You have been turning in each cycle a notebook that documents your understanding of the three major ecosystems we derived for this course (text; graphic/still and time-based, and immersive). While no qualitative evaluations were done (points were awarded so long as you demonstrated a good faith effort to summarize your conclusions), you did receive feedback from your instructor to help guide you along the way. At the end of each cycle you were asked to go back to the previous profile and update your thinking based on the new information that was provided during that subsequent cycle.
Now is the time for you to put everything together. While no specific format required (I would like to see what you come up with… be creative), you need to be sure you include a row (cell… some of you were really creative … not everyone utilized a table format) for as many of the characteristics you deem appropriate for each media type and a column (cell) that provides space for you to enter your thinking as to the advantages/disadvantages, how that media types reacts to those characteristics (for example text may or may not be more enduring but is more economical way of communicating… or perhaps certain age groups or genders are attracted to graphical displays… etc.). Your responses will not be judged as long as you provide some background as to the choices you make… in other words your entries are not to be based on your opinion but fact based. How many characteristics (i.e., rows) will be context based… one idea is to simply list all of them that was provided in each cycle and if not appropriate (N/A) simply state it. Make sure you compare each media type to one another in one of your columns.
Rows for your Media Characteristics Profile
Here are some ideas (among others you should develop on your own) that you can use as a starting point in the development of your table/profile for this ecosystem. Use the same elements for each lesson:
Another element might be to ask whether this media type can be considered ‘hot’ or ‘cool’ as defined by McLuhan. If you choose to add then explain.
- Age effect.. are the media more endearing to one age group or another?
- Cognitive load? Subject to Over stimulation?
- Copyrights… what are the issues… does the medium make it easier to break laws.. ramifications?
- Dispositions (i.e., attitudes) vs knowledge acquisition.. which one (or both) does it promote/enhance?
- Gender effect… are there considerations? Does it endear one versus the other or is it neutral?
- How open to is it to individual interpretation? Is this a good thing or a bad thing?
- How well does it help to increase engagement (see cognitive load below for contrary point of view)?
- Individual vs group effect… more than sharing, doe it promote collaboration or individuality, and is this a good/bad thing?
- Interactivity…. does the medium inspire, promote levels of interaction/immersion?
- Ideally suited to One to one or groups? It is ideally suited for sharing? Does it attract one group over another? -Does it provide personalized attention?
- Does it provide a means to co-develop social structures? Related to socializing but also collaboration?
- Diversity issues… (What about special needs students?) Can it enhance interventions aimed at addressing special needs?
- Mutual shaping/negotiation of meaning… related to collaboration but in this case does it enhance the ability to come to consensus? …
- It is Participatory… does it enhance/promote participatory learning? Participatory design… can users shape the medium morph it into something else, allow the user to buy in/take ownership?
- Placement… In the text sphere, the placement of an article in a newspaper has meaning, for example… is/can the meaning that is derived be based, at least in part, to its placement, location?
- Portability… it it easily moved/shown/transported both in place but to other media?
There could be other categories and all media types participate in this way. In those cases simply get closure and demonstrate your exploring those that are not appropriate by entering N/A. On the other hand when you are the other media types one not included versus another becomes part of your comparison.
The table should list the characteristics/elements, followed by a column dedicated to describing it as an advantage or shortcoming, along with any relevant alteration/adjustment that may be necessary to ensure its viability of being utilized in a set of instruction.
You are encouraged to add other columns. In your final notebook submission you can add additional commentary based on what you learn as the other media are covered during subsequent cycles.
The overall purpose of the table is to provide a checklist upon which you will base future instructional decisions as to the kinds of media/technology you include in your designs. Recall the ASSURE model provides you an outline for how to include media into a lesson. What is missing in ASSURE is a rubric/checklist upon which you base your decisions. The goal of this course was to fill in that void.
The final notebook will be graded for inclusiveness/thoroughness as well as how well you communicate your thoughts on the subject. All work must be cited. Citing others work is an efficient way of communicating ideas saving you from having to ‘reinvent the wheel’. External links to specific writings also serve this purpose.
POST YOUR NOTEBOOK AS A XLS, PDF, TXT, OR DOC FILE IN THE DROP BOX PROVIDED IN CANVAS by the deadline.