The show must go on, and students at Bush Middle School are adapting on the fly to record and produce daily segments of ‘Bush News’ from home. While they may not be in the classroom, it’s business as usual for Steven Wickwar’s Audio/Visual Technology class. Distance learning created a new challenge for the Bush News crew, but they’ve settled into a system that works and keeps students informed on the latest campus news.
Wickwar meets with his students daily over Zoom and Google Chat to discuss what will be included in each day’s announcements and who can record from home.
“There was really never a question as to whether we would continue broadcasting through distance learning, we just had to figure out the how,” said Wickwar. “The most challenging part has been communicating the script changes and added content via chat rooms and video conferences. The news crew really does the heavy lifting.”
‘Bush News’ has seen an increase in viewership because of the switch to distance learning. Now the entire Bush campus can stay up-do-date from the comfort of their own homes.
“Our principal, Stuart Guthrie, believes that normalcy is an important part of the online learning experience,” said Wickwar. “We have simply embraced that belief and bring our news to the students each day in an attempt to make this very challenging situation move a little more smoothly.”
The ‘Bush News’ crew includes Beatrice Bucheli, Emily Clarkson, Wes Opersteny, Zoe Pardo, Reagan Reeder and Ashley Woodburne.
Click here to visit the Bush News YouTube channel.
