately for our tragically This after actually graduating from high school, going to college uninformed students, about half of for at least four years (and probatheir teachers take the amendment for granted just like they do. Half! bly more like six or eight), and learning the fine art of passing Of teachers! Tell me again why along legitimate research to their we’re most scared about the stustudents. So let me get this straight. dents’ ignorance?

Three-quarters of our pimply, ganIt’s interesting to note that none of the 12 key findings mengly 15-year-olds haven’t learned this particular fact yet and we’re tion the word “teacher” in their supposed to immediately build an headings. Conversely, the word ark to save us from the rapidly risPlease see PRESIDENT’S ing seas of teenage stupidity. But COLUMN on page 6 why is it that nearly half of their

MIPA Officers 2004-2005 President 1st Vice President 2nd Vice President Secretary Trustee Trustee Trustee Newspaper Chair Legislative Chair Workshop Chair Middle School Chair Broadcast Chair Yearbook Chair Hall of Fame Chair Executive Director J-School Director Office Staff

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Brian Wilson, Waterford Kettering HS Rod Satterthwaite, Dexter HS David Hebestreit, Livonia Churchill HS Kim Kozian, L’Anse Creuse HS North Sandra Strall, Carlson HS Cheryl Braford, Portage Central HS Jeremy Van Hof, Grand Ledge HS Julie Price, Haslett HS Gloria Olman, retired, Utica HS Betsy Pollard Rau, H.H. Dow HS Open Vacant Diane Herder, Laingsburg HS Lynn Strause, East Lansing HS Jeff Nardone, Grosse Pointe South HS Cheryl Pell, Michigan State University Jane Briggs-Bunting, MSU School of Journalism Penney Aiken and Ashley Watkins

Stet

Stet is the official newsletter of the Michigan Interscholastic Press Association, an agency of the School of Journalism at Michigan State University.

Stet is published four times a year by the MIPA executive director and MSU students.

Send letters to the editor and advertising inquiries to mipa@msu.edu. The MIPA Web site is maintained by Josh Tacey and Cheryl Pell. www.mipa.jrn.msu.edu

MIPA 305 Communication Arts Building Michigan State University East Lansing, MI 48824-1212 Phone: 517-353-6761 Fax: (517-355-7710 E-mail: mipa@msu.edu

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GRADING

How one adviser makes sense of it all

By Mary Lou Nagy

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Teachers in the English department at my school often use the phrase, “Why reinvent the wheel?” when speaking of materials used in class. They are willing to share lesson plans, handouts or videos to help save time when we are all teaching many of the same units. Precious time can go toward teaching rather than toward writing a new test on “To Kill a Mockingbird.”

The same should be true in my journalism class, but it is not. Every year I try to reinvent the wheel fro grading advanced journalism, my newspaper production class.

I have solved the mystery fairly well in my Introduction to Journalism classes by using AP style quizzes, story grades, presentations, projects and journal writing. These are concrete scores, mostly using the point system, that show how I arrived at their final grade.

Newspaper class is a whole different challenge.

Let’s look at the possible choices for grading.

Strategy 1: writing, meeting deadlines, editing, photography, layout, advertising Strategy 2: communication, teamwork, initiative, cooperation, working independently, quality of writing, going beyond the call of duty, responsibility and organization Strategy 3: attendance, listening, taking notes, keeping handouts and using them, interview skills, phone etiquette.

All of those, in some percentage or another, should go into the grading of a newspaper staff. How do we sort it all out? What do we concentrate on? How do we address those students who are upset because Ted (who goofs off frequently in class but is organized, looks for additional work to complete and always stays after school) gets a better grade then Marcia (who gets her work done in class but loses other people’s stories, doesn’t return phone calls and constantly complains about everything and everyone)?

Two years ago after fighting this battle for 13 years, I finally turned the corner and came up with a system that works for me. My criteria boiled down to this: It had to be manageable for me and have a quick turn around time for the students. There had to be definite lines in the sand, that when a student crossed them, the grade would suffer. The mystery had to be

removed. For years I was so unsure of the best way to give occasional hints if a student asked what they were getting. At the last minute of the marking period I would have to decide what to do.

I looked at programs of award-winning advisers who utilize point systems so complicated that I would need an accountant to figure it all out. Many advisers let the students grade themselves or one another. Some use rubrics. Others use checklists.

I decided that I needed one or two concrete items for which I can score—when and if parents or administrators want justification for a student’s low grade.

When setting up any system, first start with deadlines. Be clear what is due and when. An easy deadline to check first is questions for their interviews. Ask them to have 15 questions for five or 10 points.

After that, give points for turning in the first draft.

