For the second year, a local high school teacher is part of a national campaign to help gear lesson plans for the everchanging and advancing digital age.
Lauren Sanders, an English and Advanced Placement Capstone teacher has again been named to the Retro Report’s Class of Teacher Advisors. This year she is a member of the 25-person Council of Educators, which works collectively to develop interactive lesson plans, activities and other resources for students.
“By working hand-in-hand with our Advisors, we’re able to develop engaging and accessible resources that help students understand today’s issues through the lens of the past,” said Retro Report Director of Education David Olson.
One of the focuses of Sanders’ work with Retro Report team, she said, is to develop media literacy for students and resources of research for her English classes.
“These days, primary sources are online,” Sanders said. “Information is coming at (students) constantly. (The research) is a skill not explicitly taught, so we have to find ways to make students ask, ‘Is this information biased?’ or, ‘Is it factual?’” Council members will attend a summit in New York City this summer to collectively work to add to the organization’s library of free classroom resources that link journalism with history, civics and media literacy education available to teachers across the country.
“My goal is to bring my expertise, and help identify modern-day lesson plans that are lacking,” said Sanders, who has taught for the eight years since graduating from Florida State. “I love working with (Retro Report). We’re helping arm teachers with another tool. I see it as bridging the gap for teachers who may be getting burned out.
To learn more about Retro Report’s work, visit https://retroreport.org/.
