Kristin Billo
Goliad High School
Gloiad, Texas
Background
A working knowledge of both the Tinker and the Hazelwood cases
and how they affect your school is necessary to begin any lesson on newspapers
and the First Amendment. The Student Press Law Center has numerous resources,
but a quick guide is the handout "First Amendment Rights of
Public High School Student Journalists After Hazelwood School District
v. Kuhlmeier" (Jensen and Goodman). Other useful tools from Goodman
and Jensen's Student Press Law session include "Fighting Censorship
After Hazelwood," "Student Press Law Center Model Guidelines for
High School Student Media," and the article "The Voice of Freedom" by
Harry Proudfoot and Alan Weintraub (2001).
Unit plans
Theme: Understanding and respecting the power of the First Amendment to give
voice to everyone.
Overview/rationale: Students in small rural communities often assume a homogenous
identity in school though they come from diverse backgrounds. The community
seems to expect and receives a great deal of conformity which appears to
stifle creativity and individuality resulting in lost potential and early
defeatism in many students.
By understanding that they too have a voice if they will only have courage to
use it, students can learn to see beyond the high school years and gain confidence
to change the world for the better through the power of free speech, free
assembly, and free expression.
State testing requirements met
- TEKS (1) The student demonstrates an understanding
of media development, press law, and responsibility. The student is
expected to:
- (A) identify the history and development of American journalism through
people and events;
- (B) identify the foundations of journalistic ethics;
and
- (C) distinguish between responsible and irresponsible media action
- Students will understand the power communication has to change opinions,
to dispense truth, and create a better world through critical questioning
and
thinking.
Essential questions:
- What is the First Amendment?
(know the exact words/what it covers legally)
- Who crafted it? (framers
of the bill of rights/their agendas)
- Whom does it protect? (historically
and today/significant court cases/events)
- When was it written?
(time frame of U.S./world events)
- Why was it written? (historical
context primarily)
Critical engagement questions:
- When is the First Amendment
not a guaranteed protection?
- How are its protections different for
high school publications?
- How can people (even young people) use First Amendment
guarantees to change the status quo?
- When has the First Amendment
been successfully upheld for high schools, and when has it been
limited by the courts?
Activities:
- Activity 1
- Students will be asked what they know about the First Amendment
and its protections. Discussion should focus on all aspects of
the First without too much emphasis on what is right or wrong about
student
perceptions.
- At the end of the discussion, the teacher will read the
First in its entirety to the students. They will be asked what they
think
it means
after
thinking
about the words.
- Students will be given two assignments due
in one week.
- Assignment 1: Research all the information students
can find
and
read regarding
the First Amendment. Books, magazines, interviews,
web sites are all allowable, but sources must be noted if questions
arise.
- Assignment 2:
Be able to write
or recite the First Amendment word for word.
- Assessment:
The research and documentation will be graded as participation:
100 if student brings in research. The written/recited Amendment
will be docked 1 point for missing a, an, the, and 2 points for
all other words
up
to 100 points.
- Activity 2
- Students will share their research with the class.
- The teacher
will then focus the discussion on how and why the First is not always
guaranteed.
- Students will read excerpts from the textbook Journalism
Today and
from the Web sites at the bottom regarding how the First
Amendment is applied to high school publications after Tinker and
Hazelwood
cases.
- The handout
regarding First Amendment Rights and high school students
should be handed out.
- After discussion of the two cases, students will
be
given examples of
high school cases to decide if they fall under First Amendment
protection
or not. The class will discuss why or why not as a group.
A list of
criteria for the successful cases will then be recorded.
- The
next assignment will be to develop a procedure to follow for ensuring
the freedoms
of our press will not be subverted.
- Assessment: This will be a class grade. Students will be looking
for procedures that include: fair and balanced reporting, credible
sources,
solid writing,
checking and rechecking facts, a good working relationship with administration,
and a willingness to stand up for their work before the administration
(contacting SPLC or local media for example). Students will receive a
class 100 if they
work together to generate a thorough procedure.
- These lessons should encourage students to pursue stories that truly have consequence
in their lives. Also, if the staff is diverse enough, the stories will have
impact on every reader in some way.
Recommended reading and sources:
