I’ve heard it for quite a while now; journalism is a “dying” profession. The thing is, I haven’t seen it, at least not here. I’ve been a journalism teacher for more than 30 years, all of them here at this school, and while I have definitely seen a shift in the way we do things, I can’t say we’re dying. Not even close. But to see why, you have to look at the bigger picture.

See, high school is about a lot of “stuff.” It’s about taking math classes and struggling through SATs and attending pep rallies and navigating relationships. It’s about filling out college apps and thinking about your future career and learning how to drive and figuring out how to take the perfect selfie.

But above all else, high school is about learning, not just about subjects, but learning about life. How to navigate complicated situations. How to find balance. How to juggle several tasks at once. How to work as a team. How to find good credible information. How to develop networks. How to be “professional.” 

As a proud teacher in the communications department, an elective area, I think recently we’ve lost sight of why students take our courses in the first place. Lately we’ve been focusing on the “hard” skills we teach — job-specific skills, some might say. But while those skills are not necessarily less important, they are at least equally important to the “soft” skills (what many call “transferable” skills) I just listed. I need only look at the small handful of students I’ve taught who chose to pursue journalism in college and beyond (and who do extremely well, I might add), and compare that to the vast majority of my students who do not. For those students, classes like mine are not, and never will be, about pathways and “job-readiness.”

It’s clearly about something else.

I learned a long time ago that I’m not in the business of producing professional journalists, just as art teachers aren’t in the business of producing professional artists or performing arts teachers aren’t in the business of producing professional singers or dancers. Rather, I’m in the business of teaching students how to be solid, productive and responsible members of society. I just happen to use the language of journalism to reach that goal. That’s what students want, and that’s what they get in our department.

I wrote this column at the request of my Perspectives section editors. They decided to try something new this year and introduce guest columns, something we’ve never really done. And I encouraged it. Frankly, it’s been a great addition to what we offer for our readers. I try to do that with my other students, too. When they ask if they can try something new, I don’t say no; I say, “Show me.” And then they go back and do some Google searching and watch YouTube tutorials or look at scads of professional examples, and they figure it out. Along the way, they learn something. Not “journalism” per se; they already know how to do that. No, they learn how to navigate tough situations. They learn where to turn when they don’t have all the answers. They sometimes learn how to deal with disappointment when things don’t turn out the way they wanted, and then they learn to try a new way.

That sounds a lot like life to me.

So why join the communications department? Because what we do here is special, it’s unique. Covering the students of Carmel High School is a privilege and an adventure unlike any other you might have. Being part of a journalism staff — whether it’s CHTV, Pinnacle yearbook, WHJE or HiLite News — is like being part of a family. For many of our students, this area is their “home base.” They love it here. They feel safe to take risks here. They feel challenged here, and, subsequently, they feel rewarded here.

We’re not dying. On the contrary, we’re alive and well and we want you to be a part of what we’re doing here. And if you join us along the way, who knows? You might learn a thing or two.

Jim Streisel works as the adviser for the HiLite and the Curriculum Specialist for the Journalism Education Association. The views in this column do not necessarily reflect the views of the HiLite staff. Reach Streisel at [email protected].

If you would like to contribute to the HiLite’s guest essay series, email your pitch to [email protected] or [email protected].