Wiki Journalism

Hello!

Thanks for coming back to my little blog on Journalism and Journalism Studies. As many of you already know, I've started a distance education program in Journalism about a year ago. I've stretched it out quite a bit - because I could have been much faster than that. But I took long breaks over the summer and didn't study every single day. Work has been holding up things, too. So here I am, almost done!

My last exam went great, too. I've got a B+! I'm happy about it. Wiki Journalism is almost done as well. I still have to read a few more pages. After that, I think I will take a week off and then start with the last few modules for this program! I can't believe it's almost over at this point.

So Wiki Journalism is something to look into! I've researched a bit about this topic aside from reading the study book (which is very thorough and well written) because I wanted to know what other authors have to say about it. It's good to know as many journalistic genres as possible! That's why I chose my next modules to be journalistic genres as well. I just want to try out as many as possible in order to apply the ones I like the most in my journalistic journey.

By the way, I'm applying for internships right now! Maybe I'll have good news by next week.

Come back!
Katy

New module: Wiki Journalism

Hello friends and friends of Journalism,

It's been quite a successful week for me! I've finished the solutions journalism text book in only a week and took the exam yesterday. Now I'm awaiting the grade (I think it went really well, though). Right now, everything is just going so well. I'm going through my studies with a breeze, mainly because I get to choose what I want to study next and I chose only topics that I really like. That's the great thing about this study course. I wouldn't want to trade it with a different course somewhere else.

So Wiki Journalism. I haven't looked into it yet but it sounds pretty... modern. Not only is it a super state-of-the-art journalism topic, it is also something that's quite interesting to me. Mainly because I am participating in wikipedia entries and other user generated contents quite a bit  - wherever I can. Therefore I know how crucial it is to be very careful what sources to use for journalistic articles. Anyway, this is going to be my next topic in my next entry. I hope you'll come back!

Katy

Summer is almost over - new module!

Hello dear Journalism friends,

Thanks for coming back!

The Preventive Journalism Exam was a breeze. As I expected, I didn't have to study too hard and long. All I did this time was reading the study book twice before I took the exam (on the same day). Who knew I had such a great memory! ;) It already got graded - yes, I did really well again. So happy about it. This was a great topic.

Summer is almost over... I feel like I need a break from work (again). But there is so much motivation around me, I guess I just keep on going. I've decided to take three more exams before the end of October to get my study schedule all straightened up. I'm in pretty good shape!

The next study topic will be "Solutions Journalism" - makes a lot of sense to take this topic after Preventive Journalism. Because I think it is quite similar to the latter one.

So what is solutions journalism all about? It is an inspiration for journalists to report on possible solutions to serious problems rather than - as it's done in "conventional" journalism - report on the problems only. It's basically a fundamental reorientation of what journalism is. So I thought, this might be a good choice for me!

Come back next week for more!
Katy

Preventive Journalism

Welcome back! 

Every once in a while I realize how fortunate I am. Some opportunities only come once in a lifetime. Taking this journalism class is one of them. 

Today has been a good day for me. I got up early and started studying the last few pages of the current module in Preventive Journalism. This journalism genre is - as I know now - a highly important approach in today's journalism. Why? "It is journalism that 'aims' to identify problematic issues, themes or people before they have a chance to emerge [...]". Enough said. I think this is exactly what ALL journalists need to focus on more an more. Of course, journalism is as much about "reporting" what HAS happened. But it should also be more about what COULD potentially happen or what is ABOUT to happen. After all, without kidding, this could even save lives sometimes.

What do you think? Any opinion?

This weekend I will most likely take the exam. I'm so glad I took this class/module. It's a good one.

Come back next week!

Katy

On to the next!

Dear Journalism friends,

Well, the exam for a success! I've got an A+. So happy the way it turned out.

Now I need to think about what comes next. I have the choice between two topics I guess: Preventive Journalism and/or Open Source Journalism. Both modules are rather short so I don't have to stress about them so much. I think I will start with Preventive Journalism. But not until the weekend. :)

So I've received some messages from some bloggers about this program I'm in. I would like to share this information with all of you who read my blog. But thank you to those who asked. I will happily answer these questions.

I've decided to take an online course in Journalism because of lack of time. I'm working full time and don't have time for classrooms. At the same time, I would like to improve my living situation and study journalism in the hopes of becoming the next Christiane Amanpour some day. And make more money! So this course gives me the opportunity to study after work or on weekends in order to get a certificate which qualifies me to apply for jobs within the journalistic field. I was so happy when I discovered this newly established school with headquarters in Berlin, Germany. We communicated through the cell phone app "Whatsapp" which is big in Europe. That was my first approach. It was cheaper than a long distance call (as the app is for free) and quicker than sending emails forth and back. So the staff is very modern and very straight forward with everything I needed in order to apply. Very helpful overall.

If you need some more "advice" on how to get in or what you need for this course, I'll happy provide you with this information, too. Just so you know, there is a lot of distance education programs (even in journalism) out there. I chose OSJ because they seemed very modern and very easy to deal with. Also, I like the prices a lot more than what other places offer. Those where the main factors for me that counted.

Decisions like that aren't easy! But once I made that decision, I didn't regret it even for just a second.

Well, that's all for today. Back to work (study)!

Come back next week,
Katy

Narrative Journalism - New Module!

Hello again, dear friends!

Thanks for coming back!

I've started a new module this past weekend. With great pleasure! The topic is "Narrative Journalism" and is a somewhat shorter module with only 8 pages! But very informative ones. I'm actually almost through the module as it is quite short.

Why did I chose this module? Well, narrative journalism uses literary techniques for telling a story. As I call myself a huge fan of literature, I thought this is just a great combination - literature and journalism. Other names for narrative journalism are literary journalism - and that's what I've found in researching something on journalism a while ago. I found this combination of literature and journalism and it gave me an interesting perspective in how I would like to tell a story as a journalist in the future. Of course, if I stay in the realm of fashion journalism or environmental journalism, this is a perfect technique for me!

As I'm almost done with this module, I think I'm good to go for the next module sometime next week. There is still a little exam that I need to take. But that should be rather easy. I've spoken to a tutor last Monday and she gave me great confidence in taking the exam early this time (without preparing like a maniac).

Thanks for reading my blog! Please send me messages if you have questions about journalism, distance education and/or this particular school I study at, Open School of Journalism. I will be happy to answer them all!

Katy

Some really nice people at OSJ

Dear blogger friends,

Thank you for your encouraging words! That really helped and I appreciated them!

So I took the exam yesterday and now waiting for the result. It was not an easy task. I think I prepared as much as I could. It was tough to fit it all in with my current work schedule.

I feel like I need a little bit of rest for a few days until I can take on the next module.

In the meantime, I decided to talk my friend into studying journalism at OSJ as well. :) Since this is a unique study program and with my current mostly positive experience, I think she's willing to join me. I've contacted the office and had a really nice voice on the other side of the line. She might be able to get a scholarship as her finances are not that great and she is highly qualified to study at OSJ. So that's such a nice thing of them to do for her! That made me really happy and reassured me that I am at a good place. :)

Well, I think I will start with a new module this weekend, probably Sunday. So in my next entry I will talk about that.

Stay tuned!
Katy