Student Publications for Exercising Voices

Education leaders have been trumpeting the need of late to give students a greater say in their schooling, particularly those at  the secondary level.

They are acting on that goal where high schoolers have been able to exercise their voices through their school publications, particularly their print and digital newspapers and their annual yearbooks. In a few widely scattered but notable school communities, students use these opportunities to cover news about important aspects of their academic lives, the culture of their schools and their relationships with educators and each other. Some are covering their school boards’ discussions of policies and practices and printing informed commentaries on academic, social and political issues that carry meaning to students’ well-being.

But the free exercise of students’ voices through school-based publishing channels remains largely limited, more likely found in some of the 18 states that have adopted “New Voices” laws guaranteeing press rights for students. The most expressive student publications remain the exception in high schools today.