They either have it or they don’t. Yes, there is always the computer malfunction or the other 99 bazillion extenuating circumstances. Make it clear that they have to turn in some evidence of work at those times no matter what. It is an all or nothing on the first deadline. You can adjust the number of points if the student has a legitimate excuse or you know the coach is terrible about sending over the scores. Flexibility is a given in this job.

I can’t emphasize enough how critical it is to keep on top of this responsibility. Holding them to the fire on deadlines with an all or nothing grade (five for on time, zero for five minutes late) will gain the staff’s respect and grades will be in the book. Deadlines are real world – and parents who work know how critical it is to produce results on time at their jobs.

Giving a weekly quiz on copyediting or grammar is a great way to have a concrete grade in the book. It also has application to their work. Some advisers use current event quizzes. I just use Associated Press Stylebook quizzes. Once students see quiz scores affect their grades, they will start taking quizzes seriously.

I also use a three-ring binder divided into five sections. The first section is for a copy of all their work.

From a caption to a story to a page layout, it is all included. They may print a copy of the story and hole punch it or cut it out from the edition and mount it. In addition, there should be a form where all the work that was assigned is available so it is clear whether Please see GRADING, page 6

From Plymouth-Canton H.S., Mary Lou Nagy has been teaching journalism for 17 years.

She has been on the MIPA board and is active in MIPA events. This article originally appeared in C-Jet magazine and is reprinted here with permission.

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BE PREPARED Former adviser offers proactive tips, suggestions to keep censorship at bay

By Gloria Olman

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prepared. Every scout knows this. Every adviser should too Administrative directives, prior review, censorship can happen at any time. Be prepared.

From the start, establish a good relationship with your administrators. Keep the communication lines open. Let them know when students are working on a sensitive story. Often they can give suggestions for sources or angles that will improve the content.

Invite the principal in for monthly press conferences with the staff to discuss important issues and air concerns. Both sides gain and the staff’s professionalism can establish confidence.

At the beginning of each year train the staff about their rights and responsibilities as journalists.

Does the publication fall under the Tinker or Hazelwood standard? Is the publication an open or limited open forum? Review court decisions so they fully understand. Be sure they know what to do in the event of censorship, and that you will be unable to help them. They should know about the Student Press Law Center, its phone number (703-807-1904) and Web site (www. splc.org).

Be careful. E-mails sent to the principal might be forwarded to people they were not intended for.

While written communication is best, e-mail can get into the wrong hands fast.

If given a directive, follow it, but be sure to explain why you think the directive is wrong, preferably with a witness, such as a

HELPFUL WEB SITES FOR STUDENTS AND ADVISERS: Michigan Interscholastic Press Association .....................www.mipa.jrn.msu.edu Student Press Law Center .....................................................................www.splc.org Journalism Education Association ....................................................... www.jea.org National Scholastic Press Association ......... www.studentpress.org/sourcebook ASNE High School Journalism .............................. www.highschooljournalism.org National Council of Teachers of English ............................................www.ncte.org

union representative present. In the Utica High School (Dean vs Utica Community Schools) case, I was asked to voluntarily pull the story.

I refused, citing the reasons. The principal gave me the directive with no one else present. I immediately contacted the Utica Education Association executive director, who called the Michigan Education Association attorney for quick help, as the students also had an editorial and cartoon accompanying the story. In less than an hour they advised me to pull everything Explain to students that you have been directed not to allow the story to be published and remind them why it is out of your hands.

When Jeff Nardone, Grosse Pointe Tower adviser, was faced with censorship, he wrote down everything he planned to say to his staff so that he could show administrators that he did not say anything to encourage the students or to give them specific instruction.

Do not go into any administrative meetings without someone there on your side, preferably a union representative. They should not speak or give input, just take notes.

Keep a journal at home. Write down everything that was said, done, times, dates, people present.

Do not wait. Journal each day that something occurs, however minor it may seem at the time. Take notes as things occur and get them into the journal each evening.

Contact the MIPA office with your situation. Cheryl Pell can help in many ways. Network with fellow advisers and get their opinions.

They understand. If you are a member, the Journalism Education Association listserv also is a great place to turn. Advisers from across the country can offer suggestions, sympathy.

Be prepared for animosity from some of your peers. They often believe that the student press does not have First Amendment rights and should act solely as a public relations tool for the district.

The hardest part as an adviser is stepping back. “You want to help the students fight the cause but cannot,” Dexter adviser Rod Satterthwaite said.

Nardone suggests becoming close with the SPLC staff. “Even though your kids are handling it and you shouldn’t know what they are doing, it’s OK to call the SPLC to get updates. You’re just curious, and you keep contact between you and the kids down if you handle it Please see BE PREPARED, page 6

Gloria Olman retired from Utica H.S. in 2003 after 30 years of advising publications. She is a member of the Michigan journalism Hall of Fame, a Lifetime Achievement Award winner from JEA and a Dow Jones Newspaper Fund National High School Journalism Teacher of the Year.

