COMMENTARY / World

High school newspapers are a thrifty way to teach civics

Young people desperately need training in how to assess all the information — and misinformation — they are bombarded with

According to a 2011 study, some 64% of U.S. high schools had student news publications. But of the schools that did not have newspapers, a majority were in low income areas with primarily minority students. | GETTY IMAGES

By Andrea Gabor
Bloomberg

Mar 9, 2022

Much has been written about the need to revive civics education after years in which standardized-testing requirements emphasized math and English language arts at the expense of instruction in history and government.

High school journalism builds on the same logic for promoting civics. It also provides a cost-effective way to strengthen students’ writing and research skills, while giving them early lessons in how to report and edit responsibly and assess the quality of the information they are bombarded with.

Nationwide, school newspapers have weighed in on local conflicts like classroom mask mandates and school-board wars; reported on hot-button issues for students like the redesign of the SAT; and even investigated allegations of sexual misconduct by teachers.