Forging meaningful connections between journalists and students.

The News Literacy Project’s Newsroom to Classroom program brings journalists into middle schools and high schools — in person and virtually — to share their knowledge and expertise with students in their community, across the United States or around the world.

This program — offered to educators exclusively through NLP’s Checkology^®  virtual classroom — provides unique opportunities for students to hear from real-world experts, for journalists to participate in news literacy education and for educators to enhance their students’ classroom learning.

Checkology makes it easy for educators to request a visit from a vetted NLP journalist volunteer: Just search the online directory, filter results by area of expertise and other factors, and send a request for an engaging, conversational news literacy lesson.

These sessions are designed to:

• Demystify the practice of quality journalism.
• Demonstrate how to think critically and become information-savvy in today’s complex online landscape.
• Develop an appreciation of the vital role of a free press in a robust democracy.

Connecting with the reporters and editors behind the headlines serves as an invaluable resource for teachers and a powerful news literacy learning experience for students. It’s also an important component of NLP’s mission.

How it works

Checkology educators can click on the “Journalists” tab at the top of any Checkology page to access the journalist directory. You can search journalists by location, area of expertise or relevant topics. Invite a journalist to your class through the platform; then arrange the visit directly over email. Check out the Newsroom to Classroom how-to guide for more information on how to set up a classroom connection.

Questions? [email protected]

Exclusively for Checkology® Premium users

Have your students ever wondered how investigative reporters uncover their stories? Or how photographers capture the perfect image, or what political polling numbers actually mean? NLP’s Virtual Visits offer educators and students an opportunity to connect with leading journalists for a conversation about journalism and news literacy topics. Our hour-long Virtual Visits — held about once a month during the school year — feature a discussion between NLP staff members and a leading journalist or an expert on a news-related topic. Participants have come from well-known news outlets and other organizations, including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, BuzzFeed, Time, the Pew Research Center, The Washington Post, Politico and Chicago Public Media.

Educators can use a projector to air the Virtual Visit in their classrooms, or students can watch on their own devices. Students can use an online interface to ask questions that drive the conversation.

To explore Virtual Visits, sign up for Premium access to the Checkology virtual classroom.

NLP's NewsLitCamp is a day-long professional development experience hosted in a local newsroom. NewsLitCamps bring educators and practicing journalists together to discuss news literacy and journalism.

What’s a NewsLitCamp®? from The News Literacy Project on Vimeo.

Connecting educators and journalists committed to news literacy

Designed primarily for middle and high school teachers, librarians and media specialists, these participatory workshops include topical sessions (selected with input from participants) and educator-driven planning and development time to empower educators to embed news literacy into any subject matter they teach. Sessions aim to demystify and explain what distinguishes quality journalism. Our in-house experts establish the core skills and concepts of news literacy education and introduce teaching tools.

These events aspire to develop educators’ expertise in news literacy education, share specialized teaching resources and provide a behind-the-scenes view of the news reporting process. Participants leave with new ideas, skills and resources to help their students navigate today’s complex information landscape and beat back a rising tide of misinformation. Most importantly, NewsLitCamps build a greater understanding among educators and journalists that enhances the appreciation of the vital civic role each play in our democracy.

NewsLitCamp stands apart:

• Educators join journalists in their newsroom, where real-world expertise informs classroom teaching.
• In our flexible, teacher-directed model, educators tell us what they are interested in and what they hope to learn.
• Sessions with journalists are structured to address educators’ needs and interests.

Partners have included both local and nationally known news organizations: 9NEWS, Better Government Association, Block Club Chicago, Bloomberg News (New York City), The Charlotte Observer (North Carolina), Chicago Defender, the Chicago Sun-Times, CNN Worldwide, The Colorado Sun (Denver), the Daily Herald (Arlington Heights, Illinois), the Houston Chronicle, the Lexington Herald-Leader (Kentucky), the Los Angeles Times, the Miami Herald, NBC Bay Area (San José), NPR, ProPublica Illinois, Rockford Register Star, The San Francisco Chronicle, The Texas Tribune, Time, Univision (Miami), the Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and WBEZ (Chicago).

   

Using examples from the news of the day, journalists lead breakout sessions on such issues as:

• Perceptions of bias.
• News judgment.
• The role of social media.
• Journalism standards and practices.

   

NewsLitCamps are offered only at select locations during the school year based on event sponsorship and scheduling with partner news organizations. We do accept a limited number of RFPs from districts.

Is your school, library, school district or news organization interested in partnering with us on a NewsLitCamp? Email us at [email protected].