As it is my second to last edition to work as a reporter of the Ewha Voice, I recalled back to the past when I first became a member of Ewha Voice. That time I wanted to know about the role of school newspapers so I went through many researches. Now I once again began to think about the role of newspaper of a school and the role of our paper in Ewha.
It is true that there are many sources and ways that one can get information and get to know about issues happening at the school easily through the school’s Korean newspaper like the Ewha Weekly in Ewha, or the school’s official homepage.
It is also true that the articles that we publish may be somewhat late to deal with. However, when I went through researches that researchers have found, the role of school newspapers, it was stated as “a connection between students and school.” Different to the past, these days, students pay much more attention to the school’s newspapers and find information from the paper. There are more than 30,000 readers of school newspapers in major universities these days according to SisaIN, a weekly magazine, which deals with current affairs.
Ewha Voice is the very source where you can get the right and most facts and fun in English, serving the right role of a school newspaper.
Especially for some foreign students in Ewha, Ewha Voice may be the only source where they can get information on what is happening at school.
When our paper wrote an article that there are needs for more updates on the school’s official English Web site, we found out that there had been no updates for a long time that foreigners found it difficult to know about the school.
After issuing the paper containing that article, one international friend of mine came up to me and said the article was what she always wanted to say to the school. She said that she was getting most of the ideas on what is happening at Ewha from our paper. She also told me later that her friends studying in other universities in Seoul actually envied her in that a school newspaper is issued on a bi-weekly basis. Although we cannot deliver all the little bits of information on our paper, most of the major issues are dealt in our articles.
However, Ewha Voice is not only for foreign students or people visiting Ewha.
Different to the past where English newspaper served the role as a limited source helping foreigners to be informed with the latest issues, it is now for everyone.
To Koreans who read our paper, it is also a benefit as our paper can be a way to learn English. We use standard English to make readers avoid from confusion. Also, if learning English through a content that is related to you, you can pay more attention to it and there is no difficulty in understanding the content itself.
As working in Ewha Voice for three years as of now and with only one edition left until my official term ends, I have seen so many changes in our paper. With continuous improvements and efforts put in, I think Ewha Voice can serve the role as the right newspaper of a school and publish articles that helps both foreigners and Koreans in Ewha soon or later.
Ewha Voice
evoice@ewha.ac.kr