Insider Spotlight: Noreen Fitzgerald-Makar
Welcome to the Insider Spotlight section, where we feature real questions from our team and answers from educators who are making a difference teaching news literacy. This month, our featured educator is Noreen Fitzgerald-Makar from New York City, where she is an English and journalism teacher.
Q: Why is it important for students to understand the First Amendment when learning about news literacy?
A: I think that it is important for students to have a working background knowledge of the First Amendment before learning about news literacy because understanding freedom of press and speech is essential to the practice of being a good journalist and a good citizen. Students need to know what can and cannot be said, to be able to differentiate between opinion and fact, and to understand that First Amendment freedoms allow the press to act as a watchdog. One thing I like to ask students that are interested in joining the class is, “Should governments be permitted to censor news media?” A good number of them say “yes,” and it is then my job to explain why that can never happen.
Q: How does understanding the First Amendment’s protected freedoms help students become more informed, critical consumers of news?
A: I think that understanding the First Amendment’s protected freedoms helps students because they are able to add their own voices to conversations concerning news. Knowing that they have a voice, and they can use that voice to advance a cause or convey a dissenting opinion on a controversial topic, is important.
Q: What strategies for assessing modern issues do students gain by analyzing landmark Supreme Court cases in this lesson?
A: Students learn to make connections between what has already happened and what is going on in our schools/classrooms/communities today. Students can analyze and synthesize information, for example, about why school publications are run as they are run and why change may not be possible. These real-world cases put a face on the issue and make the students more invested in learning about it.
Q: How does learning about the First Amendment’s limitations enhance students’ ability to think critically about what is true and what is false?
A: I think that learning about the limitations of the First Amendment enhances students’ critical thinking because it encourages them to engage with complex questions about the balance between freedom of expression and public responsibility. Students are challenged to consider where free speech should be protected and where it might conflict with other important values, such as public safety, national security or preventing harm.
Q: How can an understanding of the First Amendment guide students in identifying and confronting censorship and attempts to suppress free speech?
A: By understanding the scope of First Amendment protections, students can more easily identify when their rights are being infringed upon. They will be better equipped to distinguish between protected speech and instances where restrictions may be justified. They can advocate for free speech in situations where it may be unjustly restricted, such as when a school or government entity attempts to limit discussions or protests based on controversial topics.
