This module is designed to work alongside Journalism in Practice 1 in order to develop students' news writing and note taking skills. They will learn about the practical and commercial restraints of news production and the pressures placed on the journalist in terms of accuracy, clarity and writing to deadline.
They will also learn the art of Teeline Shorthand, and develop their shorthand techniques and speed of note taking towards NCTJ standard speeds and accuracy. By the end of the module students should be able to originate and write a hard news story and a personal profile. They will also be able to produce content under pressure in timed conditions, replicating industry practice. The module will also help prepare students for the NCTJ's Reporting qualification. Students should also be able to pass NCTJ or equivalent 100 words per minute shorthand examination.

Portfolio of content - to include timed exercises, news stories produced as coursework, and one profile feature (50% weighting, Learning Outcomes 1-4)

Shorthand tests - to include regular assessments at different speeds.
Students will pass this element by achieving a minimum of 60wpm in semester 1 and 80 wpm in semester 2 [internal] or NCTJ examination within the required error allowance. Students will have set assessment points during the teaching period in which to achieve this.
Students should aim for the 100wpm NCTJ certificate
(50% weighting, Learning Outcomes 5-7)

Key Information Set:
Assessment hours
40% coursework
60% practical exam

There will be weekly 2-hour workshops for 24 weeks in which the focus will be purely on writing, and there will be five 1-hour shorthand seminars every week in which students learn the theory of Teeline, develop outlines and blends, and hone speed and accuracy towards 100wpm NCTJ standard.
In writing, students will focus on the essentials of story structure, intros, using quotes effectively, use of language, and story content. They will learn the differences and similarities in writing for online and print and develop their skills in writing for different audiences. Students will work together to construct stories from content researched and gathered, to enhance their knowledge of the story production process from start to finish. They will also learn the basics of online writing such as SEO headlines, picture captions, tags, links etc. They may be required to work with material gathered as part of Journalism in Practice 1. They will produce assessed coursework to illustrate their ability to produce content from start to finish,
as well as sit timed exercises to demonstrate their ability to write copy from content provided to a required standard and within deadline.
Contact hours are high for the shorthand element of the module due to the nature of the subject. Shorthand requires regular, short, intense workshops for students to learn the theory and to apply this when learning outlines and blends and developing speed and transcription.

Key Information Set:
Learning &Teaching hours
45% scheduled learning and teaching
55% guided independent study

Evans H. (2000) Essential English for Journalists, Pimlico.
Fleming C. et al (2006) An Introduction to Journalism, Sage.
Frost C. (2002) Reporting for Journalists, Routledge.
Harcup T. (2004) Journalism Principles and Practice, Sage.
Harcup T. (2007) The Ethical Journalist, London, Sage.
Hennessy B. (2006) Writing Feature Articles (4th edition), Focal Press.
Hicks W. (1999) Writing for Journalists, London, Routledge.
Hicks W. (1998) English for Journalists, London, Routledge.
Hudson G. and Rowlands S. (2007) The Broadcast Journalism Handbook, London, Pearson.
Keeble R. (2001) (3rd edition) The Newspapers Handbook, Routledge.
McKane A. (2007) Newswriting, London, Sage.
Pape S. and Featherstone S. (2005) Newspaper Journalism: A Practical Introduction, Sage.
Phillips A. (2007) Good Writing for Journalists, London, Sage
Rudin R. and Ibbotson T. (2002), An Introduction to Journalism, Focal Press
Sissons H. (2007) Practical Journalism: How to Write News, London, Sage.
Thompson R. (2005) Writing for Broadcast Journalists, Routledge.

Newsroom facilities
Media Laboratory
Staffs Live
National and regional newspapers and magazines
Internet www.news.bbc.co.uk/news
www.holdthefrontpage.co.uk
www.ofcom.org.uk
www.nctj.com
www.newspapersoc.org.uk
www.guardian.co.uk/media
The Blackboard virtual learning environment will be available (where relevant) to support this module. Details will be supplied in the module handbook