Swiss student wins contest with video on fight against drugs

Swiss student wins contest with video on fight against drugs

Kai Lengwiler of Realgymnasium Rämibühl Zürich examined Switzerland’s fight against drugs, winning News Decoder’s 11th Storytelling Contest. Winners of the 11th News Decoder Storytelling Contest A video report by a high school student in Zurich examining...

War in Ukraine stirs empathy & angst in neighboring Romania

War in Ukraine stirs empathy & angst in neighboring Romania

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has sent millions of refugees into neighboring nations. I live in Romania, where the war has stirred compassion and fear. A Ukrainian refugee on a bus at the Romanian-Ukrainian border in Siret, Romania, 8 March 2022 (AP Photo/Andreea...

War in Europe has awakened an entire generation in the West to the horrible realities of armed conflict. Octavian-Anton Ghisa lives in Romania, which borders Ukraine, and so he naturally takes a keen interest in the hundreds of thousands of refugees who have poured over the border since Russia invaded Ukraine. Ghisa, a student at Transylvania College, combines that interest with a knack for listening to others and produces a piece that captures a powerful mix of emotions: “fear, stress, compassion, panic and even ambivalence.” Listening carefully is a skill that does not come naturally to many young people but which underpins any solid reporting.

Exercise: Ask each student to interview a parent about a difficult moment in their youth and to write a short article based on quotes from the interview.

Top educators hear News Decoder students at global meeting

Top educators hear News Decoder students at global meeting

Three students from News Decoder partner schools offered their thoughts on the future of international schools at a recent meeting of top educators. When one of the world’s prominent authorities on international schools wanted to hear students’ views on...

Diversity, inclusion and equity in education are top of mind for young people today. But how often are their voices heard at the top? Three News Decoder Student Ambassadors recently had the opportunity to speak directly to senior educators attending ISC Research’s virtual “Edruptors Conference.” Varlee Fofana of the African Leadership Academy in South Africa, Ioan Pristavu of Transylvania College in Romania and Giavanna Bravo of Greens Farms Academy in the United States emphasized the importance of a global-minded curriculum, diversifying admissions processes and encouraging equal participation among students.

Exercise: Ask students to identify how their school supports diversity, equity and inclusion, and where it could improve.

Inspired by News Decoder, students in Romania start magazine

Inspired by News Decoder, students in Romania start magazine

They’ve worked with News Decoder for a year. Now students at a school in Romania have launched a magazine — a first in their city. The cover of the second edition of “Transylvania Insights” Inspired by their work with News Decoder, students at...

Ioan Pristavu and Octavian-Anton Ghisa, students at Transylvania College in Romania, launched a school magazine that offers a platform for fellow students to examine meaty issues ranging from the impact of COVID-19 on stock markets to racism in the UK’s royal family. Their initiative illustrates the impact that News Decoder seeks to have on students at our partner schools, who work with our experienced correspondents on the world’s most pressing issues.

Exercise: Ask your students to list issues they would want to explore in a school magazine and how they would report on them.

School PartnersTransylvania College