El Nuevo mexicano., 1916-07-20
A Course in Reporting


School teachers activities naturally H.
clude frequent relations with the, newspa-
pers. Reports of school affairs, Of special
exercises, notes on school room work, no.
ports Of Institutes, are received by the news
papers all through the year. The New
Mexican probably receives more news con-
tributions written by teachers and school
officials than from any other one class of
people.
Not one in ten is so written that it may
be handed to the printer for setting up, with
out careful revision or rewriting, for con-
struction and punctuation and proper CAPT
talization. Sentences run into each other;
twice as many nouns are capitalized as
should be; commas appear where periods
belong, news reports are written in the edi-
torial person; 'the city is always "our
city; and etc. is frequent; and generally
the lead" or summary of the important
part of the story, which should come first.
is concealed along toward the latter end.
The objectionable error of writing close.
~ upOn JUL SUES Ol d 5ue6l 1S lTeQu6nJ.
These are just a few defects which we
call to mind at the moment. Many com
munications or reports are in ~faultless Eng
lish and properly ~punctuated, but three
times as long as possible, and with the ideas
in disorder. This is not a serious reflec-
ton upon the educational qualifications OF
the teacher. The cause is carelessness, fail
ure, to sort out ideas and present them In
logical orderi lack Of mental neatness. Sur
prising errors of this kind appear in COM
munications from school officials. But we
believe it is highly important, in view of the
large proportion Of educational work done
by teachers and school officials through the
press, that the teacher be prepared to CO.
operate efficiently with the newspaper. To
this end we believe it would be a good thing
for every county institute and every normal
school to spend a little time-not much
would be required-in training the teacher
how to write news reports and ~communica-
tons for the newspapers. A little training
of this kind would be Invaluable in more
ways than one. 1t is well worth while to be
able to write an acccmHt Of something which
has happened, for the information of the
public, in brief, concise, workmanlike and
properly punctuated form. We repeat that
not one teacher In ten can do it. OF course,
not one out Of twenty men ION the street"
can do it; but the teacher has less excuse.
II is not difficult to learn. If 1t were, there
wouldn't be so many of us in the newspaper
business. But mastery of the art of saying
o thing completely in few words and con-
centrating the most possible facts into the
shortest space teaches mental concentra-
ton, orderly thinking, and saves lost motion
in the brain-cogs. 1t aids the teacher TO
express himself clearly and crisply from the
rostrum as well as on the written page. We
are not advocating schools for journalism;
it. is the elementary principles alone that
should be learned.
Publicity is one Of the most valuable aids
to educational work. Publicity has done
wonders to advance education in New Mex
leo. Teachers and superintendent are the
most valuable contributors to New Mexico
papers. More efficient cooperation between
.pedagogue and pen-pusher VIII be of i'm
mense mutual advantage. We make the sug-
gestion to New Mexico educators for what
it is worth; with no intention whatever of
rejecting upon their ability or 1iteracy, and
admitting freely that most of them know a
lot more in a minute than we do in a week.
"There is a cistern in Tucumcari," a
pedagogical contributor may write. ut
is twelve feet deep, it belongs to John
Jones, he has a Baby. The doctors
hope the child will live, it having fallen
into the Cistern. The child is five years
old and his name is Jimmy. It was I'M
conscious for an hour after being pulled
out. The teachers association in its
resolutions expressed their sympathy
with Mr.. Jones; Mr.. Jones is a member
of the teachers association"
The idea being to write it this way:
Jimmy, the ~five-year-old son of John
Jones, OF Tucumcari. may die as the
result of falling into a twelve-foot els
tern, the child having been unconscious
for In hour after being pulled out. Mr..
Jones, who is a member of the teachers
association, was rendered the sympathy
of that body in its resolutions"
This may be an exaggerated instance
The briefer form may not be literature, but
it tells a story quickly, and after you form
the habit It is the easiest and simplest way.