EFFECTIVE COACHING PRACTICES IN SCHOOL JOURNALISM: AN APPRECIATIVE INQUIRY

Authors

Marah Shahani V. Montes, Grace G. Tizon, Rochelan Lumasag, Elsa B. Buenavidez, Cynthia S. Superable

Abstract

Journalism in schools plays a vital role in nurturing students’ critical thinking, ethical awareness, and communication skills while fostering informed and responsible citizenship. This study explored the sustaining and evolving coaching practices of school journalism advisers. Using a qualitative approach, the research examined how integrating digital and multimedia journalism skills, along with continuous reflection, feedback, and professional development, supports students’ technical competence, adaptability, creativity, and ethical awareness. Findings revealed that advisers emphasized handson digital content creation, multimedia storytelling, social media engagement, and iterative feedback as essential strategies for maintaining relevance amid rapidly changing journalism standards. The study highlighted that iterative cycles of experience, reflection, and application enabled student journalists to develop professional readiness and lifelong learning dispositions. The study concludes that adaptive, reflective, and technology-integrated coaching practices are vital for cultivating competent, resilient, and ethically grounded student journalists who can thrive in modern newsroom contexts. School journalism advisers are encouraged to adopt experiential, collaborative, technology-rich, and well-structured coaching practices with sustained mentorship and continuous digital integration to enhance student journalists’ competence, creativity, ethical professionalism, accountability, and long-term adaptability in evolving media environments.

Keywords

collaborative learning, digital journalism, experiential coaching, mentorship, student journalists