Who Am I?

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 * bgcolor="#b4b4b4" style="border: 0px #cccccc solid;" |Grade Level: 9th grade:
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 * bgcolor="#b4b4b4" style="border: 0px #cccccc solid;" |Subject: Advisory course
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 * bgcolor="#b4b4b4" style="border: 0px #cccccc solid;" |Sub-Subject: focus on self, culture, community and college
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 * bgcolor="#b4b4b4" style="border: 0px #cccccc solid;" |Length/Duration: 3-4 days
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 * bgcolor="#b4b4b4" style="border: 0px #cccccc solid;" |Technologies Used: Imovie, Pikiwiki, Memory Miner
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Introduction/Specifications
In what ways can people learn about one another? Conversations, letters, art work, and stories are all examples of how we can learn about one another. With the advancement of technology there are many other ways one can share stories about their lives and who they are. Digital storytelling has allowed people to share their stories through the practice of combining narrative with digital content including images, sound, and video, typically with a strong emotional component.

As a member and participant of this Advisory course we will be discussing several personal and controversial topics. It is important that we maintain an environment that is respectful, welcoming, and open-minded.

This digital storytelling project will allow us to share a personal story about ourselves to the class as a way to get aquainted with one another. You may share anything you are comfortable with sharing that will allow us to have a better understanding of who you are, where you come from, and where you are going.

For your digital story you will need to include the following components:

- a narrative piece on one topic about who are that you would like to share with the class.

- images that pertain to your story

- visual effects

- a musical component


 * We will discuss these components further in class including the length of the video and other details you may have questions about. We will also have Mr. Shaw visiting us to assist us in the creation of your digital story


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Ideas/Examples
Some ideas for your digital storyboard can include but are not limited to the following:

- A story about what makes you who you are today

- What your asipirations are for the future

- A significant event that changed your life

Listed below is a link to some digital stories that have been created by students of the Streetside Stories/Tech Tales Organization located in the Bay Area:

http://www.streetside.org/stories/digital-stories.htm (main page)

http://www.streetside.org/stories/tech-tales/2006-07/donnaL.htm

http://www.streetside.org/stories/tech-tales/2006-07/joeyI.htm

http://www.streetside.org/stories/tech-tales/2006-07/arlandoG.htm

http://www.streetside.org/stories/tech-tales/2006-07/angelicaE.htm

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Software
The software that we will be using as a class for the production of your digital story is Imovie. For an introduction to Imovie please visit the link below:

http://www.apple.com/ilife/imovie/

Additional software includes the following:

http://www.pikiwiki.com/ews/demoVideo.jsp (demo video of PikiWiki)

http://memoryminer.com/help/video_gallery.html (gallery of Memory Miner)


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Articles that Support this Lesson

 * Dewey, J. (1902). The child and the cirriculum (pp. 21-30).  Chicago, IL: University of      Chicago Press.

The ideas presented in this article speak about the concept of guidance. We must provide our students with the necessary guidance in order to help them grow but also we have to be sure not to stifle their growth by imposing too many boundaries. Additionally, the article also mentioned the importance of monitoring the growth of the child in their work, not just what they produce at the end. This article supports this lesson/project because the students will be supported throughout the entirety of their process and monitored on the advances that they make as they create their story. Also, the project gives the student a choice about what they want to share about themselves and does not limit them to one possibility of where they can go with their story.


 * Steele, C.M., & Aronson, J. (1995). Stereotype threat and the intellectual test performance of African Americans.  Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 69 (5), 797-811.

This article supports this lesson by way of overcoming stereotyping. We all make judgements about others on a regular basis. My hope with this lesson is that students genuinely learn about their peers and the anxiety that knowing that everyone is going to hear their story will be alleviated since everyone will be in the same predicament. The design of this course is to embrace differences of others and be open to different perspectives. The article also mentions the importance of addressing stereotypes. In my own experience in the classroom, when stereotypes/sensitive topics are not addressed, they remain ever present. We cannot ignore differences and sweep them under the rug, we must bring them to light. The concept of audience approval arises in projects like these and the article also addresses this issue. When students are put on the spot they are in fear of being wrong and hope to not embarrass themselves. One may feel that they will be wrong and everyone will think they are not smart. I hope that by having everyone in the class share in that feeling that this tension may be decreased.


 * Nasir, N.i.S., McLaughlin, M.W., & Jones, A. (2009). What does it mean to be African American?  Constructions of race and academic identity in an urban public high school.  American Educational Research Journal, 46 (1), 73-114.

This article mentions our nature to stereotype our own stereotype. This project aims for students to share stories about their own lives. These stories may change the minds of other students who originally classified their peers under a certain stereotype they picked up in our society. Additionally, the Nasir, et al. article comments on the sociocutltural perspectives and how there can be a shift in perspective when activities are structured in such a way around values, norms, and expectations. One of the intentions of this activity is to shift the perspective from stereotypes to genuinely getting to know about someone.


 * Tettegah, S.Y., Whang, E.W., Taylor, K.R., & Cash, T.J. (2008). Narratives, virtual environments and identity semiotics: An exploration of pre-service teachers' cognitions.  Journal E-learning, 5 (1), 103-127.

The article specifically talks about how pre-service teachers, through text-based and animated narrative vignettes can provide a way of learning about personal and social identity. The article goes further to speak about how we all have stories to tell about our lives. This connects directly to my own lesson since the students are creating digital narratives about their own lives and experiences they have endured. Technological advances have given us the opportunities to share our stories and the article supports that idea.


 * Jenkins, H., Purushotma, R., Clinton, K., Wiegel, M., & Robison, A. Confronting the challenges of participatory culture: Media education for the 21st century.  Retrieved from http://www.newmedialiteracies.org/files/working/NMLWhitePaper.pdf

This article focuses on the importance of integrating technology into the lives of students and what skills they can acquire from learning these technologies. Not only does this lesson ask kids to share about themselves, it also requires them to learn about various technological skills that will allow them to put their digital story together.


 * Hull, G., & Katz, M. Crafting an agentive self: Case studies on digital storytelling. Retrieved from http://www.udel.edu/paulhyde/ds/readings/hull_agentive_self.pdf

This article summarizes a number of case studies on digital storytelling. The article illustrates how technological innovations can result in powerful forms of representation for various ages. The articles also supports the idea of digital storytelling as a means to convey powerful stories. This essentially supports my reason for incorporating for digital storytelling. It is just not about using technology for the sake of technology, but for a way for students to learn at a deeper level.

LINKS:

http://en.wikiversity.org/wiki/Educational_technologies

http://en.wikiversity.org/wiki/Educational_Technology_Lesson_Plans


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