Newspapers in Education: Developing English Excellence in Your Classroom by Shen Gang Deputy Editor in Chief of 21st Century Newspapers in Education started in the US in 1795 and become a national supported program in the US in 1950s. Look at Newspaper in Education (NIE) logo. You will see that newspapers play a key role in schools. Newspaper Association of America Reports:. More than 950 NIE programs delivered newspapers and educational programs to nearly 40% of all public school students within the United States. More than 94% of all newspapers in the United States with a circulation of more than 15,000 daily have active NIE programs. The focus on state standards and mandated tests brought a a sharper focus for NIE content Topics for Discussion Why Read Newspapers? Newspaper & College Entrance Examination Key Newspaper Terms Some useful activates. Newspapers have been called the living textbook and it lives up to that name. The newspaper can be used to enhance skills in reading, writing, listening, speaking, math, social studies and science. Critical thinking is the natural outgrowth of using a newspaper to learn. Unlike textbooks, which are several years outdated by the time they get into students' hands, the newspaper comes alive with information. The newspaper expands the curriculum with an unlimited amount of information to use as background for learning activities. Why Read Newspapers? Newspapers in Education (NIE) says newspapers: Are an adult medium that students of all ability levels can be proud to be seen reading Reflect what is current. They increase students interest and motivation by providing study materials relevant to their lives. Make learning fun. Are extremely flexible and adaptable to all curriculum. Learn English as it happens. Required by the New National Curriculum: 15 20 30 1315 46 17 20 20 25 25 31 4 10 15 2500 3500 4,500 46 11.5 16 20 Reading newspapers or Books: Pro: Classical, literacy, Con: Too hard to read; old language; easy to lose patience; time consuming Exercises: Pro: Examination skills; Con: No interests; limited reading skills; less information; Why Reading Non-fiction Is Important 75 % of what is read beyond the 3rd grade is nonfiction (Venezky, 1982) % of the questions on standardized tests are based on nonfiction text passages (Lucy Calkins, et.al., 1998). Approximately 96% of the sites on the World Wide Web contain nonfiction, informational text (Kamil and Lanee, 1998). 2012 2012 ( ) 2012 Input: Reading Input: Listening Output: Speaking Output: Writing Possible problems on reading Two cycles of reading activities: Doesnt understand Read slowly Doesnt enjoy reading Doesnt read much Struggling readers Active readers: Enjoy reading Read faster Read more Understands better What makes an active reader? Activate knowledge that you already have Cultivate vocabulary Teach for comprehension Increase reading fluency Verify strategy Evaluate progress Whats in Teens? Front page Celebrities, newsmakers and hot topics of the week. Page 2 Domestic and international news. Page 3 Campus news and teens life Page 4 5 Sports, entertainment, culture. Page 6: Science and technology Page 7: Learn with us. Page 8: Reading for fun, jokes and activities. What makes Teens special? Tailored newspapers for each grade from Junior 1 to Senior 3. What makes Teens special? Combine reading with learning and practicing in an effective way: Key Newspaper Terms FLAG: The newspapers name as it appears at the top of the first page. Headline: An outstanding summary of the whole story. Sept. 10, 2007 edition HEADLINE: Words in large type at the top of a story telling what the story is about; also called a Head. CUTLINE Explanatory information under a picture or illustration; also called a caption. Interesting headlines: Senior 1 P4: Pull up your pants or go to jail Senior 3 P3: Learn Chinese in the write way Senior 3 P8: In the shoes of an illegal immigrants Typical news reports or hard news: AFTER being held hostage ( ) by the Taliban in Afghanistan ( ) for six weeks, 21 Koreans finally returned home safely last month. But they are not as relived ( ) as you might expect. (Teens Senior 2, page2 Koreans safe return, Sep 10, 2007) Looking for keys of a story: 5Ws and H Vocabulary building: Colorful adjectives: Its history is world famous and its myths ( ) are legendary ( ). The temples ( ) and attractions were fascinating ( ), They were kind, generous ( ) and very funny, It was breathtaking. Vocabulary building: 21 st Century Teens Senior Edition June 19, 2006 Voice of the game NO true football fan keeps quiet, especially during the World Cup. The whole business of being a fan is to shout for a goal, talk about the game, criticize players and gossip about the team. If talking about football is the measure of a fan, Nie Ou may be one of the most successful of them all. His voice is on air, listened to by hundreds of thousands of people. Writers Journal Find a headline that uses a play on wordsa word or expression that can have more than one meaning. Find a story that tells the reader how to do something. Find a piece of writing that represents a writers point of view on a current issue. Find three different words that indicate something is highly desirable. Find an idiomatic or slang expression in the story. Writers Journal Reminds you of an experience youve had Reminds you of someone you know Describes something youd like to do Describes someone youd like to meet Makes you laugh Makes you angry Makes you think Makes you sad Makes you see a problem in a new light Has an unusual headline More supports for teachers: E-plus: E-plus: a professional teachers guide of Teens arrive to yourevery Monday. It will include introduction of the main stories of the issue, links of audio files and PPT teaching plans. More supports of teachers: Audio clips: main story audio records read by native speakers. More supports for teachers: PPT: Designed especially for teacher to use in classroom and free to download. What Does The Research Say? (21st Century Experimental school statistics 2007 shows) On average, students who use the newspaper in school scored 10 percent better on NCEE than students who did not. Your students can become champion English students if they train with 21 st Century Teens. Thank you!