91Èȱ¬ School Report follows the torch relay
Post categories: 91Èȱ¬ News
| 10:30 UK time, Thursday, 26 July 2012
"Legacy" is a word that you can't escape at the moment - and when it comes to finding out what young people think about the Olympics and Paralympics, 91Èȱ¬ News School Report has been giving pupils the chance to report on everything to do with the 2012 Games.
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With the torch relay coming to a close, School Report's unique news deployment - involving a 90,000-strong team of reporters - continues to tell the story of 2012 from the perspective of young people.
For the past five years, School Report has helped 11-16-year-olds report their own news. But with 2012 being such a special year, we decided to try something new. I wrote to every secondary head teacher in the UK, inviting their schools to join the 91Èȱ¬'s 2012 reporting team. More than 1,000 head teachers signed up, committing about 90,000 pupils to the cause.
Since our News Day in March - featuring everyone from the prime minister to Elbow - schools have continued to file reports from all the main events of the summer, including the Diamond Jubilee and Euro 2012 and all 70 days of the torch relay. As Lord Coe put it: "School reporters have followed us every step of the way."
Here are some of my personal highlights - and of course there's much more on the 91Èȱ¬ School Report site.
Students at William Brookes School in Much Wenlock had a special reason to be excited when the torch came to their school. Their town is the place which inspired the modern Olympics thanks to a certain Dr William Penny Brookes. When the flame arrived, school reporters Tara and Zach brought the experience to life, recording their own commentary on an iPhone.
On World Sports Day in June, school reporters were in Sheffield as Lord Coe returned to his old school. It was the second interview he'd given to students from Handsworth Grange Community Sports College. On our Big School Trip to the Olympic Park in March, he gave them the exclusive that he was running with the torch in his hometown.
Harry from Charlton School has been one of our star reporters this year, covering the 2012 story all year. In March he was at the Olympic Park grilling Lord Coe about the legacy of the Games for children with disabilities and when the flame came near his school, he and fellow reporter Charlie went out to cover the event.
Students from The Bridge Academy in Hackney caused a stir with their reporting, with 91Èȱ¬ Sport's James Pearce tweeting: "These kids have given you an exclusive..." - the very first pictures of the 91Èȱ¬'s Olympic studio.
Schools have broken up for the summer now but some school reporters will be carrying on during the Games. Look out for their reports on the 91Èȱ¬ School Report site and on 91Èȱ¬ World, Radio 5 live, News Channel and Newsround.
Helen Shreeve is editor of 91Èȱ¬ News School Report.
Comment number 1.
At 26th Jul 2012, This is a colleague announcement wrote:Well, this really does take me back to my school days.
It reads much like the essays we were asked to write in early September.
"What I Did During The Summer Holidays".
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Comment number 2.
At 26th Jul 2012, BluesBerry wrote:Very nice. I am so pleased that these interested students will be given actual experience in the field; it will increase enthusiasm for those whose calling this may be, and decease enthusiasm for those who can rule out this sort of position as either a job or life career. Very nice.
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Comment number 3.
At 26th Jul 2012, JunkkMale wrote:'. what young people think ..giving .. the chance to report..
One presumes 'the chance' runs through the 91Èȱ¬ pre-pro filter going in & then passes via the 91Èȱ¬ edit suite on the way out?
It's just mine have been asking me why some stuff they see, on Horrible Histories and the like, doesn't seem quite the same as what they have been taught elsewhere.
Wrong kind of kids on the line?
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Comment number 4.
At 26th Jul 2012, paulmerhaba wrote:Schools are closed.
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Comment number 5.
At 26th Jul 2012, Sizwe M wrote:I wish SABC in South Africa would take up such initiatives and engage with schools. Given the current where a province-load of kids don't have textbooks 6 months into the academic year, I doubt this would ever be a priority. Perhaps 91Èȱ¬ can lend Lerato Mbele on secondment to show how it could be done!
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Comment number 6.
At 27th Jul 2012, Michelle Summers wrote:@Sizwe M - I think the 91Èȱ¬ has always done an excellent job in terms of engaging learners. The problem in South Africa is far more severe than anything their local broadcaster can fix. What needs to happen there is government putting their money and resources to back their own education strategy which clearly is not the case.
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Comment number 7.
At 27th Jul 2012, This is a colleague announcement wrote:When I was at school, doing 10 "O" levels, and then rigorous "A" levels, the timetable really was pretty full.
I found limited out of school time to pursue even my own interests, with the homework.
It would seem things are easier now, though...
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Comment number 8.
At 27th Jul 2012, zrbappy wrote:This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.
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Comment number 9.
At 27th Jul 2012, Craig Smith wrote:Helen, I read an interesting article on covering the Olympics, FIFA World Cups and the like - it doesn't paint a very promising picture in terms of long term benefits. Would be curious to see if 91Èȱ¬ News School Report indicates more than a fleeting boost in national pride as the London 2012 legacy.
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Comment number 10.
At 27th Jul 2012, Emma Richards wrote:@#9 Craig Smith, I believe that a boost in national pride is part of the London 2012 legacy - lord knows we need it right now! The article you mention did indicate some positive benefits in past Olympic cities by the way, e.g. in Barcelona - am optimistic that enough thought has been given in terms of longer term benefits for London too (fingers crossed!)
Emma
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Comment number 11.
At 27th Jul 2012, Mzwelindiwe wrote:I think the 91Èȱ¬ News School Report is an excellent initiative in terms of engaging with students - not quite sure how you would class it as part of the "legacy" though - unless you mean the memories these school kids will have of having seen the torch for a few minutes. I think legacy is necessarily something more impactful and longer term- like urban regeneration projects related to the Olympics
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Comment number 12.
At 27th Jul 2012, Megan wrote:My daughter plays in her school samba band and they were delighted to be asked to play for the Torch as it came through Cheshire...
... my Communications Technology class were a bit surprised when instead of talking signal theory and TCP/IP I had the live feed from the 91Èȱ¬ up on the big screen...
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Comment number 13.
At 27th Jul 2012, Anna Sempe wrote:@Megan - lol, lucky class. I am sure your daughter will treasure these memories - anybody who says that those events aren't part of the Olympics legacy are talking out of their hats!
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Comment number 14.
At 28th Jul 2012, Michelle Summers wrote:What an amazing end to the torch relay this evening - the opening ceremony was nothing short of spectacular... certainly the things legacies are made of!
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Comment number 15.
At 28th Jul 2012, alan loughlin wrote:could you please create a filter on the webpage to eliminate all things olympic, I am sure I am not the only one to be fed up with it all already, very nice if you are interested, but to have it shovelled down your throat 23 hours a day is all a bit off-putting, it is a bit like religion, the more they try to force feed us with it, the more we want to eliminate it from our life.
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Comment number 16.
At 29th Jul 2012, This is a colleague announcement wrote:15. At 13:24 28th Jul 2012, alan loughlin
===
I go running myself, I hope Mo Farah takes gold, but I agree with you 100%.
In fact I'd go further: could we have a comments page that deals only with matters that could reasonably have a material bearing on everyone's physical, financial or judicial standing, please? (Politics, law, environment etc.).
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