Journalism Lesson Plan

Overview:Underage drinking is a constant concern, and the American Medical Association poll of teens 13 to 18 showed how easily they obtained alcohol from their parents – sometimes with the adults’ knowledge and sometimes not. Some cities and states now believe tougher penalties for those who supply alcohol is one answer. These are often called “social host liability laws” and “teen party ordinances.”

Suggested time allotment: This is always a sensitive topic because some district administrators and parents don’t want to admit there is a problem. However, unless yours is a very unusual community, at least some teens do have a problem with drinking. Here are important tips for coverage: DON’T conduct a survey to find out how much teen readers drink unless you have some professional support in creating a reliable survey instrument, selecting a true random sample and analyzing data professionally. It’s easy to report misleading results. DON’T interview students about their drinking and use anonymous sources who tell wild tales of alcohol adventures. These may not be credible sources and don’t help your articles. But DO contact local health authorities who can provide information about the effects of alcohol. DO interview those involved in alcohol counseling (Alcoholics Anonymous or Al-Anon and Alateen) who can speak to the problem both nationally and perhaps locally. DO get facts from local law enforcement agencies about arrest trends. DO focus on what can help eliminate underage teen drinking and keep teens safer. This is an investigative piece and should take several weeks of research and at least two more weeks of writing, editing and rewriting.

Objectives

Students will:

1. Read the research and links for background and to find out what other communities are doing.
2. Interview local experts in alcohol use and abuse. (see above)
3. Interview local law enforcement officers to get some idea of the number of arrests for underage purchase, possession and consumption in the community. (Check out state laws at the link below)
4. Find a focus and write a news feature/analysis that reports on what the community is doing to prevent underage drinking and some assessment of the extent of the problem. Explore all sides. Consider infographics the convey some of the information at a glance.
5. Write an editorial if the editorial board believes local laws or practices should be changed.

Standards: National Council of Teachers of English and International Reading Association Standards for English Language Arts:

4. Students adjust their use of spoken, written and visual language (e.g., conventions, style, vocabulary) to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences and for different purposes.
5. Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.

7. Students conduct research on issues and interests by generating ideas and questions and by posing problems. They gather, evaluate and synthesize data from a variety of sources (e.g., print and nonprint texts, artifacts, people) to communicate their discoveries in ways that suit their purpose and audience.
8. Students use a variety of technological and informational resources (e.g., libraries, databases, computer networks, video) to gather and synthesize information and to create and communicate knowledge.
12. Students use spoken, written and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion and the exchange of information).

Resources and materials:
Web sites with information:
• The original polls from the American Medical Association were released Aug. 8, 2005, and they show a great deal about how teens acquire alcohol.
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• Concern about adults supplying alcohol to teens is so great, the federal government even has a Web site devoted to this: “We don’t serve teens.” As the home page says, “This web site provides parents and other with tools and information to reduce teen drinking and related harm.”
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• To check out the laws in your state about consumption, possession, supplying to minors, etc., the Alcohol Policy Information System has provided a map with drop-down information.
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• Another useful part of the site gives a list of what individuals and organizations can do to prevent teen drinking.
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• The STOP Underage Drinking site is a “comprehensive portal of Federal resources for information on underage drinking and ideas for combating this issue.”
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• The Marin Institute, according to its Web site, “envisions communities free of the alcohol industry’s negative influence and an alcohol industry that does not harm the public’s health.” Although clearly it has an agenda, the information on it provides can be useful.
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