Illinois educators: NewsLitCamp® with Chicago Defender, ProPublica Illinois, Better Government Association, Rockford Register Star and Block Club Chicago
Friday, February 5, 2021
8:30 AM – 3:45 PM
Join the News Literacy Project (NLP) and Chicago Public School Libraries on Feb. 5 for a virtual teacher-centered NewsLitCamp featuring breakout sessions with journalists from Chicago Defender, ProPublica Illinois, Better Government Association, Rockford Register Star and Block Club Chicago. This program is part of a series of NewsLitCamp events led by the News Literacy Project in collaboration with a diverse group of news organizations around the country.
Sign up today (it’s FREE!) to reserve your seat.
NewsLitCamp is an immersive, free professional development experience primarily for middle and high school educators. It features topical sessions (selected with input from participants) led by Illinois-based journalists and news literacy experts, and educator-driven sessions to empower you to teach news literacy. Check out our NewsLitCamp video for a quick look at what the event can offer you.
Details
Join us for a day of free workshops and interactions with Illinois journalists and experts from the News Literacy Project: 8:30 a.m.-12 p.m. and 1:00-3:45 p.m. CT (9:30 a.m-1 p.m. and 2:00-4:45 p.m. ET / 6:30-10 a.m. and 11:00 a.m.-1:45 p.m. PT).
Educators will be prompted in mid-January to create a Sched.com account, which will be the home base for all of the event activities, including documents and access to the Zoom links.
Why attend? As an educator, you directly influence how your students process everything they read, watch and hear. You’ll leave NewsLitCamp with new ideas, skills and resources to help your students navigate today’s complex and challenging information landscape. Our goal is to help teachers and librarians develop expertise in news literacy education, share specialized teaching resources and provide a behind-the-scenes view of the newsgathering process — demystifying what distinguishes quality journalism from rumors, hoaxes and other types of misinformation.
Educators able to participate for the full day will receive a certificate of attendance to apply for continuing education credits within their districts.
Who can attend: NewsLitCamp is designed primarily for middle and high school teachers and media specialists. Space permitting, we also will welcome school administrators and post-secondary and international educators. Please email [email protected] with questions.
Bonus: You’ll learn about our Checkology® virtual classroom, a free cutting-edge comprehensive e-learning platform that complements educators’ lesson plans. The topics it examines include:
- Misinformation and bias.
- The practice of quality journalism.
- The First Amendment.
- Watchdog journalism and its contributions to democracy.
- Press freedoms around the world.
About the Chicago Defender: The Chicago Defender is multi-media content provider of news, information and events that cover the interests of the urban African American community with culturally relevant content not regularly serviced by mainstream media. Founded in 1905,The Chicago Defender celebrated its 115th Anniversary in 2020 and the evolution being recognized nationally as the 2nd most widely read and best African-American Newspaper by Nielson and Essence Survey 2014.In July 2019, The Chicago Defender transitioned from a printed newspaper into a digitally-focused content platform dedicated to online editorial, premiere events, custom publishing and archival merchandising. Every day, we distribute news and information via multiple platforms. As the voice of the community for more than eleven decades, we take great pride in having access to the grassroots community as well as connections and established relationships with influencers and opinion leaders.
About the Better Government Association: The Better Government Association is a nonpartisan nonprofit news organization and civic advocate working for transparency, efficiency and accountability in government in Chicago and across Illinois.
About Block Club Chicago: Block Club is a nonprofit news organization dedicated to delivering reliable, nonpartisan and essential coverage of Chicago’s diverse neighborhoods. Our full-time reporters are embedded in the communities they cover, allowing them to report with context, respect and with actual knowledge of a neighborhood beyond parachuting in for a “big” story or event. This ground-level approach not only builds community and trust but leads to a more accurate portrayal of a neighborhood.
About ProPublica Illinois: ProPublica Illinois is an independent nonprofit newsroom that produces investigative journalism with moral force. Headquartered in Chicago, we are the first regional publishing operation of ProPublica, dedicated to stories about big issues that affect people living and working in the state of Illinois. ProPublica Illinois was founded in 2017 as a vehicle for leveraging ProPublica’s collaborative model at a regional level, with the goal of making a meaningful difference across the state. With a team of 12 reporters, editors and technologists, we are pursuing stories that hold powerful institutions to account, from politics to government to business.
About the Rockford Register Star: The Rockford Register Star has been northern Illinois’ leading source of news and information for more than 160 years. Owned by Gannett, it was created in 1979 by the merger of the Register Republic founded in 1855, and the Morning Star, founded in 1888.
This NewsLitCamp is presented by the News Literacy Project and is generously supported by the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.
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