On June 18th, we held our sixth annual Burnet News Club Awards Ceremony at The Queen’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace.
The ceremony, hosted by the Royal Collection, celebrated another year of the club and recognised exceptional students from participating schools. Awards were presented to ten outstanding students, and we announced the teacher of the year and the overall winning school.
Daniel Franklin, Executive and Diplomatic Editor of The Economist, spoke at the event about the importance of developing news literacy before presenting awards to ten pupils from schools across the country, and Sir Evelyn de Rothschild, a key supporter of the BNC, awarded the overall 2019 Burnet News Club Award.
“With over 80 schools participating in the Burnet News Club and a very busy club website, selecting outstanding students was no easy feat. The students receiving the award have really impressed us this year. They have taken part in their club at school and have led and developed exceptional online discussions about current affairs using the Burnet News Club skills: reasoning, curiosity, healthy scepticism, storytelling and open-mindedness.”
Olivia Platman, Schools Relationship Manager
This academic year, students have explored topics ranging from Myanmar's Rohingya crisis and climate change, to violent crime and Trump’s wall. A few of the young people had a chance to share some of the work they had created around these issues. These included a spoken word poem about the rise of violent crime, Brexit similes and a thoughtful piece on freedom of movement.
We’d like to thank the Queen’s Gallery for offering such a fantastic location to host the event.
“It was really unexpected to be invited to the awards. When my teacher first told me I didn't actually think it was going to happen but now I am here. It’s really amazing to be here! I have enjoyed telling my friends about the Burnet News Club.”
Adelina, BNC student
In the news:
The winners were:
BURNET NEWS CLUB SCHOOL AWARD
BOUTCHER C OF E PRIMARY SCHOOL
The Burnet News Club award goes to the club that brought the most valuable contributions to the Hub over the year. This year's winner was Boutcher C of E Primary School in London, who have been part of the BNC for two years. Throughout the year, Boutcher club members contributed on the Hub by starting excellent, thought provoking discussions. They joined conversations using all the BNC skills, presented their work brilliantly on camera and we saw the club members grow in confidence.
TEACHER OF THE YEAR AWARD
MICHAEL BAKER
Michael Baker from Faringdon Community College won the Burnet News Club Teacher of the Year award. His exceptional commitment to running the club enables his students to have high quality, inspiring discussions about the news. He supported the school’s Burnet News Club to enter a public speaking competition and to perform speeches to their local peace group. He also invited guests into the club to join the conversation, including their local MP!
OUTSTANDING STUDENTS
Each year we award ten pupils from schools across the country with certificates to recognise their outstanding contributions to the Burnet News Club online hub. These students were:
