Your School Deserves a Mass Media Program

As I sit here writing this post, I am closing in on the fourth year of Byram Intermediate School’s Mass Media program.  Getting this program up and running hasn’t been easy, but if you’re willing to spend the time and money, the rewards are worth it!

First and foremost, we live in a digital age.  I don’t think I’m blowing any minds with that statement.  If you’re reading this, you’re well aware of how educators and schools are utilizing social media to stay connected to your district’s parents, community, as well as other schools and educators.  With that connectivity comes the sharing of videos and pictures.

Great photos can increase your impact

It was estimated that 1.2 trillion pictures were taken in 2017.  Thanks to smartphones, everyone has the capability of capturing moments whenever they want.  However, with great power comes great responsibility. I stress to my students that just because you can snap a picture in an instant, doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t give it an extra thought of attention to frame it up and make it look nice.  Being a great photographer is difficult, but fortunately, it’s also one of the easiest hobbies to pick up, thanks again to the prevalence of smartphones. I can’t tell you how many pictures I see of classrooms and activities on Twitter that are poorly framed or dimly lit.  You completely lose the impact of your photo if it doesn’t look right.

That’s where a Mass Media program comes in.  For one, I’ve already run one EdCamp at my school on photo composition, and I saw the results from my colleagues instantly.  Even better though is the fact that our 8th graders have been taking pictures of classrooms and students throughout the year, and are featured in both our daily news show and television in our school’s lobby.  So right off the bat, everything your school shares out will instantly look better visually, which can’t be undersold.

Now back to the meat and potatoes. When I was asked to create the program, the main goal was to have a daily news show that aired throughout the building at the same time.  At the middle school level, my principal and I have a shared vision of a clean edited, well-shot show, that promotes the wonderful things happening inside and outside our classrooms.  Best of all, every second of these are put together by our students. Outside of some guidance or advice, the projects that our students create are truly student-driven.

Empowering students with Mass Media Classes

By having a Mass Media program, your school can join in on having your own news show!  Ours is called the BNN (Byram News Network), which gives students a sense of pride and accomplishment when their segments are aired.  When we first started on iPads, we were using TouchCast, and our episodes were posted to YouTube privately. As we acquired more equipment and computers, we very slowly increased how we share it out.  Now, our episodes are shared publicly on YouTube, as well as on our district Facebook page! We went from views in the 30s or 40s to now in the hundreds, and parent comments show how appreciative they are of seeing what’s going on every day!

By being in the program, our 8th graders are empowered to find out news items, while being creative in crafting informative and entertaining segments.  There’s so much going on in school every day, but thanks to our 8th graders, we’re able to put a spotlight on things that would otherwise stay inside a classroom!  Plus, our students have a sense of accountability that in order to get their segment “on air”, they need to make sure it is of the highest quality.

Ultimately our Mass Media program promotes a positive culture around the building.  From the feedback I get from parents, staff, and students, it’s something they look forward to seeing each day!  Doesn’t that sound like something your school deserves too?

James Clayton

Byram Intermediate School