California Educator

December/January 2021

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applicable for many educators, the core learnings are. Here are some of them. Develop principles behind the work " We have three philosophies in my pro- gram," Green says. 1. Journalism offers student journal- ists a backstage pass to life. For the broadcasting students, this is not a simulation. It is very real-world. 2. Everybody has a story. 3. We are the voice for the voiceless. Be resourceful " We've adapted. Students conduct con- versations w ith stor y subje ct s usin g videoconferencing and improvise good lighting. They talk to and film people in person w hile obser ving social dis- tancing and capture good sound with camera-mounted microphones or fixed mics on mic stands. ey turn their home television screens into interactive touch screen monitors to enhance their stories. ey record their voiceovers using cell- phones. One student taped a microphone to a broom handle. Whatever it takes!" Use existing tools "We have two things working in our favor. Firstly, a powerful story can be told with a cellphone. Students learn right away how to take maximum advantage of their cell- phones to shoot quality video and capture quality audio. "During the school closures, we pro- duced segments where we demonstrated for the general student body how to use their cellphones to achieve professional quality video (how to frame a shot, how to light a shot, achieve quality audio, how to find a compelling background). We did this out of necessity since we Telling Fact From Fiction F O R D O U G G R E E N , helping young people become "highly news literate" is at the heart of what he and the broadcast journalism program do. He revels in the firsthand experience he offers his students. For example, he points to three internationally distributed documentary films they 've produced in the last 11 years. "Our most recent film, Invisible Threat, provided students with a powerful, real-world experience as they learned to analyze source material (websites, news articles) while questioning the various websites' biases." They examined "anti-vaccine websites that were funded by alternative health product manufacturers, [and sites] that link the MMR vaccine to autism even though those claims run counter to the science and discoveries that autism can be identified in utero, far before a child receives their first vaccine." The film and its students ended up on the front page of the Los Angeles Times. "Students have learned firsthand that they need to question sources and they need to report without bias — that with the privilege of reporting and storytelling comes a responsibility to communicate with their audience truthfully and accurately." Carlsbad High television reporter Mia Handojo, left, conducts an interview. Valley Middle School television anchor Jacob Clarke uses an iPhone for a newscast. 49 D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 0 / J A N U A R Y 2 0 21 T

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