5370+Assignment+Reflections+for+EDLD+5363


 * 4.3 Assignment Reflection on EDLD 5363 Multimedia and Video Technology **

This course provided hands-on experience with video technology. The making of my digital story, a project that was the most meaningful to me, is one that I will always cherish because of its personal ties to the untimely death of a relative whose influence touched my life profoundly and led to my educational career. Finding a story came easy as I read about and was inspired to create a memorial story which, according to Lambert (2007), is story that honors and remembers a person who has passed (Lambert, 2007). Making of the group PSA on Cyberbullying was the highlight of this course because of the team effort used to complete this assignment. This was my first time working online with a group to complete something of this nature. The last time I did a group project with technology was in a face-to-face workshop back in 2002. I am amazed at what technology can do with people who are not remotely close to each other by location, but one task via the internet is. Astonishing!


 * Self Assessment **

Some of the knowledge gained in this course was new knowledge to me. Understanding the uses of technology to bring still pictures to life in a digital story was memorable. Through it, I was able to enshrine photos of my aunt’s funeral in a digital story that can be shared for years to come. Working with a group to create a PSA was challenging, rewarding, and fun. The concepts that I learned were enriching and consistent with knowledge gained throughout the program. This was somewhat old knowledge in that I have always used technology in this way in my classroom. Integration of the new with what was familiar, refined my knowledge base and facilitated the completion of the assignment.


 * Learn as a Learner **

This course’s readings and reflections were worth studying. Engaging in activities that are multisensory, high in application and hands-on is always of interest to me as a teacher and learner. As a result of this, my performance peaked. The interaction with colleagues was rewarding. We really put fort our best effort in getting the assignment done. When one of us caught the slightest detail missed, we swarmed in on it like a colony of bees. I truly learned what team work was all about in this group. My performance revealed a team player who is willing to commit myself to a goal come what may. For example, when we realized we needed two instead of one person speaking in the PSA’s narration, I creatively came up with the idea of using Audacity, a free cross platform audio editor, to record myself speaking in synch to my group mate’s voice while listening to it with earphones (Audacity, n.d.). In so doing, I was able to match her speaking rate and make a recording that was able to be edited into our PSA seemlessly. I emerged even more confident that this is something I’d enjoy doing since these are positive attributes to possess that will enhance my technical skills in the future.


 * Lifelong Learning Skills **

The complexities in developing multimedia based activities are challenging. Yet, they complement my desire to make learning hands-on and applicable. Because our brains access information in nonlinear ways, use of multimedia tools is beneficial to our educational program (Shank, n.d.). Having the skills to create engaging lessons that incorporate these strategies will benefit my performance in this area and impact learning. Because of my positive interactions with others, influencing educators to implement technology should not be a challenge. My only concern is helping teachers find time to create engaging activities such as these.

Audacity. (n.d.) Introduction. l(2). Retrieved May 12, 2011, from http://audacity.sourceforge.net/manual-1.2/intro.html

Lambert, J. (2007, February). //Digital storytelling cookbook//, 1-30. Story Center. Retrieved May 12, 2011, from http://www.storycenter.org/cookbook.pdf

Shank, P. (n.d.). //The value of multimedia in learning//. Think Tank. Retrieved May 12, 2011, from http://www.adobe.com/designcenter/thinktank/valuemedia/