President’s Column:
Defending communications classes on the Bridge to Excellence
Second of two parts
by Gary Clites
Originally published in the Maryland-DC Scholastic Press Association's The Adviser, Spring 2003
In the Winter issue of The Adviser, I discussed how new federal and state testing initiatives threaten some middle and high school communications programs (visit the MSPA website if you missed it). Both the national No Child Left Behind program and Maryland’s Bridge to Excellence in Public Schools Act (Senate Bill 856) could serve to focus educational resources on basic skills courses at the expense of the higher-level enrichment courses we all teach.
These programs are a serious threat to scholastic journalism in Maryland, but damage to our programs is not inevitable. The best action we can take to protect our classes is to employ strategies designed to strengthen our programs and to make others aware of the value of training students in media literacy and communications.
1. Point out the value of communications education to the program
The Bridge to Excellence focuses on tying curricular aims of the schools to state-mandated curricular goals. One of the first steps to making our programs succeed in the new climate is to find a place for communications classes within that framework. Happily, analysis of the state goals finds that many of them apply easily to the higher-level communications courses we teach. It is important that journalism teachers take the time to familiarize themselves with the state goals and work to communicate to our schools and school systems how nicely our classes fit into the state-identified priorities.
2. Establish a technology education credit for advanced journalism courses
In most counties, journalism courses are still pure electives, making them easy to eliminate from the schedule. The Maryland Scholastic Press Association has worked to gain Technology Education accreditation for advanced journalism classes in the state. Since 2001, our courses have been recognized by the state as tech-ed courses. Applying such accreditation to your classes will make them a more integral part of the high school program and can protect them if the time comes for some classes to go on the chopping block.
How can you gain such accreditation for your classes? Generally, journalism production classes including newspaper, yearbook and broadcasting that employ computers and digital equipment in the creation of their product are eligible for such recognition. The teachers in each county, though, must drive the move to accredit classes and work with their system to see that it gets done. Each school system employs a different method, but nothing will happen until you and your fellow advisers take the initiative to push for accreditation.
To qualify as a tech-ed course, programs must show that they meet the eight learner outcomes outlined in state regulation COMAR 13A.04.01.01 (see sidebar). Though this requires thought, the outcomes generally fit our programs very easily.
Certifying courses for credit takes effort, but is one of the best strategies available for strengthening our programs and protecting them in the face of the challenges created by the state Bridge to Excellence.
3. Gain recognition for your students’ work
State and national critiques and contests can be positive for several reasons. They allow your students’ work to be examined by expert third parties and provide input that can have a positive effect on their product. Beyond that, though, hanging a first place plaque on the wall can instill pride in students, parents and school administrators.
Further, while we all work in the business of communications, we are often the worst entities in the school at communicating our own achievements. There is a long-standing sense in the journalistic world that we should remain below the radar of our readers and viewers... that we should tell the story, not be the story. Doing so, though, we risk strengthening other programs at the expense of our own.
The student press has the resources to prepare press releases when they succeed. We need to do a better job of promoting our own successes and letting our communities know the value of the educational opportunities we offer.
4. Access the power of parents and the community
Programs like music, art and athletics are also at constant risk of elimination due to strained resources in education. Those programs have succeeded in involving large numbers of parents in their programs, making it much harder for politically-minded school boards to cut them. Music booster and athletic booster organizations raise the money schools need to help their organizations succeed. Through performances, art shows and other events, they work to display their work to the public and parents in ways that strengthen their programs.
Communications students are often naturally independent, and less inclined to involve adults in their work. When censorship issues have arisen in the past, however, parental involvement has been key to protecting the rights of students, pointing out the importance of keeping families involved in our students’ work. Consider holding a newspaper or yearbook awards banquet for parents, and make an effort to see that student work makes it home to parents. Offer mail subscriptions to the school paper for parents at a reasonable price (my newspaper mails out over 200 copies per issue). And while you are at it, send comp copies to local newspapers and other news outlets so that they can clearly see your students’ achievements.
5. Get involved with state and national organizations
MSPA and other professional organizations work to strengthen communications education. Nationally, groups like the Journalism Education Association (JEA) and Columbia Scholastic Press Association (CSPA) offer terrific resources including publications, conferences and conventions that can help build your program. Here at home, MSPA works to support journalism teachers and their students throughout the Maryland/D.C. area.
Every program benefits when we come together in support of one another. But MSPA needs you to succeed. Consider volunteering to help with programs; write a piece for our newsletter; or volunteer to serve on our board of directors (contact me at gclites@chesapeake.net). When programs are threatened, having a vibrant, active state organization behind you can make a powerful difference.
Maryland’s Bridge to Excellence, while well-intended, may put some communications programs at risk. Together, we must work in defense of journalism education in Maryland. In the end, our programs may emerge stronger for the effort.
© Gary Clites, 2003
