2008 Woodie Awards
Area teachers laud training in workshop
A national survey shows journalism students score better and earn higher grades than other students.
By Kendra Taylor, Wagner High School
Issue date: 6/30/08 Section: News
Originally published: 6/29/08 at 10:35 AM CSTLast update: 9/4/08 at 2:07 PM CST
Elizondo tells her students about her experience at the workshop and encourages them to apply.
She has had from seven to 10 students attend the workshop.
Three of her students - Rachael McBride, Melissa Martin and Lindsay Medina - are participants this year.
"Overall, my workshop experience is one I won't forget," Elizondo said.
Irene Abrego, San Antonio College journalism instructor and publications adviser, has been on the UJW staff since 1987 while a student at San Antonio College.
She became director of the workshop in 1995 after the previous director, W.B. "Dub" Daugherty, died.
"The excitement of the students reminds me of when I first started, and that is what makes me keep coming back year after year," Abrego said.
"The purpose of the workshop is to introduce young people to newspaper and the variety of careers available to them," she said, adding that fundamental journalism and communication skills support and advance students in any number of careers.
A recent national survey finds that to be true.
A 2008 survey of 31,175 students by Dr. Jack Dvorak, director of the High School Institute and a professor in the School of Journalism at Indiana University, showed that students with journalism experience had higher scores than nonjournalism students in their overall grade-point average.
Twenty percent of the students surveyed said they participated in newspaper or yearbook in high school. The survey provides evidence that student journalists also perform at higher levels on college entrance exams and receive higher grades in college writing and grammar courses than other students.
High school students with newspaper or yearbook experience accumulated a grade-point average of 3.38 on a 4.0 scale while other students averaged 3.28.
In composite scores for the ACT, formerly known as the American College Testing Program Inc., journalism students scored in the 64th percentile while nonjournalism students scored in the 59th percentile.
She has had from seven to 10 students attend the workshop.
Three of her students - Rachael McBride, Melissa Martin and Lindsay Medina - are participants this year.
"Overall, my workshop experience is one I won't forget," Elizondo said.
Irene Abrego, San Antonio College journalism instructor and publications adviser, has been on the UJW staff since 1987 while a student at San Antonio College.
She became director of the workshop in 1995 after the previous director, W.B. "Dub" Daugherty, died.
"The excitement of the students reminds me of when I first started, and that is what makes me keep coming back year after year," Abrego said.
"The purpose of the workshop is to introduce young people to newspaper and the variety of careers available to them," she said, adding that fundamental journalism and communication skills support and advance students in any number of careers.
A recent national survey finds that to be true.
A 2008 survey of 31,175 students by Dr. Jack Dvorak, director of the High School Institute and a professor in the School of Journalism at Indiana University, showed that students with journalism experience had higher scores than nonjournalism students in their overall grade-point average.
Twenty percent of the students surveyed said they participated in newspaper or yearbook in high school. The survey provides evidence that student journalists also perform at higher levels on college entrance exams and receive higher grades in college writing and grammar courses than other students.
High school students with newspaper or yearbook experience accumulated a grade-point average of 3.38 on a 4.0 scale while other students averaged 3.28.
In composite scores for the ACT, formerly known as the American College Testing Program Inc., journalism students scored in the 64th percentile while nonjournalism students scored in the 59th percentile.
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