11-10
Business Writing 2:
Foundations of Journalism
Suggested Grade Level: 9th to 12th grade
Learn about journalism -- including its foundations, ethics, and skills -- and write articles, headlines and bylines, editorials, columns, and more…
Your Course Description
If you want to get all the must-have foundational knowledge about journalism and get hands-on writing experience, this course is for you! Introducing journalism in a sturdy overview, you’ll understand and practice writing skills in the genre of reportive writing as a journalist. Whether you’re interested in learning about how the news that you read is created, or you’re considering becoming a writer of news stories yourself – look over the course outline below. If you see yourself enjoying all that’s here, sign up for this course today.
Your Course Outline
Class 1: What is a journalist? (Journalism Overview), a brief history of journalism, and First Amendment Freedoms
Class 2: Ethics in Journalism, quoting and Interviewing, and how journalists can shape a message
Class 3: News Today – what it is, how it’s reported and written, news leads, and headlines and bylines
Class 4: Features: multiple feature news stories, people, ideas, and trends; and investigative reporting
Class 5: Writing editorials and columns
Class 6: How reviews and opinion writing are a part of journalism today
Class 7: News magazines and writing news articles, online journalism, and broadcast journalism
Class 8: The brilliance of advertising, page layout, and graphic design in journalism
Your Course Details
Total Number of Classes: 8
Prerequisite: High School Simplified Writing 1: Strong Foundational Writing Skills (HS 9-2) Take the prerequisite courses LIVE or through Unlimited Access. Alternative prerequisite: a passing assessment from the Aquinas Writing Advantage Assessment service.
Students should be able to use Microsoft Word competently. Your student will need Word 2007 or a later version or the ability to convert a document to a Word-compatible document.
Suggested Grade Level: 11th grade; however, all high school students are welcome
Duration: 55 minutes
Suggested Credit: Two-third (2/3) of a semester’s credit for writing
Add the composition of your own documents from the coursework to create a full semester’s credit for writing.
Course materials: All materials are provided FREE via the instructor. All documents are turned in as Microsoft Word documents. If you do not own Microsoft Word 2007 or a later version, you can use a system such as Google Docs that converts to Word documents FREE.
Homework: Weekly writing assignments, with direct feedback from the instructor with an estimated three (3) to four (4) hours per week for homework outside of class time, including reading, writing, and responding to feedback.
How this course fits with your other High School Writing courses…
| Fall Semester | Spring Semester | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| ACADEMIC WRITING | |||
| X-5 Punctuation/Grammar II | COLL-1 Mastering College Essay Writing | ||
| ADVANCED FICTION WRITING & LITERARY FORM | |||
| X-9 Hero's Journey, Part 1 | X-10 Hero's Journey, Part 2 | ||
| X-11 Screenwriting, Part 1 | X-12 Screenwriting, Part 2 | ||
| 11-6 Authoring a Book, Part 1 | 11-8 Authoring a Book, Part 2 | ||
| 11-7 Writing the Short Story | X-19 SF/Fantasy Short Story | ||
| X-15 Fiction Writing Workshop | X-16 Screenwriting Workshop | ||
| CREATIVE WRITING: EXPRESSIVE & POETIC FORMS | |||
| X-17 Comedy Writing, Part 1 | X-18 Comedy Writing, Part 2 | ||
| X-13 Intro to Poetry | X-14 Poetry: Joining the Great Tradition | ||
| BUSINESS WRITING | |||
| 11-9 Pro Business Writing Essentials | 11-10 Foundations of Journalism | ||
** The 11-9 and 11-10 courses are not consecutive courses and can be taken in any order as recorded courses. To create a full year of High School Writing, sign up for both courses.
Your Instructor
RECORDED, INDEPENDENT-LEARNING COURSE
The designers of this course are the Director of Aquinas Writing Advantage, Erin M. Brown, MA, MFA (aka author EB Conroy/Erin Brown Conroy) and Instructor Geralyn Rea, ME. Sign up for this course in Unlimited Access.
Two Sign Up Options (Choose One)
1. UNLIMITED ACCESS: RECORDED, INDEPENDENT-LEARNING COURSE
When you take the Recorded course, you will independently view the recorded video lesson and complete the coursework in the learning management system. The homework’s weekly quizzes are graded automatically by the computer for instant feedback, and parents grade all other work. There is an estimated one to three hours of homework/coursework per week outside of watching the weekly video lecture.
When you get “Unlimited Access,” you get 24/7 access to ALL of the writing courses — AND access to 400+ middle and high school courses, in all subject areas, for only $34.97 a month.
2. UNLIMITED ACCESS WITH INSTRUCTOR ACCESS GRADING SERVICES
Instructor Access is an optional service, for an additional fee, that accompanies Unlimited Access. When you sign up for one-on-one tutoring with Instructor Access, in addition to the weekly quizzes that are graded automatically by the computer for instant feedback, the Instructor Access instructor grades the work, gives feedback for improvement, and is available during the week for one-on-one help via email. There is an estimated one to three hours per week for homework for your student outside of watching the video lecture. If you’d like Instructor Access, once you sign up for Unlimited Access, you’ll receive email instructions on how to sign up.
When you get “Unlimited Access,” you get 24/7 access to ALL of the writing courses — AND access to 400+ middle and high school courses, in all subject areas, for only $34.97 a month.
Specific Course FAQs
Is this course required?
This course can either be counted as a FOUNDATIONS DEVELOPMENT course in the 11th grade year (in place of fiction writing and literary analysis courses) or an “above and beyond” Writing Excellence course for those wanting writing skills that apply to business and applying for a job.
Who should take the Business Writing courses?
This course is perfect for the student pursuing a career that uses a good amount of writing and critical thinking in a business setting. The skills here are also highly used in applying for a job, working well within a business environment, and communicating with excellence in the workplace — so any student can benefit from these courses.
Can I take another writing course at the same time?
Yes! With the shorter, single-area courses here at Aquinas Writing Advantage — and because there are so many high-interest courses that can make your writing great — many students take more than one writing course at a time.
Courses that “fit well” with this course include the foundational fiction courses, advanced fiction courses (The Hero’s Journey, Screenwriting, Comedy Writing, and Poetry), the High School Punctuation and Grammar 2 course (to ensure strong punctuation and grammar skills), and Business Writing 1. Students planning on moving directly to a career or vocational training will benefit from the Business Writing course. This course can also be taken with any foundational high school course beyond the 9-Series courses. The course can also be taken at the same time as the High School 10-Series (10-1 and 10-2) and 12-Series (12-1 and 12-2) courses.
Is this course considered an English, Writing, or Literature Analysis course?
This course is considered an advanced English and Writing course.
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