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Modules: 10 lessons
Cost: R2995.00
Length: Course can be completed at own pace: between 10 weeks and 5 months
Registration: Online at http://www.sawriterscollege.com

Students must complete

* 11 exercises (for assessment and feedback)
* 2 full-length features of publishable quality

Admission Requirements:

* Basic writing skills are essential
* Computer skills, e-mail and Internet access required
* No previous tertiary qualification required

Beth Cooper has been a news journalist for 12 years. Former assistant news editor on The Herald before turning freelance in 2005, she has worked as a senior correspondent, reporter and news editor and covered various beats from crime and courts, to health and education.

Now a writer and columnist for several top local and international magazines and websites, including Femina, BBC Online, True Love, Sawubona, Your Baby, Living & Loving and Natural Health, she holds a Journalism degree from Rhodes University and Honours in English from the University of South Africa.

Course Curriculum:

MODULE ONE - Introduction to Hard News Journalism

This module offers students a brief, exciting glimpse into the deadline-driven, fact-focused world of hard news journalism.

* What is hard news journalism?
* What does a news journalist do?
* Do you have a nose for news?
* How do you break into news journalism?
* Print media ownership in South Africa – the major players
* Hard and soft news – is there a difference?

Exercise: students are asked to identify three examples of a hard news report and one example of a soft news report.

MODULE TWO – Deadlines and Drama: The Newsroom

This module outlines the mechanics of a daily print or online newspaper.

* Who's Who In The Zoo - a virtual tour of a working newsroom
* The News Editor - becoming best friends with a VIP
* From Birth to Published - what happens to your story after you write it
* Learn the Lingo - the importance of understanding journalism jargon

Exercise: Quiz
MODULE THREE - How to Write a News Report

This module dives in at the deep end as students are introduced to the basic formula of a news report.

* Four W’s and an H - your essential writing toolkit
* The inverted pyramid structure
* Pulling it together – how to research and write your report

Exercise: Write your first News Report, plus hone your analytical skills in two more exercises.

MODULE FOUR – The People Behind The Story: Interviewing and Research Skills

* Interviewing skills - telephone and face-to-face interviews, compassionate journalism, how to face your fear to get the facts and how to deal with sources
* Research do's and don'ts – how to find background information, confirm facts and check for accuracy

Exercise: Practice compiling Interview Questions

MODULE FIVE – Beyond the Basics – Adding colour to your writing

This module takes students beyond the basics of a newspaper report. It has two sub-sections and also contains exercises.

* Your Story’s Support System - how to do a follow-up story, a sidebar, a colour piece and how to keep a story running over several days
* Going Soft - how to write a feature-style news report

Exercise: Students write the first few paragraphs for a follow-up report, an anecdotal lead, and four paragraphs in the Wall Street Journal style

MODULE SIX - Honing Your Skills

Many journalists simply cannot write. News editors and sub-editors waste precious time re-writing clumsy, shoddy copy. This module helps you get up to scratch with critical style and grammar rules.

* News-speak – Learn to Write Right
* He Say, She Say - Common, clumsy language mistakes and how to avoid them (like the plague)

Exercise: Grammar, language and basic subbing.

MODULE SEVEN - Media Law and Ethics

* Basic legal requirements for reporters (Court and crime reporting, defamation, public interest, revealing your sources)
* Ethics - "Never Let the Truth Get in the Way of a Good Story?" When to cross the line or stay well behind it
* Plagiarism: What it is and how to avoid it

Exercise: Ethics Analysis

MODULE EIGHT - Pulitzer Prize or Poor Attempt: Finding a great story and writing it

This module contains several sub-sections outlining how to satisfactorily complete a brief from a news editor, how to source your own story, how to make (and keep) contacts and how to specialise as a reporter (beats).

· Beats Exercise: Students source and write briefs for three viable story ideas
MODULE NINE - Flogging Your Story

This module outlines where you can sell yourself and your stories.

· Newspapers - national, provincial, regional and community – including supplements

· Online (AND, IOL, etc.)

MODULE TEN - So Now You Can Write - Now What?

This module offers students the chance to write a publishable piece of journalism running to a maximum of 750 words. They are also offered the chance to write a breaking story - much more difficult. A) The tutor will take the student through each step:

1. Assessing the newsworthiness of the story
2. News-gathering for the story
3. First draft
4. Re-draft
5. Final draft
6. Proposal letter to news editor

B. Sell a Story Online - instantly! Using their news-gathering and writing skills, new or "cadet" journalists can source a story in their area and cover it for an online organisation. The suggested organisation is news website African News Dimension (http://www.andnetwork.com/).

How does the course work?

Detailed class notes covering the content of each module are e-mailed to students.

At the end of each module, students will be required to complete one or two writing exercises. In total, the course includes eleven short writing assignments, all of which count towards the final result of the student. Students must also produce one feature-length article (750 words).

Once a writing assignment has been completed and e-mailed to the lecturer, an assessment and feedback will be sent to the student, and the module will be considered complete.

Students can also participate in ongoing online discussions by posting comments about the materials covered in the course, as well as give feedback to students who have posted their pieces in the Discussion Forum.

Writing Exercise Module 1: /20
Writing Exercise Module 2: /10
Writing Exercise Module 3: /50
Writing Exercise Module 4: /20
Writing Exercise Module 5: /50
Writing Exercise Module 6: /20
Writing Exercise Module 7: /30
Writing Exercise Module 8: /30
Writing Exercise Module 10: /50

Bonus Points for completion of all assignments within 12-week deadline: +30

Conditions of Certification: Students will receive a SA Writers College Certificate upon successful completion of the course, provided they meet the following conditions:

* Students must have completed all 12 assignments (namely: 11 writing exercises; I article)
* The course must have been completed within five months of registration.
* Students are expected to attain a minimum average of 50% for the course

Minimum Estimated Time Commitment: