So what do teachers do with newspapers? One of the problems with newspapers is that they are often used as an up-to-date course book activity. The teacher applies the same pedagogical principles and exercises that are in the course book. Two major problems tend to emerge from this approach:
• It can be extremely time-consuming for teachers
• It is not necessarily interesting for learners
If you are going to use a newspaper, the task itself should be authentic wherever possible, not merely the material. One aim of reading newspapers should be to encourage their reading outside the classroom as well. If you Tiflis a text too much, you run the risk of killing the enjoyment from it.
We have put together a list of 6 Dos and 6 Don’ts that we adhere to when using newspapers in class. Read them and decide for yourself whether you agree or not. Then perhaps you can try some of the ideas we include that follow.