Submitted by: Rachel Moyle
Lesson Title: Becoming familiar with National Public Radio

Goals/Objectives:

1. To discover a news source with which many students are unfamiliar.
   
2. To understand that news radio is a critical, yet often forgotten aspect of journalism.
   
3. To become better-informed students and gain a better understanding of current events.
   
4. To become lifetime NPR listeners.

Student Preparation:
Students will choose and listen to an NPR program prior to coming to class. They will be provided with NPR’s website: www.scern.org,which runs a schedule of upcoming programs. They should choose a program or topic that interests them at a time that is convenient for them to listen. They should avoid doing this exercise while driving a vehicle since they will need to take notes on the discussion. When they listen to the program they should note the name of the program, its timeslot, the broadcasters’ names, the topic of discussion, the names of any significant contributors to the discussion, and particular viewpoints held by either the commentator or call-in listeners.

Materials/Resources:
Access to a radio (in the students’ dorms, home, etc.). Copies of The State newspaper.

Outline of Lesson/Procedure:
When students come to class they already should have written a page-long summary describing the program they listened to and their reaction to the program. The papers will be turned in upon arriving in class. Students will proceed to break up into small groups as assigned in the beginning of the semester. Each small group will be given a copy of The State newspaper and told to find a controversial article in it. Once they find a suitable article, they will use that article as the basis for writing their own radio program to be performed in front of the class. They will have the entire class period to write a script, which should include one or two commentators’ dialogue, call-in questions and comments, and any other elements they noticed when listening to their particular program. Creativity will be encouraged! The scripts should be finished by the end of the class period and ready to be performed at the beginning of the next class. If time allows, the groups could critique each other’s scripts as well.

Assessment/Outcomes:
The lesson should make students more aware of an often-unnoticed news source. As budding journalists, these students should realize that not every hopeful broadcasting student will become a television personality but that there are many potentially interesting jobs in radio. Students will be encouraged to turn to NPR more frequently for their news. They must begin to realize that as future journalists, they must support their future profession through reading, viewing, and listening if they are to find their own jobs upon graduating from college.