by Chloe Patricof and Anabella Paige | 5 May 2022 | Fake News, Hewitt, Media Literacy, Podcasts, Student Posts, Youth Voices
The world is awash in misinformation. But can we rein it in without eroding free speech? Our podcast explores this thorny issue facing our societies. News Decoder · Let's Talk About It We are all flooded with misinformation. But what can we do about it? We turned...
by Octavian-Anton Ghisa | 14 Apr 2022 | Conflict, Contest winners, Human Rights, Immigration, Student Posts, Transylvania College, Ukraine, Youth Voices
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has sent millions of refugees into neighboring nations. I live in Romania, where the war has stirred compassion and fear. A Ukrainian refugee on a bus at the Romanian-Ukrainian border in Siret, Romania, 8 March 2022 (AP Photo/Andreea...
by Joseph Katusabe | 7 Apr 2022 | African Leadership Academy, Human Rights, Personal Reflections, Student Posts, Youth Voices
I’m a staunch Catholic. But I object when the Church rejects gays. Everyone should be celebrated regardless of their sexuality. Two gay women stand in front of a statue of Mary at a convent in Luedinghausen, Germany, 24 January 2022. (Guido Kirchner/dpa via AP)...
by Kamuskay Kamara | 5 Apr 2022 | Africa, African Leadership Academy, Contest winners, Discovery, Identity, Personal Reflections, Student Posts, Youth Voices
I have always wondered why my Mom gave me a merciless beating over a piece of meat. But that meal changed my life for the better. The author with his mother and elder sister Isata in 2009 This story won second prize in News Decoder’s 11th Storytelling Contest....
by Nela Piwonska | 31 Mar 2022 | Conflict, Educators' Catalog, Europe, Human Rights, Immigration, Realgymnasium Rämibühl Zürich, Refugees, Student Posts, Ukraine, Youth Voices
More Ukrainians have fled to Poland than any other country. Like so many Poles, my relatives are doing what they can to help. Displaced Ukrainians on a Poland-bound train bid farewell in Lviv, western Ukraine, 22 March 2022. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue) Here’s how...
The best journalists are good listeners. They hear the words of those worth listening to, and they offer the best quotes to their audience to give voice to the protagonists of the story. Many young writers have difficulty hearing and passing along those quotes. But Nela Piwonska of Realgymnasium Rämibühl Zurich is an exception to the rule and proves it with captivating quotes from relatives in Poland who are on the front lines of Europe’s latest refugee crisis. Against a heartbreaking backdrop of families fleeing war, Piwonska manages to offer an uplifting final quote: “The only positive change in my life is the realisation of how much good is left in people.”
Exercise: Divide your students into teams of two and have them interview each other and then write stories that are based primarily on quotes.