Therefore, Newsroom is the most time consuming class for students. They are taken out of their regular classroom for a longer period of time (from 60 to 90 minutes a week) and there is generally homework every week. Last year in debate, students had to research an assigned topic and write two powerful arguments, one affirmative and one negative, outside of class. Many students felt this was hard work, but for those who persevered, they felt it to be incredibly rewarding and a fun learning experience.
This year we will be working on a unit called "Empty Books". While last year's unit was more group oriented, this unit will be more of an individual experience where students are not relying on others to accomplish the final goal.
There will be 3 different spot checks for students. Usually after about 4 weeks, we look to see if students are fulfilling all Newsroom expectations. If they are, they continue to forge ahead. If not, we re-evaluate and decide if Newsroom is a "good fit" for them. We realize that many of these students are busy. Many play sports, play a musical instrument, are in other organized events outside of school and don't have time for anything more. If kiddos realize they are too busy with no time for fun and decide to opt out of Newsroom, I will miss them dearly, but have a lot of respect for their own self-preservation and hard decision making skills. I think it is better for students to realize this 4 weeks into the unit rather than struggling through and then dropping out a few weeks before the big event!
So, I guess in summary, Newsroom is a challenging and time-consuming unit that in the end will be, hopefully, a rewarding and wonderful learning experience!
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