What student has time to read the paper? Really, what student has time to go looking for current news? One of the most valuable pieces of advice I have received from a Prof came from an off the record comment telling us to make our internet browser's home page a news site. I personally have CTV News as the site that comes up every time I open my browser.
http://www.ctvnews.ca/
http://www.ctvnews.ca/
We tend not to think about the connection the News has to our life, to our education, but everything that happens in the world creates a chain of events. Education as a whole is a part of a dynamic social and political system that is changing every day, so why wouldn't it be important for us to keep up to date on our world? This issue was brought to my attention when following a blog found through one of the sakai links. It was a New York Times article 50 Best ways to Teach with Current Events .
The first idea I want to talk about is "News you can Use". Ask any 3rd grader, the news is boring, it's a man or woman on the TV talking about something they don't understand or don't care about. This right there is the fundamental thing we can change. Start by having students list some of their interests, then the fun part comes. In a controlled internet environment we can let their tech savvy little brains find a piece of news that speaks to one of those interests. This is where media and current event literacy comes in. Much of our "current news" comes from a twitter or facebook news feed. While this is great for social upkeep, we can help student learn early where they can find information about current events that are outside of their direct environment.
There are endless ways we can use current events. Writing activities like critically analyzing the story being presented, identifying the POV or comparing and contrasting the same or similar stories from different News outlets. It doesn't just stop at writing, there is the potential for lively debates to enhance critical thinking and public speaking skills. You could do a scavenger hunt, teaching them to navigate all the different news outlets from internet to newspaper to the evening news. The possibilities and modes of delivery in the classroom really are endless.
Burns, M. (2013, May 17). Free iPad Apps to Teach Current Events. Retrieved October 5, 2015.
Gonchar, M. (2014, October 7) 50 Ways to Teach With Current Events. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
Hopkins, G. (2013, October 3). Twenty-Five Great Ideas for Teaching Current Events. Retrieved October 5, 2015.
