Newspapers Still Relevant in 21st Century Classrooms

[Frank W. Baker]

Eighth-grade students in South Allegheny, Pa., regularly read local newspapers in class as part of the Newspapers-in-Education (NIE) program. Among other things, the papers are used to analyze different types of writing, said middle-school reading teacher Janel Biagiarelli. "They've read so many stories, but they're just getting into informational text," Biagiarelli said. "It's a change -- getting away from stories into real-life stuff. So much of education now is focused on real-life application."