JLI’s work was piloted with 6th grade students at Oaklea Middle School in 2016
Communicating effectively is one of the most essential skills for success in the workplace today. Yet many Oregonians graduate high school without a basic proficiency in this crucial area.
Thanks to a recent $100,000 grant from the Roundhouse Foundation of Sisters, Oregon, an estimated 10,000 middle schoolers across the state will benefit from a course on effective communication. The grant emphasizes rural communities.
Since 2016, the Journalistic Learning Initiative (JLI), an Oregon based nonprofit, has been helping middle school students gain skills that are vital for success in journalism. Turns out, those skills also help them with academic and professional success—and with becoming informed, involved members of their communities.
Regardless of the education and career paths they take, all students benefit from the JLI’s Effective Communications course, says Ed Madison, an associate professor at the School of Journalism and Communication (SOJC) and cofounder of the JLI.
“Middle school is such an important time, developmentally speaking,” Madison says. “It’s when young people start to make decisions about what they think they do well. So it’s a great time to introduce these skills, which are fundamental to journalists but also fundamental to navigating life.
“We’re grateful the Roundhouse Foundation is committed to improving the academic experiences and opportunities for rural students in our state. Thankfully, their values align with our mission.”
Kathy Deggendorfer, BS ’73 (English), started the Roundhouse Foundation in 2002 in collaboration with her mother, the late Gert Boyle, longtime chairman of Columbia Sportswear. Since it began, the foundation has awarded grants to more than 250 different organizations in four major categories: the arts, social services, education, and conservation.
The grant will enable 100 Oregon middle school teachers to participate in the UO’s Educator Fellowship Program over the next two years and learn how to lead the 45-day course. The program is a collaboration between the JLI, the SOJC, and the UO’s College of Education. Effective Communicators is also available in high schools, although the Roundhouse grant seeks to benefit middle school students.
The course covers media literacy, research, social media, publishing, and interviewing. Students collaborate with their peers and publish stories. They also learn how to distinguish evidence-based media from opinion, evaluate the credibility of their sources, speak to communicate, and write clearly.
Over the years, participating students have demonstrated measurable improvements in reading and writing. And research demonstrates that students with strong communication skills earn better grades, score higher on tests, succeed in college, and excel in their careers.
They also gain confidence and benefit in other ways that might not be so easy to measure, Madison adds.
For example, he says, texting has helped make conversation a lost art (especially with someone you’ve just met). Students in the course overcome the simple—but not easy—challenge of calling a community member to ask questions about story topics.
Middle school teachers can offer the course as a standalone elective or as part of an existing language arts class. Teachers aren’t required to have journalism experience.
During the course, students explore diverse perspectives on complex issues, says Melissa Wantz, the JLI’s lead instructional designer and an English teacher with two decades of experience in public schools. Students get to choose their own topics—any appropriate subject that interests them and sparks their curiosity.
The course emphasizes exploration of complex subjects and global concerns, challenging students to learn about diverse perspectives and consider different solutions—an essential aspect of the experience, Wantz says.
“An important part of the assignment is to look toward the future. They must explore what effective solutions might look like, and what a concerned reader can do to become part of the solution.
“As a young person, you think ‘Why don’t people just fix this?’ When they start talking to the experts working on this complex issue, they realize it’s not that easy. Their communities are struggling, but working to create a better future.
“That’s very important for middle school students. We have problems, but there are good people working hard to solve them. It’s not as bleak as what you see while doom scrolling on social media.”
English teachers are always looking for ways to make language arts relevant and topical, she adds. This course fits the bill while covering all the bases for an essential language arts curriculum, including writing, reading, speaking, listening, and language conventions such as grammar and spelling.
Wantz adds that students also learn minor, but essential skills that often slip through the cracks. For example, many don’t know how to write a professional email. And conducting journalistic interviews is a great way to prepare for job interviews.
—Ed Dorsch, BA ’94 (English, sociology), MA ’99 (journalism)
Are you a middle school teacher interested in applying for the fellowship? Visit http://eccourse.org
Published 9/8/2022