Global Issues Ms.

Giola

Name: ________________ Date: ________________

In The News: Weekly Reports

Knowledge of current events is a vital part of being a thoughtful person and an informed citizen. This year, each student will have an opportunity to present oral and written summaries of current events to the class, which will broaden our global and domestic perspective and will connect contemporary stories to what we are studying in class. Every other Friday one student will share his or her report and we will rotate through all students. These reports must focus on major news events in the world. Try to find a story that relates to the topic we are studying at the time or one we have recently discussed. You should try to connect the story to what we have learned in class. Look for stories about important issues: the economy, technology, environment; politics and governing authority; global relations, diplomacy, and war; social issues, including ethnic and class relations, education, family life, and the role and status of women and children; cultural issues and values including religion, the arts, and the influence of cultural traditions. Stay away from sports and celebrity stories, and stay away from gruesome true-crime stories that do not add to our understanding of the life of a society as a whole. Due: Your write-up and report will be due on your assigned Friday. Each student will present one story per semester. My Friday is: ____________________ Instructions: 1. Select one story about world or domestic affairs; work with the other student reporting to decide who will select a world story and who will select a domestic story. You can start looking for your story by searching a well-regarded, reputable major newspaper or news-reporting web site. These web sites might include the web sites of major newspapers or broadcast outlets. In the near future a link to such websites will be on my webpage, but do not use Im waiting for the links as an excuse for not having your report ready! 2. Find another story about the same event or experience in a second major print or online news source. (Be sure that this second story is a different story. Different news sources will often issue the exact same wire service news story.) If your first story is from an American news source, your second should be from a foreign source. Between you and the other reporter, at least one of your stories must come from a news source that is published or produced outside the United States. 3. Write a two-paragraph summary of the event, based on the two stories. Be sure to use quotes properly and sparingly, to paraphrase rather than parrot, and to indicate the source of any direct quotes. You should thus turn in two two-paragraph summaries on your assigned Friday. 4. Include a few concluding sentences about the differences you found between the two accounts of the same event, article bias, and about why you think the story is important or relevant to our study and post-high school future (answer so what). 5. Cite your sources properly any format is acceptable, including web site publication information and full URLs for online sources.

Global Issues Ms. Giola

Name: ________________ Date: ________________

6. Cut out, print, or photocopy the original articles and attach them to your summary. Print sparingly (e.g. do not include all eight pages of the article if four will suffice, delete any ads that you may have copied and pasted from the website, etc.). 7. Present your summary to the class in a presentation lasting three to five minutes, and be prepared to answer questions from your classmates and your teacher.

Global Issues Ms. Giola

Name: ________________ Date: ________________

In The News Rubric

Current Event Report by: _________________________________________________________ Story selection __________/10 Written summary __________/20 Oral presentation and questions __________/10 Copies and citations __________/5 Total Grade __________/50

10-9 points: All expectations met--relevant story choice; well-written and substantial news summary; strong analysis of news story and connections to curriculum; clear and confident presentation; sources and citations provided. 8 points: Most expectations met: good story choice and summary; some understanding and analysis; clear presentation; sources and citations provided. 7 points: Average effort, story selection, and understanding of subject matter; not in proper paragraph form; some source and citation information provided. 6-0 points: Little to no effort or analysis; careless writing and/or presentation; sources and citations missing.

Note grade weight subject to change based on number of assessments per term.