Project Part 2

I found the storytelling project to be a lot of fun. I've never done anything like that before and it was satisfying to collaborate and go through the process again. I think any students would enjoy it and it was a great way to get people to know each other quickly. After the basics in a class, it might make a great icebreaker or 1^st project.

It was immediately clear how hard it is to do a story with so little prep time and the advantages of planning. Never before have I so wanted the ability to edit a story. Yes, you can reshoot it, but that good take is now gone and who knows what you will get.

All the steps involved I think will help students break down the steps of the storytelling process and make them appreciate them more. By leaving out that the first part isn't the only part you create a drive to do well and than after you see the story a drive to do better. It is a good way to create interest. I am still working on getting the information onto my ipad so we will she how I feel about it as I storyboard on the ipad.  

Rubric-What a trick thing it is!

To be perfectly honest I don't like my project. No, not because it is horrible, but because I have read more of the book and now know how to make it better. Doing the project a bit on the fly has helped me understand the process and think about how I would scaffold it to help my students overcome some of the challenges that I had. I think that a rubric would be key in this process. I would use it as an outline and checklist for the students. I thought at first that grading personal DST would be possibly inappropriate, but now I think with the right preparation it can be done and in a manner that will not hurt the student's feelings about their project even if they don't get a good grade.

I would have my rubric encompass the entire project and I have broken it down below.

1. Technology- After teaching the students how to use the program that they will use to create their DS I would list what we had covered and make those the minimum requirement for use in their story. If we use Imovie, they might have the choice to do voiceover or text. They would know that they have to do one of the options. As always they would be given the option to exceed expectations, but with many students not having time or what they consider talent if they did what they could they should get an okay grade. I have college students that can't copy and drag so assuming every class can use the software to make very complicated projects is not always realistic and I am not sure it is right to penalize students for lacking a skill that your class is not entirely about.
2. Planning/Revision-With any project planning is important so turning in a outline/story map on time with revisions would be portion of the grade. Translation and other elements can be added to this section as well if needed. Script revision and proofing would also be a component.
3. The DS-At the college level each of these could be graded and even if they failed in one area they might still be able to do okay. Not to make students pass, but to give everyone a chance.
   1. Are there good transitions?
   2. Does the story flow?
   3. Is their good use of media?
   4. Is it edited well?
   5. Are the images and sound clear?
   6. Does it follow the guidelines of content? e.g. Is it about family? A pet? A traumatic happening?
   7. Does it follow the guidelines of length and format?
   8. Is the use of language grammatical and appropriate? (This is mostly for ESL teachers)

I might even use peer evaluation forms if appropriate.

With this being such a new form of expression for many, the first time I would want the students to feel that even if they didn't produce a masterpiece they could still do a good job. No, I don't want shoddy work, but I also don't want someone giving up before they started because they are so afraid. I clear outline of the grading criteria at the beginning would not only help guide them in the process as well as informing them of possible points?

Still working on some of these ideas. Not sure if I said what I meant the whole time. Please, feel free to disagree. Look forward to seeing what you think.  

Who is your audience?

I must admit that after all of the talk about google+ and circles in class I was fascinated to read this article from the Chronicle of Higher Ed. http://chronicle.com/blogs/profhacker/an-audience-of-none/36320?sid=wc&utm_source=wc&utm_medium=en The author writes a blog about getting students to write for more than an audience of one. Going online to get an audiences for your students sounds good and may motivate many of them. I struggle with the motivation behind it though. Is the only way to get students to care about projects to post them online?

Some of the teachers that posted expressed similar fears to what I have been struggling with for awhile now. Yes, Google lets people as young as 13 signup for an account. Yes, most students have a Facebook page that they check religiously. Yes, technology is everywhere, but what is the consequence of putting all of the this online? If you limit your exposure to a google+ circle that is well and good but what if your account get hacked and all of your info becomes public knowledge?Do I want the world to know what I think? Am I really posting in the same sense if I use a false name. Doesn't that defeat the idea, somewhat, of writing to get heard and acknowledged? I don't know that I want to tell my students to put up work that they may use in the future for research if the sites that they are posting on claim ownership. Even D2L (Blackboard) say that any content you post is now theirs even if you think you have deleted it. Copyright and privacy sit side by side in my mind as I wrestle with the idea of all of my information for anyone to access.

On a side note I wonder how many of our class really cares what their classmates think of their work? Does it motivate you? Do you do better knowing there is more than an audience of one? Are you concerned with privacy or copyright?