All aboard for the GMF cruise...

I have spent three days now at the Global Media Forum. I have met the other bloggers, I have made new friends and met old friends from all over the world. I have eaten and even danced during the famous GMF boat ride on the Rhine River. So besides the serious side of the conference, there is also a fun part to it.

One of my areas of interest as a trained journalist and as a trainer of people in media is the influence of the advancing digital world on journalism. That’s why I attended a workshop organized by the DW Akademie with the title: New Trainers for New Media? Challenges for Human Resources Development in Media Support in a Fast-Changing Media Landscape.

The media environment has changed rapidly and continues to change because of great technological strides being made all over the world. For example, with the growing importance of social media, how do institutions training media professionals adapt to the new challenges it presents? Or should we think of this as a completely new area of media? This, of course, has a great impact on the environment for publishers, journalists, etc. The workshop focused on questions such as: What do trainers need to provide in training to make their students fit for the future? What are the benchmarks for human resources development in media outlets?

One of the questions that came up was the relationship between media trainers that come from abroad and sustainability. In my experience, it is very common to see trainers come in from the West to developing countries with best practice methodology and high-end equipment, who conduct highly professional seminars and workshops on location. After they leave, the project that they start is either not carried through or dies off after some time. This issue set off a round of discussion during this workshop. The conclusion was that the investment in knowledge is never lost, but, nevertheless, there needs to be a greater sense of ownership from the locals when it comes to such programs and projects.

Media trainers need to keep the sustainability of their projects in mind

From my experience in offering media training to people living in slums, I find that even for me as a Kenyan from a different community, I also face this challenge. For example, I can have what I think will be a great idea for a film for my students in the slums. However, the students – as people who actually live there – may disagree with my points of view simply because I cannot relate to their situation as well as they can. The best method should perhaps be to support local filmmakers and storytellers. It is important to have understanding for the culture of the place where you are shooting  films and have a passion for storytelling.

Listening to the discussion, another thing that struck me was the question of new media and how journalistic training institutions can balance and/or adapt curricula to a changing media environment. Striking a balance between meeting the commercial needs of the media market while training journalists versus focusing on traditional journalistic skills is something that media academies need to consider. People were in agreement at the conference: Digital skills should not replace journalistic skills. Even if the curriculum changes to keep up with the pace of industry, training institutes should be careful not to lose sight of the essentials.

I particularly liked this workshop as it touched the very topics I am passionate about. Namely: storytelling, media, journalism and training. I have really enjoyed learning and discussing at the conference.

Two fellow activists and I worked at a stand for first-year students

Four years ago, I founded a local chapter of ArbeiterKind.de in Mainz, the city where I studied. The non-profit organization ArbeiterKind.de supports children whose parents didn’t attend university as they pursue college degrees. After I read an article about ArbeiterKind.de, I decided that I definitely had to support the organization for two reasons.

First, in the article Katja Urbatsch, the founder of ArbeiterKind.de, described the typical challenges for children of non-academic families after they finish high school. Many barriers seemed familiar to me: The insecurity about the value of studying certain subjects, like the humanities. A question I struggled with in the beginning was: Wouldn’t it be better to work and earn money immediately after high school? Later, the confusion arising from the task of writing initial academic papers was tough for me.
Statistics quoted in the article and those following in the years to come gave me even more motivation to support ArbeiterKind.de. Results of surveys show that children of parents who didn’t earn college degrees are far less likely to finish their Abitur (the German high school certificate allowing students to enroll in a university). Even those who receive their Abitur decide to study at universities less often than the children of parents with an academic background. Scholarship programs may even aggravate the situation. They support gifted students financially, with seminars and a strong network, and they are co-financed by the German state. But only 30 percent of the students receiving a scholarship from the biggest German foundations have parents without an Abitur. These are just average numbers. In some foundations, there are only 10 to 20 percent! It is just impossible that talent, thirst for knowledge, and intelligence are prevalent at such a higher degree among children of academics than among children of parents who didn’t earn degrees or who have no Abitur.

So, I became angry: Something was going wrong in our educational system. And I saw an opportunity to do something against this inequality by supporting ArbeiterKind.de.

Members of ArbeiterKind.de at a workshop

Many have found their very personal reasons for supporting our organization. ArbeiterKind.de has grown to more than 4,000 members. Moreover, ArbeiterKind.at was founded in Austria last year. To enable high school students to really decide about whether they want to study or not, we give them as much information as possible. Studying is no matter of course for children who are first generation college students in their families. They must justify why they want to study – just as kids of academics have to justify why they don’t want to study if they diverge from their family’s academic tradition.

My friends from ArbeiterKind.de and I go to schools and make presentations about the different possibilities for earning a college degree and financing one’s studies. I also post tips on Facebook daily. Moreover, we participate in fairs and events on education. Last but not least, we offer an online network where we answer questions and give information.

Many people put their minds to ease by pointing out that there aren’t any (or, in Bavaria and Lower Saxony, just low) tuition fees and that we have BaföG (student loans granted by the state). But this isn’t enough. Most importantly, BaföG can’t be regarded as a magic bullet. These loans don’t suffice to ensure equal chances in education. I will write more about BaföG and other support mechanisms at earlier stages in the German educational system in my next blog entry.