The Citizen Journalism Using Mobile Phones Project awarded 45 learners certificates for completing workshops aimed at encouraging the youth to voice their opinions through SMS technology.
The Citizen Journalism Using Mobile Phones Project awarded 45 learners certificates for completing workshops aimed at encouraging the youth to voice their opinions through SMS technology.
The Citizen Journalism Using Mobile Phones Project held an awards ceremony addressing the students from Nathaniel Nyaluza High, Nombulelo High and Mary Waters High. Sipho January the director of the project and Prof Guy Berger head of the School of Journalism and Media Studies at Rhodes University, opened the ceremony.
The organisers of the project said, “to be a citizen journalist is to be a citizen concerned about your rights and the rights of other people.”
Assisted by journalism students from Rhodes, Grade 11 learners produced works that were published in Grocott’s Mail, giving them an opportunity to contribute to their community. Sponsored by the Open Society Foundation and the Knight Foundation the project intends to extend its boundaries by using the latest technologies such as Mxit, which many young learners have taken up as a main form of communication.
The pupils said “we learned a lot about poetry, SMSing and short stories, giving our opinions.”
They had developed an amicable relationship with their mentors cheering as they entered the room. The Grade 11 students will now move on to the second phase of the programme and encourage other pupils to enter into this program as it was very beneficial for them.
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