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Stet PRESIDENT’S COLUMN, continued from page 2 “student” appears 20 times.

“Administrator” actually shows up twice. Nothing about teachers, though. Only once do you even see the word “adult,” in key finding number two, and that one actually tries to make us adults sound good: “Students are less likely than adults to think that people should be allowed to express unpopular opinions.” I almost feel like they really wanted to preface that one with a “Ha, Ha!” OK, I don’t really think that.

And I don’t actually believe that journalism teachers (who probably make up the majority of people still reading this) are the prime culprits here. So please don’t email me telling me how cruel I am

to hard-working, dedicated publication advisers. Remember, I am one myself. And I don’t think I’m being that mean to me.

But I do believe that all this talk about our students’ lack of interest in freedom of speech doesn’t speak that well for us, either. In fact, I think the survey allows teachers to do the same thing everyone does when confronted with a problem: it lets us conveniently shift the blame to somebody else. Wait a minute; I thought teachers hated it when that happened.

The following finger-pointing scenario should seem very familiar to you if you’ve taught for any length of time: you’ve undoubtedly met some of those parents who

automatically blame the teacher when something goes wrong with their precious child’s education.

They call you, e-mail you, fax you…heck, they’d telegraph you if the option was still available, just to explain that you are the primary reason their precious child won’t be going to Harvard. Don’t those parents drive you crazy?

You know, because they’re not taking any responsibility themselves?

And that’s my point. Our students may not have as much appreciation for the First Amendment as they should, but they aren’t the only ones. If the survey has taught us anything at all, it should be that we need to be instructing a lot more people than just our own students.

GRADING, continued from page 3 Next is a calendar. It must have large enough spaces for them to write in detail what they did during the production period. I used to let my editors get away with writing “Lay out” or “Reporting” when what I really wanted was “Met with Mr. Green for 20 minutes on the cross county story; typed up notes, talked with Sharon about layout, checked messages.”

The next section is advertising, which includes contacts they made and/or contracts that were sold. I have forms for both that they may include. My staff has a requirement to sell $250 of ads each semester.

They sign a sheet that says they will do this so I grade according to effort. Some people try hard but simply can’t sell. Fortunately, we receive calls from advertisers, and I give those leads to the students who struggle.

The next section is the reflective letter and critique of the edition. This is their opportunity to tell me what happened during production that I ma not have

noticed, such as they ran an errand for someone or did extra work outside of class. They may talk about their frustration of not finding any advertisers or talk about a problem with a staff member that I can address at another time.

The last section is for handouts, forms, or articles that I give them from time t time. If the information on a handout is crucial, this can form the basis for a quiz.

I assign a point value to the binder as well as to completing it on time. I read the reflective letter carefully and use a checklist for the other info. It is helpful to return the binders to students within a few days.

Don’t worry if each year the grading system needs tweaking. Using deadlines as the foundation, the rest of the system will fall into place. When there is no more guessing about grades, both the adviser and the students will relax and have more time to work on the publication.

BE PREPARED, continued from page 5 to the local media for help. Districts do not want that negative publicity. Parents can get involved by contacting administrators and school board members to express displeasure at the censorship.

When Katy Dean wanted to file her censorship lawsuit against Utica Community Schools, her mother, Coleen Elsarelli, agreed to be a co-plaintiff since Dean was

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not yet 18 years old.

Dean and the Arrow staff took all of the proper steps, and the resulting landmark court decision will help scholastic journalists across the country.

When the superintendent questioned Pinckney adviser Jeff Hollobaugh’s teaching, especially related to news judgement and newsworthiness, Hollobaugh contacted

other advisers for help. He gathered materials from the JEA, National Council of Teachers of English and www.highschooljournalism.org Web sites. He made his case and the paper remains an open forum, free from prior review.

As advisers, we are all out on that proverbial limb. Make that limb as solid as possible. Be prepared.

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MIPA AdviserWatch

Notes News

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Adviser Elaine Bell discusses the entertainment page of The Eagle with Business Manager Maria Bertoia during newspaper class.

The Eagle staff implemented InDesign for the first time this year and used it for all advertising and page layouts. “InDesign was a challenge to learn, but it allows us to use more creative elements in our design,” Bell said.

CAMP MIPA: July 31 to Aug. 4, 2005 Get ready for CAMP MIPA, the most fun and educational MIPA Summer Journalism Workshop ever!

Mark your calendars now for July 31 to Aug. 4 for the MSU workshop.

Photography classes have been revamped, and we’re offering two new classes: Covering Controversial Issues and Rethinking Your Publication.

Brochures will be out in the mail by late March.

Remember to register early as space is limited!

