Embedding for Empathy: Helping Journalism Students Become Better Reporters | Journalism 446/846: Mosaic—A Peer Review of Teaching Project Inquiry Portfolio

Abstract

As part of Nebraska Mosaic, a senior-level journalism capstone course, students are tasked with interviewing, writing and producing stories for and about refugees and immigrants in Nebraska. But students face a steep learning curve in this experiential learning class. Their knowledge about refugees and immigrants is limited, and they have little understanding of the issues refugees and immigrants face in their new country. Students also have little experience interacting with them, much less interviewing them and writing about them. Using an experiential learning assignment that mimics the journalism practice of embedding, students have an opportunity to develop empathy, gain confidence and improve their reporting, interviewing and writing skills. This inquiry portfolio explores the effectiveness of embedding students in refugee agencies in order to prepare them to report on diverse audiences.