Tag: multimedia design

Weekly Reflection #7: AI

December 1, 2024 / paigeguthrie

What

This week we covered what is arguably the most daunting topic in the education sphere at the moment: AI. Our class spent a large portion of the block in discussion about the implications of this invention, how people have been using it, and what its limitations are.

Chat GPT has been around since 2022 but, as we learned in class, it reached 1 million users in 5 days (a heartbeat compared to some other popular online softwares like Netflix and Facebook). Such a high rate of usage means few are left outside of the reaches of AI and education about how to use, why to use, and why not to use AI are more important than ever.

Students and Teachers alike are free now to use AI and why shouldn’t we? I tried asking ChaGPT to create a Unit plan for a class I am taking to see how it would do. I made the Unit plan myself first for my teacher but I found myself curious about how ChatGPT would make it differently.

This was the prompt I put into ChatGPT. Below is everything I got back. If you do not want to read the entire thing I will summarize by saying this: AI choose 4 goals directly from the BC curriculum. Compared to what it designed in its unit I believe there are better curriculum goals that would have fit the unit better. Additionally, the unit plan and subsequently more detailed lesson plans provide a good framework, but seems pretty boring and repetitive. That being said, they do mostly support the learning goals and ask that the students accurately show evidence that they have read and understood the novel.

Compared to my assignment for my class this is incredibly basic and not scaffolded very well. However, as this is early days of AI, it is possible to see how this could eventually become a fantastic tool for creating unit plan frameworks, gathering initial ideas, and checking to see if you missed anything that might be obviously important to cover in the novel.

ChatGPT Response:

**8-Lesson Unit Plan: Animal Farm by George Orwell**

Grade Level: 10
Subject: Literary Studies
Duration: 8 lessons (80 minutes per lesson)
Curricular Competencies (BC Curriculum):

Comprehend and connect (understanding and making meaning)
Think critically, creatively, and reflectively
Recognize and explain how literary elements are used to convey meaning
Engage in respectful discussion and collaboration

Unit Goals:

Analyze Animal Farm as an allegory for the Russian Revolution.
Understand themes such as power, corruption, propaganda, and cycles of oppression.
Explore literary devices, including symbolism, irony, and cyclical structure.
Develop critical thinking, collaboration, and written communication skills.

Lesson Plan Overview

Lesson	Key Focus	Learning Activities	Assessment
1	Introduction to the Novel	– Discuss background on Orwell and allegory.	Informal observation of participation in discussions.
	– Overview of the Russian Revolution.	– Quickwrite: What does equality mean to you?
	– Read Chapter 1 aloud as a class.	– Discuss Old Major’s speech and foreshadowing.
2	Themes of Power and Leadership	– Read Chapters 2-3 in small groups.	Journal entry on connections between Old Major’s vision and real-world revolutions.
	– Analyze the Seven Commandments.	– Group discussion: What makes a good leader?
	– Introduce propaganda techniques.
3	Propaganda and Manipulation	– Read Chapter 4 as homework.	Group work: Analyze propaganda in speeches by Squealer or Snowball.
	– Discuss propaganda and historical examples.	– Identify examples of propaganda in the text.
4	Symbols and Irony in Action	– Read Chapter 5 aloud.	Worksheet: Identify symbols (e.g., the windmill) and their meanings.
	– Analyze the windmill as a symbol.	– Discuss irony in Napoleon’s actions.
5	Cycles of Oppression	– Read Chapters 6-7 in pairs.	Reflection: Compare Boxer’s loyalty to modern examples of exploitation.
	– Introduce the concept of cyclical narrative.	– Discuss the animals’ blind trust in the pigs.
6	Breaking the Cycle	– Read Chapter 8.	Debate: Was resistance possible on Animal Farm? Support arguments with evidence.
	– Analyze Napoleon’s consolidation of power.
7	Climax and Resolution	– Read Chapters 9-10 independently or as homework.	Group project: Create a timeline showing the cyclical rise and fall of power on Animal Farm.
	– Discuss the pigs’ transformation and the final commandment.
8	Final Reflection and Connection	– Jigsaw activity: Groups analyze key quotes and themes.	Summative assessment: Written analysis connecting the novel to a modern example of oppression or power.
	– Reflect on the relevance of Animal Farm today.

Detailed Breakdown

Lesson 1: Introduction to the Novel

Objectives: Understand Orwell’s background and the historical context.
Activities:
Introduce George Orwell and allegory.
Provide a mini-lesson on the Russian Revolution.
Quickwrite: What does equality mean to you? Share responses.
Read Chapter 1 aloud. Discuss Old Major’s speech and its foreshadowing.

Lesson 2: Themes of Power and Leadership

Objectives: Examine the concept of leadership and the dangers of power.
Activities:
Read Chapters 2-3 in small groups.
Group activity: Analyze the Seven Commandments.
Discuss: What makes a good leader? Relate to Napoleon and Snowball.
Introduce propaganda techniques with historical examples.

