Arlington, VA - Leading a high school newspaper that earns presidential recognition and national notoriety takes leadership. For Rockville High School of Rockville, Md., it takes a solid staff and an adviser who gets it. An adviser like Peter Daddone.

 

Daddone achieved National Board Certification in 2008. An English teacher, he also serves as the journalism adviser to The Rockville High School Rampage newspaper.

 

Throughout his tenure with the Rampage, the newspaper has won a number of awards for journalism excellence for its print publication and online news site. These honors include the National Scholastic Press Association’sPacemaker Award and the Gold and Silver Crowns from the Columbia Scholastic Press Association in 2009, making the newspaper one of only three in the nation to receive two of these prestigious awards that year.

 

In 2009, the Rampage was the only high school newspaper in the nation to have a press pass to President Obama’s inauguration.

 

The Rampage is well-known for its investigative journalism efforts. In 2008, the newspaper published a series of stories on gang activity in the community, resulting in a significant decrease in the number of local gangs in the area. That series received the 2008 Courage in Student Journalism Award, an honor given by the Student Press Law Center to middle or high school journalists and media advisers who have stood in support of the First Amendment.

 

The newspaper, which features hard news stories, community features and video galleries, was recently named the best high school publication in the country by Weekly Reader News Corp. This spring, Rampage student members met with Vice President Biden after becoming the national winner of the Student Publishing Award.

 

Daddone credits the success of the newspaper to his “hands-off” instructional approach.

 

“I help guide my students through the editing process, but the kids are in charge,” he said. “The students come up with the topics and lay out the paper and I work as the consultant.”

 

His teaching methods are successful—more than 90 students have signed up for the newspaper this fall, making the program one of the largest clubs in the school. The Rampage has become a highlight among the school’s staff and students.

 

“The Rampage has been around for many years, but Peter built the newspaper up,” said Sherry Weiss, the school’s media specialist. “On many levels, it is a source of pride for teachers, staff and students.”

 

Daddone, a National Board Certified Teacher, said his teaching style evolved after going through the National Board Certification process. He said that achieving National Board Certification helped him understand that the first step to effective teaching is to understand how his students learn.

 

“While I was going through the National Board Certification process, I reflected on my teaching and observed my students’ body language, and I realized there was so much more I can do in the classroom,” said Daddone. “Since then, I have made my instruction a little more personable by modifying my own behavior and researching my students’ backgrounds a little bit more before they come into my classroom. It just became a natural by product for me to go for National Board Certification because I wanted to improve my teaching style.”

 

In addition to the instructional changes Daddone has made, he has also focused his classes on involvement from the community, an approach he learned from becoming National Board certified. Now, Daddone routinely brings in writers and editors to speak to his journalism students and Rampage staff members. In the past, Daddone has worked with outside sources to find internship and work experiences for his students.

 

“During the National Board process, I realized I needed to bring outside professionals into the classroom to help my students prepare for their careers,” he said. “I have brought in reporters from the Washington Post and other local papers to help my students learn and excel. Several students have worked with them to develop investigative reports while others have worked with local businesses to design advertisements.”

 

Ultimately, his goal is to teach his students to become lifelong writers.

 

“Many of my students come into my classroom wanting to be doctors, lawyers and engineers and I try to teach them writing skills they can use later on. I don’t teach them to be journalist—I teach them to be better writers.”

 

As long as Daddone is in the classroom, they will learn to be just that.

 

 

 

To see an interview with Peter Daddone and his students, click here.

 

For more information about the Rampage, please visit www.rockvillerampage.com.

 

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Jazzy Wright

National Board for Professional Teaching Standards