Save the date! The University of Chicago Summer Institute for Educators (SIE) will be held Monday, June 25 and Tuesday, 26, 2018 (9:00 AM to 4:00 PM each day) at the University of Chicago campus in Hyde Park.  SIE 2018 is entitled "Think Like a Journalist: Connecting the World to Your Classroom with Global News".

This two-day professional development workshop brings together award-winning journalists supported by the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting and digital educational resources created by Pulitzer Center and UChicago to address the assessment of news sources, integration of global news into diverse curricula, and application of journalism skills in the classroom to teach critical thinking, creativity and communication. The program will include a combination of presentations and hands-on activities. Participants will leave with the tools to incorporate new content into their classes, as well as connections to journalists working on these issues.

Some examples of world areas and topics to be explored this summer include: youth activism and political conflict in Iran; migration and left-behind children in rural China; economic and political conflicts in Venezuela; economic and global health issues in Russia, as well as the Rohingya crisis in Myanmar and Bangladesh.

Intended for elementary through community college educators (K–14), the Summer Institute for Educators is open to all interested parties. Attendees can earn up to 12 CPDUs by completing the Institute.

In providing this professional development opportunity for local educators, we hope Institute participants will gain tools to:

  • Investigate the process of reporting global news—How do journalists navigate bias when reporting? How do we connect students to sources they can trust and that engage them?

  • Explore methods for integrating global journalism into their current curricula by connecting global news to students’ lived experiences

  • Reflect on how journalism skills can support literacy, writing, discussion and research skills and lead students in applying journalism skills to research topics that interest them  

We invite educators to consider the following guiding questions before, during, and after the Institute:

  • How interested are my students in global issues?

  • Why is it important for students to investigate global issues?

  • What are the barriers to connecting students with global issues, and how do we overcome those barriers?

  • How are my students accessing the news?

  • How can my students positively contribute to the global media landscape as both consumers and producers of online content?

Non-refundable registration fee includes light breakfast and lunch both days, and instructional materials.

The 2018 Summer Institute for Educators is co-sponsored by the University of Chicago Center for East Asian Studies, Center for East European and Russian/Eurasian Studies, Center for Latin American Studies, and Center for Middle Eastern Studies, and it is presented in partnership with the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting. It is made possible through generous support from the Title VI National Resource Center grants from the US Department of Education.


For more about previous workshops with the Pulitzer Center, please see this 2016 blog (https://pulitzercenter.org/blog/chicagoland-educators-build-lessons-local-connections-global-issues) and this 2017 video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcvvDCSkPg0&feature=youtu.be).


For additional information regarding professional development opportunities for educators and online resources, please visit:

Public Engagement - K-16 Educators and Community 
Educator Outreach: Workshops & Online Resources

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