5 of 7

Write now Article Tools

Knowing how to teach teen journalists requires that you have at least a rudimentary knowledge of how they think. Between the ages of 12 and 17, adolescents are asking a lot of hard questions about the world in which they live. Many of them watch the adults around them with a great deal of skepticism while looking for the "real deal." Most of them intuitively know when what they are being told is just a crock and, not having yet learned the art of diplomacy, they will most certainly call you on it. If you are fortunate enough to teach teen journalists the inns and outs of the field, you have the opportunity to channel the energies and refine the skills of a population of individuals whose imagination and creativity are at their zenith.

Twentieth-first century teens are challenged to face scenarios in life that you and I might have thrown up our hands at and declared untenable when we were adolescents. Today's teenager is particularly hungry for the truth and will go to great lengths to avoid all forms of artifice. These qualities make him an excellent candidate for the next generation's journalist who will obtain his story without deception and tell it without pretentiousness.

In reality, today's teenager is already doing the work of an investigative reporter as he relentlessly questions everything he hears and sees, and tries to scoop out the real story that is often not honestly told. Your task is to shape this acquired coping mechanism into a tool that can be used to help the teen journalist uncover a great story and then tell it with integrity and human compassion.

Like every facet of journalism, teen journalism is changing to keep up with the current cultural shift. Teens no longer exclusively cut their teeth in the field of journalistic expression through staffing the high school newspaper or yearbook. Although traditional journalism is still taught in the classroom, today's youth are writing and editorializing through the mediums of social networking sites, personal blogs, and online writing groups.

"My Space" is home to an official blogging spot for teenage journalists all across America to sign in and share their thoughts on anything from current events to trends in music. Its host, "Page One", of the Ohio Tribune Chronicle, boasts that it is the number one educational program for teen journalists in the country.

Organizations like the Newspaper Association of America Foundation provide online resources to target today's youth with the importance of

• 1
• 2
• next page >>

Add your voice

Know something about How to teach teen journalists?
We want to hear your view. Write now!