Journalism 2009 -2010

Teacher: Mary Collie

How to Reach Me:

• Email is best – mcollie@ma.org
• Free periods: B, D, E
• Office: BLC 116
• Office ext: 264

Course Description

Journalism provides students with extensive advanced training in writing, editing, and rewriting material for publication. Students write news, sports and A&E stories, editorials, and features; write headlines and cutlines; design layout; learn the art of teamwork.

Course Goals:

• Students perfect writing skills with an emphasis on accuracy, unity, and a polished style.
• Students perfect information acquisition skills, particularly interview and research techniques.
• Students perfect listening and speaking techniques through interviewing.
• Students learn the principles of graphic design using InDesign and Photoshop.
• Students learn the writing and speaking skills unique to the electronic media, particularly radio, television, and new media journalism.

Regular Assignments

In an attempt to get students consuming more news, you are responsible for reading and responding to a wide variety of articles posted on the class blog. The blog can be accessed at http://themavoice.blogspot.com. You are required to respond to two articles per month. To complement your reading, you are also required to bring in one example of standout design a month. This example can come from a magazine or a newspaper, but it must be in hardcopy format. Web design does not count. These are regularly occurring assignments, but are not listed on the assignment sheet.

Assignments & Grading

• Please see Staff Manual for policy

Attendance

• You are expected to come to class on time.
• If you’re late, please have a note from a teacher/administrator explaining your tardiness.

In Class Behavior

• You are expected to participate in class on a regular basis.
• No talking while others are talking.
• Always come to class with a pen/pencil, notebook, syllabus, and planner.
• No derogatory comments towards others in the classroom.
• No profanity.
• Cell phones are NOT allowed in class in the ON position. At no time should your phone ring, vibrate, or make itself known to anyone. If this should happen, I will confiscate your phone for 24 hours.

Academic Honesty (see p. 19-20 of the handbook)

• Let no one copy your homework; do not collaborate on assignments unless you have been told in writing that the assignment is a group assignment.
• Do not plagiarize.
• Do not cheat.
• Do not lie or engage in any dishonest behavior.

Supplies

• You must have a three ring binder in which you keep all drafts (with comments) of your article, a clean final copy (Word format is fine), and a copy from The Voice. You will also keep design ideas in this binder as well. Editors: you will need to keep all copies of your page PDFs (with comments/corrections) and one clean PDF of the final version.