While the news industry has undoubtedly gone through seismic changes over the past decade or so, one thing has remained the same: there continues to be a rise in young journalists eager to push their way through the challenging and pressuring industry.
Despite the inevitable transition into the digital age and competitiveness of jobs worldwide, aspiring journalists and their passion for writing, reporting, photography, etc never ceases to amaze me, and to be honest, it’s inspiring. It reassures me that while the print numbers continue to decline, journalism and media will continue to be one of the most powerful masterminds of the world.
With regards to Phuket, there are a number of international schools scattered across all the island, each with their own English departments and young rising writers. I recently paid a visit to the British International School, Phuket, where I got to see first-hand a magazine in the making. The Scribble is a monthly magazine that has been put together by the primary students, along with Ms Colson. All of the articles were written by students from Yr 3, 4 and 5, and edited by Ms Colson, but only in terms of punctuation etc, no content was changed. So it’s a pretty special genuine piece of work.
The magazine features various sections, including book reviews, food recipes, pets, fiction stories, jokes, sports, films, and even a section called “Meet your teachers”, an interesting section focusing on a different teacher each issue, giving the readers an engaging insight into their personal life.
Ms Colson said, “I thought it would be quite nice to start a student magazine. It allows the children to write something else outside the classroom.
“The children can choose what subjects they want to write. They sometimes get inspiration from the stuff they’re working on, or anything that may be going on at school.
“For example, if a child had a pet at home, they would probably do a feature on the animal and how they are as a pet.”
Katelyn from Yr 5, said that one of the positives about the magazine, was having the option to try writing about different subjects, within reason. “If you don’t like what you’re doing, then change it and write something different.”
Bento from Yr 3 said that he enjoyed reading the magazine after publication, to see what everyone had done as well. Many of the children agreed that the magazine was a useful way of finding out what events and news was going on around the school.
The magazine is emailed to all of the parents each month, printed in school, as well as being featured on the school’s blog and Facebook.
Indeed the children are of a young age and will without doubt reconsider their career options at a later stage, over and over again. However, putting age aside, it was an enlightening experience seeing the children so passionate about the magazine. They had many bright ideas and were eager to write the next sections of future issues. Having the determination and passion for writing is a key attribute for any inspiring journo, whether that may be print, online, television or radio.
They’re not the only aspiring writers on the island however, some of the children at Gecko Community School recently had an open learning week at their school. The children had the opportunity to learn about different subjects, and ultimately pick their favourite one. Three children that showed an interest in journalism were Ashley, 11, Jackson, 10, and Jack, 10.
The children were keen to find out tips on how to put an article together, where to research and how feature and news stories differed.
Ashley said she had an interest in writing ever since she was little. She hopes to develop her writing and plans to start writing her own blog; a smart idea to start early especially for those serious writers out there.
Overall, it was evident how much children these days still love to write. Even with the rise in technological gadgets, there continues to be an inspiring number of people who are interested in a career in journalism. It’s a field that is wide open, with many avenues and opportunities for careers in print journalism, broadcasting, online journalism, industry and corporate communications and beyond. It’s astonishing the quantity and quality of the material being produced today, in some of the most unlikely places. This could probably be the greatest era for journalism that the world has ever seen.
To learn more about The Scribble, contact Cindy Colson: ccolson@bisphuket.ac.th. For more information about studying at British International School, Phuket (BISP), please visit http://www.bisphuket.ac.th.