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HuffPost Teen
Pros: The site has a good grasp of what its audience wants to read and gives teens a chance to write blogs and share stories.
Cons: HuffPost Teen provides a brief overview of celeb-heavy news and would benefit from more news as well as interactive aspects that emphasize learning.
Bottom Line: Teens can read about light topics of interest and share their thoughts, but they won't get much real news.
HuffPost Teen may serve as a source of inspiration for budding young writers, as high school students contribute much of the content. However, the abundance of narrative pieces -- including original selections from Figment.com, an online community for amateur authors -- most likely won't qualify as sources for research papers, even though many are interesting reads. HuffPost Teen might get kids to get in the habit of reading the news, but bear in mind the Huffington Post isn't exactly news, and HuffPost Teen seriously isn't. A news site tailored for teen users would be a better resource for students researching and writing papers.
A Girls in STEM section offers teachers some tips on mentoring. Likewise, yet another separate section, HuffPost Education, offers education news updates and opinion, analysis, and best practice blogs from HuffPost reporters and guest bloggers on topics like education legislation and making financial education a driver's ed requirement.
HuffPost Teen is an offshoot of the popular contributor-based Huffington Post website. Teens get updates on young celebs, prom trends, and current news, with a stronger emphasis on famous people and fluff than serious issues. Much of the content available through the site is housed on the main HuffPost site.
The homepage is essentially a page of links to teen-related articles, essays, and news items. However, most of the 12 subject areas listed at the top of the page -- including politics, entertainment, and media -- link to other sites within the Huffington Post network, such as HuffPost Comedy, the main Huffington Post site, or HuffPost College, which has more in-depth articles, including career and internship advice. Another site, HuffPost College Prep, is essentially a light version of HuffPost College, with HuffPost Teen content and educational advice.
Users can also watch videos, see photo slideshows, and post comments, if they've registered. Comments are moderated in the teen section but appear instantly elsewhere. User profiles list some recent site activity, such as comments.
The structure makes navigation confusing. It isn't easy to tell which section you'll be redirected to before clicking on a header. However, the source for each item on the HuffPost Teen homepage is clearly identified. For example, users can see if a reading selection came from the creative writing community Figment or the nonprofit organization Youth Community, or if it's a HuffPost Teen blog post.
It's difficult to prevent younger users from seeing news and other items intended for adults. If HuffPost Teen had a more separate identity, it might feel like a safer space. But as long as kids can click over to articles on crime and the best time of day to have sex, it may not be the best place to let younger teens roam.
Learning Rating
Community Rating
Inappropriate Content Mixed in with Articles
I would have to look long and hard on this page to find something that I would like my kids to use. If I was going to use this site with the kids I think that I would like to find an article written by a teen that I could give the kids to read and we could use as an example of students getting published.