In his latest column [Opportunity Knocks Twice] in WORLD Magazine, Marvin Olasky concludes his optimistic discourse on the future of journalism with the following statement:
So now is a great time for Christians to support young Christian journalists. Build programs that educate them in biblical understanding and train them to write, do video, and produce terrific websites. Give the kids enough money to eat peanut butter and fumigate the roaches. Right now we have the opportunity to change the path of journalism for the next 150 years.
I love this outlook! Media has such an undeniable influence in our society, and with modern globalization and universal access to various mediums of communication, almost anyone has a platform to be a journalist in some capacity. I echo Marvin Olasky’s sentiment and would add that the four areas he highlights are key components that every homeschooling parent should incorporate into the education of their children:
1. Biblical Training/Worldview
2. Excellent Writing Skills
3. Ability to Produce Videos (and I would include in this an understanding of how to contrive an appropriate plot, visualize and script it, capture the desired shots, and make it accessible via the Internet)
4. Website Navigation and Construction
Not only are these areas which can be harnessed by people of all ages to make a difference in the world, they also represent marketable skills that will be useful in any vocational field and are essential knowledge for entrepreneurs who aim to build their own businesses.
Although I’ve never considered it this succinctly, I affirm that these four areas (with the one distinction being that for #3 I would include video production instead as a sub-category in a larger study of verbal communication skills) are the ones that have afforded me the most opportunities and equipped me to serve and influence the people around me. In fact, come to think of it, these four areas are ones that I discuss more fully in my book, Pajama School – stories from the life of a homeschool graduate. But I’m quite certain neither Mom and Dad nor I thought in such concrete terms in our early years of homeschooling! How glad I am, though, that homeschooling provided me with the flexibility to make these four areas of study an integral part of my education.
EXTRA NOTE: If you’re interested in receiving a free PDF of Marvin Olasky’s book, “Central Ideas in the Development of American Journalism” send them an e-mail requesting it.