Product Description

Packed with tested tips, techniques and time-savers--including over 100 reproducible exercises, forms and letters--School Newspaper Adviser's Survival Guide helps you in all aspects of the job--from organizing staff and workspace, and handling production details, to training students in good newswriting style and the journalistic approach. Four sections cover staff organization and mission, newswriting, layout, and time management.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #84695 in Books
• Published on: 1998
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 408 pages

About the Author
Patricia Osborn combines experience in education and professional journalism in her background. After majoring in journalism in college, she held positions as newspaper reporter, state editor and advertising copywriter before entering the field of education to become the adviser of award-winning high school newspapers as well as teacher of English and department chairman in Toledo, Ohio, public schools.
Her published works include Reading Smarter; How Grammar Works (John Wiley & Sons, Inc.); Poetry By Doing; and Finding America. She has written articles, short stories and poetry for such magazines as Educational Digest, Gifted Children's Magazine, School Arts, Fine Arts Discovery, Builders, and TV Guide.
Additional experience includes editing an award-winning newsletter, doing volunteer public relations for jazz organizations and serving as judge for the Great Lakes Interscholastic Press Association's annual newspaper contest. She is a member of the National Council of Teachers of English and Journalism Educators Association.
A graduate of Bowling Green State University, Osborn was page editor of the BG News and assistant editor of the yearbook. She also has taken post-graduate course in television writing and production.

Customer Reviews

The only book of its kind
Having been a high school newspaper adviser (notice, "adviser" and not "advisor"?) for 8 years, I am like the other reviewer who wishes this book would have been available much earlier. As it is, my first year of teaching in 1993 included four preps: English 10 Honors, English 9, newspaper, and yearbook. (Anybody want to say "Year of Insanity"?) While I did survive, I struggled that year because the resources for publication advisers are very few. Starting almost from scratch and given very little in support, I ended up putting together my own bound journalism resource book, which is similar in many ways to Osborn's work. But the "Survival Guide" I bought last year is still worthwhile for me to have on hand because it has a number of "cool" sheets that can be photocopied. (Kudos for the wire spine that make turning pages and laying them on the photocopier simple!) Only those who have advised high school publications can fully appreciate the words of wisdom Osborn has because she has obviously been there, done that. Every principal should order a copy for the school's journalism teacher. I certainly plan on utilizing mine in the years to come.

Wonderfully well organized resource!
Both the new and the seasoned newspaper adviser will benefit from this book. It is full of tips and advice to help journalism teachers to both monitor and challenge their students. The workshop units are well designed to teach beginning journalism students new concepts and allow advanced students to sharpen their skills. The format lends itself to easy incorporation into lesson plans and reviews. A sample style book is included which can be adopted and personalized for any high school. I only wish I had ordered this book earlier.

Good if you have a bunch of smart kids
It might be because I am teaching middle school journalism but I found the worksheets in this book to be pretty high end. Although I do recomend the book for survival I would recomend Judith Ann Isaacs books on Secondary School Journalism if you want to excell. The only problem is this other book is really hard to find.