Dr. T.M. Sell argued that Rep. Upthegrove's student press rights bill missed some points in its attempt to support high school journalists ("High school advisers are not journalists," Nov. 28.)

But we believe Dr. Sell missed some points of his own.

Students deserve the right to have a good media adviser. We'll give him that.

And some advisers are thrust into their roles with little background or training, not a very educationally sound practice.

But eliminating a school's journalism program or expecting an administrator totally untrained in media to censor publications doesn't help students either.

Instead, schools should support the improvement of their programs by sending their teachers and students to workshops and conferences.

If the drama teacher isn't a very good director, the school doesn't bring down the curtain on the school plays. Even if the basketball coach doesn't help his players meet their potential, the team doesn't pull out of the league.

Good advisers, some with journalism training and some who got the job and then realized the value of their positions, know they need to continue their education.

They are passionate about wanting to improve so their students can as well.

We're not quite sure what Dr. Sell means by "journalism courses can't be counted toward the ongoing education requirements" because they can and are.

In fact, providing solid training for teachers has been an important part of the Journalism Education Association's mission. It provides summer courses, as do others like the American Society of Newspaper Editors through its Reynolds Institute, the Poynter Institute through its NewsU Boot Camp and state workshops every summer like WJEA has in Ellensburg. Other universities offer graduate programs in journalism education, both online and in residence.

By learning through experiences like these, teachers find out how to coach and work with students, important skills that go beyond the editing journalism majors study.

They get training to make sure, as Dr. Sell says, they are "up to the task of teaching [their students] how to do things right."

They also explore what court cases and state laws really say, and none, the proposed Washington one included, give students unrestricted freedom.

The First Amendment does, and should, apply to all students whether they are well-taught or not.

Of course the most important point Dr. Sell missed has more to do with our democracy than with Pulitzer Prize-winning journalism.

Their school media allows students to use their voices, to seek truth, to understand how citizens need to know what is going on in their world.

Whether under the guidance of a top-notch journalism teacher or one who is simply working hard to do his or her best, those who learn this lesson are going to be the kind of citizens we need tomorrow.

John Bowen

Journalism Education Association

Stow,OH