Course syllabus for Newspaper I, II, III
Newspaper students are responsible for writing, editing,
designing and laying out the student newspaper. Students
will learn a variety of types of writing styles, current
design trends and desktop publishing skills.
Overall course goals:
A. To produce a high quality newspaper as an end result
of instruction and expansion of student skills.
B. To develop organization, planning, successful group
dynamics and leadership.
C. To study newspaper coverage and audience needs.
D. To develop time management skills.
E. To examine press law and legal issues related to newspaper
coverage and production.
F. To learn principles of photojournalism.
G. To learn writing and reporting techniques.
H. To learn copy editing and proofreading of written
materials.
I. To learn layout and design concepts.
J. To learn desktop publishing skills.
K. To learn advertising sales concepts.

A. INTRODUCTION
1. Students enrolled in Advanced Journalism: Yearbook
I, II, III communicate in a variety of forms for a variety of audiences and purposes. High school students are expected to plan, draft, and complete written and/or visual compositions on a regular basis, carefully examining their copy for clarity, engaging language
and the correct use of the conventions and mechanics of written English. In Advanced Journalism: Yearbook I, II, III, students are expected to become analytical consumers of media and technology to enhance their
communication skills. In addition, students will learn
journalistic ethics and standards. Writing, technology,
visual and electronic media are used as tools for learning as students create, clarify, critique, write and produce effective communications. Students enrolled in Advanced Journalism: Yearbook I, II, III will refine and enhance their journalistic skills, research self-selected topics, and plan, organize, and prepare a project(s). For high school students whose first language is
not English, the students’ native language serves as
a foundation for English language acquisition and
language learning.
2. The essential knowledge and skills as well as the
student expectations for elective courses, Advanced
Journalism: Yearbook I, II, III are described in subsection
(b) of this section.
B. KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS
1. The student understands individual and staff responsibilities of coverage appropriate for the publication’s audience.
A. understand the role and responsibilities of each
staff member and the purpose of the publication;
B. use the skills necessary to plan and produce a publication;
C. read other publications, both professional and student-produced, and generate story ideas of interest or of need to the publication’s audience;
D. conduct research using a variety of sources such
as first-hand interviews and other means available,
including the Internet; and
E. conceive coverage ideas and create multifaceted
presentations of material, including but not limited
to, standard story form, infographics, sidebars,
photos and art.
2. The student understands journalistic ethics and
standards and the responsibility to cover subjects of interest and importance to the audience.
A. find a variety of sources to provide balance to coverage;
B. compose the story accurately keeping his/her own opinion out of non-editorial coverage;
C. provide editorial coverage to inform and encourage the reader to make intelligent decisions;
D. critique the publication to find its strengths and weaknesses and work toward an improved product based on those critiques; and
E. actively seeks non-staff opinion on the publication
and determine whether that opinion should affect
the publication.
3. The student understands all aspects of a publication
and the means by which that publication is created.
A. report and write for publications.
B. write and design headlines for publications;
C. research and write captions for publications;
D. plan and produce photographs for publications;
E. design publications;
F. create and follow a financial plan for supporting
publications, including sales and advertising; and
G. consider finances in making decisions, including
number of pages and cost-incurring extras such as
color, paper quality, number of copies.
4. The student produces publications.
A. determine which events and issues are newsworthy
for a readership;
B. use skills in reporting and writing to produce
publications;
C. select the most appropriate journalistic format to
present content;
D. create pages for publications;
E. incorporate photographs with captions or graphics
into publications;
F. use available technology to produce publications;
and
G. evaluate stories/coverage for balance and readability.
5. The student demonstrates leadership and teamwork
abilities.
A. determine roles for which different team members
will assume responsibility;
B. determine coverage and concepts for publications;
C. develop a deadline schedule and a regular means of
monitoring progress;
D. submit work for editing and critiquing and make
appropriate revisions;
E. edit and critique work of others; and
F. work cooperatively and collaboratively through a variety of staff assignments.