Newspaper formats: The basis for the multigenre research projects

TOM Romano, writing in his book Blending Genre, Altering Style, suggested alternative ways of sharing research material. The majority of research application formats came directly from the newspaper.

This was no surprise as people regularly rely on these formats to present information in a reader friendly manner. Romano’s new approach to research formats did not “dumb down” the research process.

In fact, it enhanced the research process by focusing on an essential question, using a greater variety of research materials, and bringing application, instead of only essay writing, to the process.

Of course, essay writing is still imbedded in most of the multigenre products that are used for application-based research.

Even though the multigenre research paper is gaining in acceptance and popularity each year, we do not want to minimise the importance of the traditional research paper.

There is a definite place for both in our curriculum.

With multigenre research, students must come up with an application format that they themselves create for use with their information.

Students must also make extensive use of technology and have a solid knowledge base in different writing formats. Multigenre writing has become one of the most productive approaches teachers can use to help students write creative, informational research reports.

This guide, presented by The Star’s Newspaper-in-Education (Star-NiE) programme, will help teachers succeed in that effort.

Today, we present another two genres teachers can incorporate into their lessons for this purpose.

Creating a multigenre hard news articleThe hard news article is the mainstay of the newspaper. It usually involves timely or breaking news that is written in an expository manner.

In the hard news article you can usually find the 5 W’s and an H, described below, quite easily.

Hard news articles should not reflect opinions of the journalist.

Characteristics/Rubric baseAn expository writing that provides the reader with breaking or timely news on content material.

• The location of the 5 W’s and an H (who, what, why, where, when and how) in the first few statements of the writing.

• Use of one of the following patterns of writing: topical, descriptive, chronological, problem and solution, cause and effect, or comparison and contrast.

• Good transitions that keep the reading fluent for the reader.

• Supportive information including examples, statistics, quotes, anecdotes, eyewitness accounts, etc.

• Location of less important information found at the end of the article because the article may need to be cut by the editor due to space limitations and because many readers won’t read that far.

• Use of a photograph or graphic to enhance the material found in the hard news article.

• Clever headline that provides insight into the topic and helps gain the reader’s interest.

• Lack of opinions or point of view in regard to the subject matter.

Curriculum linksHard news articles link to all content areas.

In every area of the curriculum, new events are taking place and need to be recorded. Textbooks do not have the flexibility to keep the reader up to date, but the reader can access the newspaper, the Internet, periodicals and other sources to find information for a hard news article.

The reader can also easily find models of hard news articles from which to base his own writing in any newspaper.

Newspaper connectionUsing the rubric, examine the hard news articles on the front cover of today’s copy of The Star newspaper.

Which elements of the rubric were used in each article? As a class, discuss the stories and decide which one you think is the best news story.

Now write a hard news story about a topic or event happening at your school or in your community.

Also try writing a hard news story book report on a book you have just read or a news story on a video or TV show you have watched. This will provide experience for using this format as part of a multigenre research report.

Next week: Creating a multigenre editorial cartoon and a multigenre horoscope.

Since 1997, Star-NiE has been making a difference in the English language classrooms nationwide, with an emphasis on aiding teaching-learning activities with the use of authentic newspaper materials. Published on Wednesdays, The Star’s NiE pullout is available only through school subscriptions of The Star.

Creating a multigenre advice column

The newspaper’s advice column takes actual personal problems and provides the reader with suggestions for improving a particular situation.

The writer usually presents the columnist with a scenario to better understand the situation. The columnist carefully weighs the options given to the writer.

Characteristics/Rubric baseFor this exercise, the problem and solution can be both written by the same person or be shared by two people.

• The person with the problem should stick to one situation.

• The writer should provide background information on the situation being discussed.

• The problem should be written narrative, first person style.

• The problem should not be too lengthy.

• The problem should link to some curricular situation.

• The columnist should refer to the reader as “you.”

• The solution might include more than one option with reasoning to go along with each suggestion.

• The solution should be logical and based on ethics and psychology.

• The solution should be possible.

• The solution should not be lengthy.

• The solution should be worded in as positive a manner as possible.

Curriculum linksProblem and solution and cause and effect are part of almost every content area curriculum.

Wherever these patterns are present, the advice column can be used. The advice column does not have to link to personal problems. They can be linked to characters in stories and history.

The advice column can discuss problems dealing with scientific experimentation, health / physical issues, artistic and humanistic issues, and issues with a mathematical base.

In fact, a student who uses the format with problems of a less personal nature has to think more critically because of the nature of the format.

Newspaper connectionUsing the rubric, examine the advice column in today’s newspaper (see Dear Thelma in StarLifestyle).

Which elements of the rubric were used in the advice columns? Using the newspaper advice columns as examples, work in pairs with one student writing up a problem that needs solution based on one of the concepts from the curriculum links above and the other student writing advice on how to deal with or solve the problem.

Then switch writing positions and try it again.