For my last assignment in specialized reporting and my last article I will write as a journalism student I will be writing an in depth story.
This story must focus on a trend in North Carolina in the education beat.
I’ve chosen to write about the trend of North Carolina reducing public education budgets and how that trend has affected schools. I want to find out what, if anything, schools have had to cut because of these reduced budgets.
I plan to begin my article by focusing on local schools in the High Country. I would also like to talk to some schools around the state to see if the cuts have been similar across districts.
This subject has many challenges that come with it. The first, and what I predict to be the biggest, will be interpreting data. I think it will be easy to find education budgets from the last five years. But, getting all of the numbers, making since of them myself AND interpreting them for the reader will be a difficult challenge.
Another challenge I predict will be to take out the political nature of this topic. Both sides of the spectrum have their opinions on what the budget should be, where the money should be spent and what could be cut. For the recent budget, Republicans claim there is more money in the budget while Democrats typically say their is less, despite the numbers. Finding the truth in all of these opinions will be a struggle.
Last, I think it will be hard to find a ‘normal’ source. By normal, I mean a teacher, teachers assistant or principal who can give a realistic view of these budget reductions. People in central offices obviously are important to talk to because they know the numbers and facts. But, I also want to find someone who has been affected by this trend.
Overall, this story will be a lot to undertake, but it is a subject that everyone needs to read about.
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