Some of the online sites I used to gather information research and build my story
http://www.northernbaycollege.vic.edu.au/
The website attached to the only school in greater Geelong region which has a dedicated program for students who are pregnant or parents. The school’s Goldsworthy campus has a young parenting program run through the team of student well being coordinators. The school is also unique with onsite chid care for student’s babies and young children, a kindergarten used by the community and where student’s children can attend plus within a few minutes walk, a primary school forms part of the Northern Bay College network of support systems for young parents.
http://www.diversitat.org.au/youth
This is the website for Diversitat, a community support organisation formed originally to provide the multicultural region of Geelong with classes, networks and mechanisms to integrate new arrivals into the local community and where the traditions of other countries could be celebrated. Diversitat’s mission has evolved to also ‘Promote Access and Equity’ to a diverse population. This occurs via departments including; training, youth services, aged support, employment, arts and events, a radio station and restaurant. The aspects of Diversitat I am most interested in for the purpose of my feature article are their youth services and training sections.
http://www.theverge.com/2013/3/19/4119006/the-best-google-reader-alternatives
Because RSS feeds are entirely new to me, I needed to find a way to comprehend the way the feeds are offered, captured and accessible for research. While the BBC online journalism training tutorials provided a great overview as the the feeds actually were and illustrated their value in journalism, I still required a method of capturing these feeds in order to use them. This website compared a range of current RSS feed readers and made suggestions for their usage.
http://feedly.uservoice.com/knowledgebase/articles/180131-what-is-feedly-
This is the form of RSS feeder I set up after recommendations from the above website, the in order to access vital information which is pertinent to my story. The feedly service gives fairly clear, well designed information on setting up feeds.
I found these tutorials incredibly valuable. They made clear points about the need for writers to have access to electronic media sources and illustrated how social media is used constantly in a newsroom. I enjoyed the relevant, purposeful and sensible nature of the presentations contained in the entire series of BBC journalism tutorials. I have re-watched the footage several times.
http://lorelle.wordpress.com/2005/08/29/learning-about-blogging-and-how-to-blog/
Despite the prolific nature of blogging as a means of communication, it is not the simplest endeavour I have embarked upon. I used this guide to assist me to understand the process and develop this blog.
http://www.zoominfo.com/#!search/profile/person?personId=536340463&targetid=profile
Zoominfo, Linkedin and a range of other profile websites are vital tools to explore an individual’s professional links, work histories, educational background, field of expertise, likelihood for use as a source and to access their contact details.
http://www.geelongaustralia.com.au/directory/
This is the City of Greater Geelong’s community database enabling connection with a range of Geelong community groups, clubs, associations and individuals. It assisted in discovering resources and organisations pertinent to providing assistance to teen parents and for uncovering relevant education resources. It was a good staring point , providing me with contact numbers for individuals who could assist in my research and story development.
This Municipal Association of Victoria directory provided me with valuable understanding of the Maternal and Child Health Centre’s policies, duties, resources and contacts. From this online document, I was able to make contact with the local head of the M&CHC for an interview. This discussion provided a chain of additional contacts.
http://www.education.vic.gov.au/about/contact/pages/regions.aspx?Redirect=1
My story examines educational opportunities and support services which exist for disadvantaged students, so I wondered if there were specific policies or provisions relating to student pregnancy. I looked up the education department head office for our region in order to speak to the relevant individual to access documents and guidelines educators may need to be aware of when teaching pregnant teens. I was curious to see if there was any support system for students to return to their studies after the birth of a child.
My attempt to access information from the department of education was fruitless. I did however come away with an understanding that when dealing with a government agency, some people are highly suspicious and will suspect the worst in journalists. The person I dealt with was combative when approached for comment, fearful I had misrepresented myself and told me to leave the department of education offices with a lecture and a post-it note with the media unit’s phone number.
Lesson learned… via humiliating departure from the building.
Feature Research File 