Another camp opportunity The Asian American Journalists Association is hosting J Camp, a high school journalism program for gifted students of color.

The program will be held from August 12-17, 2005, at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, MN. Applications are now being accepted.

The application deadline is April 15, 2005 (received by, not postmarked).

For more information on J camp, visit the AAJA Web site at: http://www.aaja.org/programs/for_students/j_ camp/

Interested in being a MIPA Board Member?

Contact Cheryl Braford at CBraford@PortagePS.org.

Bell likes MIPA connection An Editor Speaks “I think Mrs. Bell is enthusiastic and wants us to learn proper journalism.

Our paper, The Eagle, seems more organized and respectable—the newspaper as a whole has improved since her arrival.”

Kirk Suchowesky, Sports Editor

MIPA Calendar

By Ashley Watkins At the end of her first year of advising in Florida, with no formal journalism back ground, Elaine Bell was honored with two adviser of the year awards from Florida newspapers: one from the Palm Beach Post and the other from the Sun-Sentinel.

“It’s not that we were a perfect paper; rather we were the most improved they had seen.”

Elaine returned with her family to Michigan where she is currently the newspaper adviser for Hartland High School.

Her students are producing a short tab quarterly and for the first time ever publishing a professional broadsheet page every two weeks in the Livingston County Press and Argus.

With an untrained staff and not knowing InDesign herself Elaine turned to MIPA for help.

“After an InDesign workshop by Cheryl Pell and many design experiments, my editors and I are finally feeling more comfortable with the program.”

Hartland also attended the MIPA Fall Conference, which proved to be a huge help to the staff.

“It was the first time my staffers were exposed to other student journalists, advisers and professionals in the journalism field,” Elaine said. “I felt it was one of the best one-day workshops for students that I have attended.”

Elaine said she and her students are looking forward to attending the Spring Conference.

“This will be the first time the staff has ever entered competition.”

April 22 MIPA Spring Awards and Contests Conference

July 31–Aug. 5 Summer Journalism Workshop for HS Students

June 18–July 3 MIPA UK & Ireland Trip

Oct. 3 Fall Conference

July 18–29 Publication Advisers Workshop

Nov. TBA Middle School Conference

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Stet New press law clinic to provide legal assistance MIPA in partnership with Michigan State’s School of Journalism and Law College have created the Great Lakes Student Press Law Clinic to provide legal assistance to high school and college newspapers, staffs and their advisers.

The law clinic will accept a limited number of referral cases from the Student Press Law Center in Reston, VA. “SPLC does a terrific job of fighting for student press rights. Our goal is support that by providing legal representation when the situation warrants it,” said Jane Briggs-Bunting, director of the School of Journalism and a media law attorney.

“Every year I speak to standing room only groups of students and advisers frustrated by the censorship they face in schools. Nothing could be more dangerous than to muzzle these future generations of journalists,” she said.

Two third-year law students are working as externs to create brief banks and databases to get the Clinic launched.

For further information, contact Cheryl Pell at MIPA, (517) 353-6761.

Bill introduced

InDesign/Photoshop Workshop

Jennifer Domino, adviser at Orchard Lake Middle School, honed her Photoshop skills at the workshop.

Ike Lea, who teaches digital photography and Photoshop skills at the MIPA Summer Journalism Workshop, was the instructor for the event.

Workshop well attended

by MIPA member schools

Students and teachers worked side by side as they learned InDesign. Instructors were Brian Wilson and Cheryl Pell.

Last month, Sen. Mike Switalski introduced a Student Freedom of Expression bill in the State Senate.

MIPA will keep its members informed via the Web site and e-mail about updates. Eventually, a letterwriting campaign may be needed along with a press conference.

For a copy of the bill, please go to the MIPA Web site to download it.

mipa.jrn.msu.edu

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Feb. 25, 2005

Laingsburg students Chad Powell and Minetta Chadwick learned some new tricks in InDesign.

The Indesign/Photoshop Workshop held at the MSU School of Journalism was a huge success. Fifty-four students and teachers attended the one-day event.

More than 60 people who wanted to attend were turned away as the event filled up quickly.

“The plan was to have one InDesign lab and one Photoshop one,” said Cheryl Pell, MIPA director.

But requests kept coming in and the MIPA office worked to get another lab so two sections of InDesign could be offered.

“It still wasn’t enough,” Pell said.

MIPA has planned similar events in the past but have had to cancel at the last minute because too few signed up too late.

“I think hosting the event on a Friday and not a Saturday was the right thing to do,” said Cheryl Pell, MIPA director.

“Also, InDesign is just hitting the schools, and everyone wants to learn how to use it.”

The MIPA board voted to host another workshop for those who were turned away, although a date has not been set yet.

“People who couldn’t get into the first one will get special invitations,” Pell said.