BROKEN ARROW, Okla. — As a part of News Literacy Week, we’re taking a look at how news literacy is being taught in the classroom.
We’re digging into how students are discerning credible information in their everyday lives. Students at Broken Arrow High School are doing it on a daily basis.
>> Learn more about the News Literacy Project
Inside ArrowVision Studios at Broken Arrow High School, a week’s worth of planning is coming together for Good Morning Broken Arrow.
“Big news or big topics that are happening around the school to keep fellow students updated about what’s going on,” said Jasmin Bell, a junior at Broken Arrow High School.
The team puts together stories about events happening at the school, manages several Broken Arrow Schools social media accounts and even handles some of the branding and marketing of Tiger Threads, the school store.
“What really drew me is the enthusiasm I saw students have on the air,” Bell said.
She says the first day she saw GMBA (Good Morning Broken Arrow) on the air, she knew she wanted to take part.
“What I saw was passion and the way they wanted to pursue it with everything in them."
Bell said she wants to pursue a career in journalism and the district says this is the perfect opportunity to get hands-on learning early. One of the vital journalistic lessons being taught to all of the students is news literacy. News literacy is defined as the ability to determine the credibility of news and what to trust.
“Trust is one of the most important things in society,” said Avery Barlow, a senior at the high school.
As the students spend time in the classroom and in the studio, they’re focused on making sure the information they’re telling is accurate for the thousands of people who see it every week.
“Throughout the week, we’re searching like extremely hard each and every day making sure that our information is completely correct from whatever teacher that’s coming from or whatever board member that’s coming from," Bell said. "We’re making sure we’re hitting it on the nail so we’re not giving false information out."
Barlow, who focuses on social media and marketing, agrees.
“We have to take all of our sources and make sure all of the information matches,” Barlow said.
Antonio Hurling has been the video production teacher at Broken Arrow High School for a few years. He says he equips students with an understanding of how to work the cameras, and how to put together a full product from beginning to end.
“Really a game changer for the students with the amount of equipment they get to use," Hurling said. "The opportunities they have in front of them."
He says as they take students through the steps to be successful after high school, he always wants to make sure they know how to discern the right information and build trust.
“We want to make sure we’re teaching our students to be responsible and reliable."
Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere --
- Download our free app for Apple, Android and Kindle devices.
- Sign up for daily newsletters emailed to you
- Like us on Facebook
- Follow us on Instagram
- Follow us on Twitter
