Roundup High School

Media Arts/OWE

Roundup High School, Roundup, Montana

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Why Can't I Say That?: First Amendment Issuesand the Scholastic Press

 

Links:

NiceNet

Expedition 1:The 1st & 14th Amendments

Expedition 2:

Tinker v DesMoines

Expediton 3:

Hazelwood v Kuhlmeier

Expedition 4:

Bethel v Fraser

Expedition 5 :

Student Law Center

 Teaching Guide:
  
"Why Can't I Say That: First Amendment Issues and the Scholastic Press"

Lesson Three of online Lessons For Roundup High School Media Arts

Developed by Tim Schaff

Rationale Audience Subject-matter Learning objectives Materials Instructional plan Plan for assessment and evaluation

Aim: This set of Expeditions is designed to help students begin to understand the responsibilities of the student journalist in regards to their first amendment rights. The Expeditions are also designed to help students understand the evolution of "prior restraint" and force them to begin to look at potential directions of the courts in regards to the scholastic press.

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Rationale: High School journalists seldom understand the importance responsible reporting. The expeditions in this lesson are designed to show students how their actions may impact their freedoms as reporters. The expeditions are also designed to help students begin to value their responsibilities and rights as citizens of the United States.


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Audience: This lesson is designed for high school students who are comfortable using a computer for word processing and other basic applications, who have access to an Internet-linked computer, and who are internally motivated to research and write. Participants should know what the World Wide Web is, how to use a web browser and conduct simple searches, and how to create bookmarks.

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Subject-matter: Subject matter revolves around the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution of the United States, and three landmark court cases pertaining to student rights to freedom of expression: Tinker v DesMoines, Hazelwood v Kuhlmeier and Bethel v Fraser.
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Goals:
  1. Students will value their First Amendment rights.
  2. Students will value the press's obligation to accuracy regarding responsible use of their First Amendment rights.
  3. Students will recognize a student journalist's obligation respecting the protection of minors.
  4. Students will recognize the importance of "time" and "proximity" surrounding the decisions of the Court in these cases.
Learning objectives:
  • Researched materials to provide support for positions in an informal debate.
  • Constructed questions to guide research and interviews.
  • Organized and recorded information using PowerPoint or Inspiration.
  • Explained the relationship of the First and Fourteenth Amendments.
  • Explain the concept of "prior restraint."
  • Explored the issues of slander and libel.
  • Created an article organized in the inverted pyramid style based on the facts of one of the expeditions.
  • Define and use "inverted pyramid style."
  • Explained how news and law are influenced by the time period in which the event or decision was made.

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Materials: An internet-linked computer, one copy of Journalism Today by Donald Ferguson, Jim Patten and Bradley Wilson, an active email address, access to Roundup Media Arts at nicenet.org. If this textbook is not available, any journalism textbook or the following links would provide similar material as well: Society of Professional Journalists' Code of Ethics, Poynter's High School Journalism Guide, and Beginning Reporting.
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Instructional plan: This lesson is intended to be used during the introductory weeks of a journalism class. The primary outcome will be the development of one news story (an editorial) . Students will proceed through the lessons by doing Expeditions 1-4 and following directions. Students will begin to reflect by sharing their discussions through a discussion board, chat room or email. This lesson is designed to use NiceNet, but Expeditions could be adapted to use email, face to face discussion or chat.


For each lesson within this module, it is suggested that students prepare for the expeditions by reading the following text: pp. 24-50, "Meeting Ethical and Legal Responsibilties," and pp. 278-305, "Writing for the Editorial Page" of Journalism Today.

The lesson is designed to be completed in one calendar week. Each Expedition is designed to be completed in one to two one hour session either inside or outside regular class times.Sample timeline with deadlines for each expedition would be as follows:

  • Day One: Assign readings.
  • Day Two: Expedition One and Expedtion Two. Reading and response to "What Would You Do?"
  • Day Three: Expedition Two and discussion board replies posted and Expedition Three. Reading and response to What Would You Do?"
  • Day Four: Expedition Three discussion board replies posted and Expedition Fou. Reading and response to What Would You Do?"
  • Day Five: Expedition Four discussion board replies posted and rough draft of the editorial e-mailed to instructor. Cases for the exercise chosen and choices e-mailed to instructor.
  • Day Six: Polish the editiorial (persuasive essay) and email as an attachment to the instructor. Complete case summaries by posting them on discussion board.
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Plan for assessment and evaluation: Each expedition has an expedition goal. Activities are included to determine whether the participant has achieved the expedition goal. Student responses to discussion questions on the discussion board and to one another on the discussion board will show if they have met requirements. The final product (in this case the editorial) will be evaluated according to the rubrics provided.

A general lesson evaluation will be made available to students. Students or parents with other comments or concerns should contact the instructor: timschaff@mac.com.


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