Spending time in schools and classrooms can be one of the best ways for novice reporters to dive into the education beat, and for veterans to find fresh inspiration.
While it is certainly not necessary for every story, education journalists should try their best to make time to visit schools. Classroom observations and campus tours help us come up with story ideas, fact check assertions made by school officials, develop relationships with sources, give our reporting a human dimension, and allow us to more deeply understand the beat. Much of the most meaningful education journalism ever produced originated when reporters took the initiative to immerse themselves inside schools.
