Teaching advice

this might seem like a given but in my experience as a grad teaching assistant at a large university i found it quite alarming how many journalism majors weren't even reading the paper. the best way to learn how to be a good writer is to read good writing.

 

Thanks for the replies, smart-ass and otherwise. Please, keep 'em coming.
Thanks,
Joe

 

I've been teaching a sportswriting course at the University of Miami...upper-level class, so mostly seniors and even a few grad students, but approach is similar for an intro class...
Find out real quickly exactly how much/how little your students know so you can challenge them and make the class worthwhile. The only way to really teach journalism is to let them do it, so I'd suggest as many out-of-class assignments as possible. My students are going to the Heat-Hawks game Monday night and writing game stories live. They're going to the Sony Ericsson tennis tournament in a few weeks to write live gamers and player features. I took them to UM hoops games, etc...Another idea is to assign them on-campus beats. For my class, they each have a UM team as a beat and they have to produce stories all semester on that beat. For an intro class, you could assign them on-campus beats of all kinds and have them come up with stories.
Also, get some guest speakers. It's good for them to hear advice from different voices.
It's very important to be strict with deadlines. Make them as true-to-reality as possible.
Also, make sure the students get to participate a lot in class. Young people today seem to have short attention spans, so long lectures aren't as effective. Get them talking.
I have found the hardest part is the grading. I agonize over the grades because some students are talented writers but file late or don't report thoroughly, and then I have serious students who report really well but don't have much writing flair. I find it hard to decide between As and Bs sometimes.
But overall, it's a great experience. Very rewarding. I've been able to get some of my students in the door at the Herald to do high schools and college stories, and that's been amazing.
Be tough, but have fun.
Good luck!
Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald.

 

I taught for a year and it was one of the hardest things I've ever done. I'd like to take another crack at it now because I've got a 20 more years of experience on which to rely.

Good luck.

 

The easiest way is to call your local j-school and see what adjunct faculty needs they have, then let them know your qualifications. In my case, I went to a school that uses adjunct faculty heavily, and I know it didn't hurt that one of the department leaders was a friend of my wife's (from when she went to school there). Of course, I also took a class and time that was difficult to fill (Monday mornings). Even if the school doesn't have an opening now, it would probably be happy to have your name on file, because adjunct faculty tends to have a lot of turnover.

 

One of the first things I have my students do every semester is write about a significant event that has happened to them. I've gotten everything from winning a state baseball title in high school to the death of a parent or sibling. It gives me a chance to get to know the students a little better and gives them a chance to share something they might not feel comfortable talking about in front of their classmates. It also lets me see where they stand as writers. Most of my students are from the business school, taking their one required communications class.

And getting to know them is key. Encourage them to come by your office. I've held office hours at local restaurants during lunch, and I plan on doing the same during baseball season this semester. Let them get to know you outside of the classroom as well.

I taught as an adjunct for a couple of years before going fulltime last semester. PM if you want more.

 

I've mentored, lectured and did some teaching from elementary school to middle school to junior college to university to even a group of professionals.
Get to know the kids, encourage them to write daily, encourage them to read someone different (there are hundreds of papers, after all) every day, encourage them to watch What Not to Do (that is, the questioning style of sideline TV reporters) and be positive with them.
If someone doesn't have it, don't throw them out the door. Find them something they can do.
Let them to actual interviewing or attend local events, even youth league games, so they get in the habit of writing.
See if the local paper has work-study programs, then work it out with the J adviser. Saves the paper money, gives the student credit.
PM if you want more or have ideas. I'm hoping to implement a work-study program soon.

 

damn, bird, I would have never taken your course in college. I scrounged for the easy teachers and courses.

I have no experience teaching journalism, but one thing I might suggest is that instead of giving letter grades for each assignment, give numbers on a scale of 1 to 10 and not make the numbers related to their course grade but to show improvement. I remember the one journalism writing course I took, that was how the teacher graded and I went from 4s to 8s (I got a B in the course) and I could see how I would improve. I understood what he commented on early. I say that because the early stuff probably won't be that good, and if you give a lot of Cs and Ds, that might discourage people who can benefit from your instruction.

 

-- practice in front of a mirror, in the shower, while shaving, anywhere
-- you are as much an actor/performer as anything else
-- you are selling these kids something ... if they like the presentation, they will be buyers for life.

 

Michelle, that's cool stuff -- they actually gave you credentials for everybody in the class? How did you work that?

 

If you get the right PR people, it's amazing what they'll do. I had called the Heat asking if I could take the class over for a practice, and Tim Donovan said: "Why don't you just bring them for a game? We'll put your class in the upper press box, they can see Pat Riley's pre-game talk, go to post game interview room, media work room, etc..'' The only place they can't go is the locker room. Needless to say, my students (there are 14 of them) are BEYOND excited.
Same kind of thing for the tennis tournament. And these are upper classmen, so they're fairly mature.
Take care,
Michelle (aka Professor Kaufman)