Why is it Important to Have A Media Club in Schools?
Media Club is a very important part of modern education. It gives voice to the students and provides them exposure to the media and broadcast segment. It brings students together outside of the classroom to create multimedia productions, from producing films to recording music. The best schools in Odisha have already introduced a dedicated media club for the welfare of their students. Some of the basic things that come under the umbrella of media club which mark the importance of this club in schools are given below:-
1. The media club is dedicated to showcase and highlight the achievements of the school and its students.
2. It encourages students to express their feelings and thoughts through media messages they produce. Students involved in a media club can put into practical application the skills being taught to them in the classroom.
3. It develops amongst students an understanding of the importance of communication.
4. It makes all the students and teachers aware and updated about what is happening in the school.
5. It develops skills to deconstruct media messages by making them understand the constructed nature of media.
6. It provides a platform for the students to improve their soft-skills which further impart self-confidence and stage-courage in them. The top CBSE schools in Bhubaneswar, like ODM public school, have a media club which is completely student-run. Here students take the self-initiative to host a talk with students and parents and highlight the school’s achievements.
7. For students who are interested in audio recording, reporting, directing, scriptwriting, video editing, graphic design or camera work, this club is very important to nurture their interest. It develops skills to encourage the production of creative media messages.
8. It develops among students an understanding of the effects of mass media on themselves as individuals and also upon society. This also introduces students to various career opportunities in mass media.
9. Students of any age need the freedom to express themselves in a manner that is respectful, thoughtful, and accepted. Media clubs give those outspoken individuals a voice that is done in a way that brings credibility to the club as well as to the school.
10. Everyone has a story, but not every story is told or known. In each school, there are students, teachers, and administrators with interesting stories that the student body would benefit from hearing. Media club gives the opportunity to storytellers to bring these stories out in a creative way for the welfare of students and teachers.
Conclusion:-
Media club provides students much-needed exposure in mass media and journalism. It improves their thought process, decision making and helps them to build their own opinions from an early age. ODM public school, which is one of the best residential schools in Bhubaneswar, has taken initiative to give its students experience in mass media by opening a media club comprising ODM E-Channel and ODM FM. The idea behind these two initiatives is fairly simple, it is to have two media outlets where ODM’s highlights and achievements will be broadcasted and these two initiatives will be student-run.