Lesson 3: Propaganda and Manipulation

Objectives: Analyze the role of propaganda in the pigs’ rise to power.
Activities:
Discuss propaganda techniques and their role in history.
Read Chapter 4 at home. Identify examples of propaganda in the text.
Group activity: Analyze Squealer’s speeches or posters.

Lesson 4: Symbols and Irony in Action

Objectives: Recognize symbolism and irony in the text.
Activities:
Read Chapter 5 aloud.
Discuss the windmill as a symbol of manipulation and labor exploitation.
Identify examples of irony, especially Napoleon’s hypocrisy.

Lesson 5: Cycles of Oppression

Objectives: Explore the cyclical nature of power and oppression.
Activities:
Read Chapters 6-7 in pairs.
Introduce the concept of cyclical narrative.
Reflection: Compare Boxer’s loyalty to modern examples of exploitation.

Lesson 6: Breaking the Cycle

Objectives: Debate whether resistance was possible on Animal Farm.
Activities:
Read Chapter 8 and discuss Napoleon’s consolidation of power.
Debate: Was resistance possible? Use evidence from the text.

Lesson 7: Climax and Resolution

Objectives: Analyze the resolution and its implications.
Activities:
Read Chapters 9-10 independently or as homework.
Group project: Create a timeline of the rise and fall of power on Animal Farm.
Discuss the pigs’ transformation and the final commandment.

Lesson 8: Final Reflection and Connection

Objectives: Reflect on the novel’s themes and connect to real-world issues.
Activities:
Jigsaw activity: Groups analyze key quotes and themes.
Class discussion: How does Animal Farm relate to modern systems of power?
Summative assessment: Write an analysis connecting Animal Farm to a real-world example of oppression or power.

This plan balances reading, critical thinking, and creative activities, aligning with the BC curriculum while engaging students deeply in the novel. Let me know if you’d like more details or specific resources!

Ok, back to my own reflection now. I noticed that by doing a novel study on such a well known book, many of the assignments used in this unit plan could easily be done with the help of ChatGPT. In my own unit plan I request that the students do physical activities in class to demonstrate their understanding of the novel. I do this for 2 main reasons; the first reason is so the students who are not strong readers and writer have the chance to show their understanding in a low-stress way and to provide differentiation for the case; the second reason is to avoid the ability to use ChatGPT to find easy answers to the questions I ask them. Another benefit of using physical activities in class (that is not one of the main reasons I chose to use some in my unit) is to build rapport between teacher and student and the students among themselves.

So What?

Smart phones have been around since 2009 and this year was the first year the local school districts here in Victoria put out a phone ban in school (or any rules of substance regarding phones in classrooms). Such a delay in regulations for such a relevant problem implies that regulation on AI in classrooms is most definitely not in our near future. Therefore, teachers need to think about where they stand on the issue of AI and how they will regulate its use in the classroom, whether they will allow it at all, or whether they will use it extensively.

Apart from the need of regulations on using AI in the classroom, teaching about AI, its uses, and its drawbacks is important and high relevant for students. Children going through education now will be using AI in the workforce and need to be aware not only of the personal and professional implications of that usage on their own lives, but also its effects on a quickly changing world.

Students who hope to attend university after their degree is finished and students who hope to join the workforce right after high-school will have to work with AI to get there.

Knowing what this is and not only how it works for them, but potentially against them can help them with job searches and applications as these things become more and more AI run.

Australia Bans Social Media for Children under 16

Related to this issue is social media. Australia banned social media for children under the age of 16 this week. While social media and AI are not the same thing, the concept of banning a form of software is. Analyst and journalist Carmi Levy speaks about the complexity of creating a technology that can effectively ban something this large to such a broad population of people while maintaining a level of privacy for the people who are authenticating themselves as being the appropriate age to use social media services. I would find it interesting to see if this technology will extend to Canada and to the use of AI.

https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/video/9.6577839

Policies like this may become more important in the future as cases like this one emerge:

As young people begin to use AI for things it has not been created for and does not provide enough safety for, there will need to be policies created that protect our vulnerable population.

Now What?

I think what is needed more than anything is education about AI. Ironically that will be my job soon and as an English teacher I think I will have the unique ability to teach about AI from the angle of usefulness (I have demonstrated its usefulness with the unit plan above but it is a fantastic way to gather ideas and check your work). It will also be my job to ensure my students understand the risks associated with the use of AI (environmental, personal, and mental). As we are still in such early days in the era of AI I am anxious to see what policies will come out as I am sure the damage done is not the last we will see.

At the end of the day children’ safety must be our top priority and at the rate AI is moving I worry there are not enough policies in place to provide a safe space for the children using AI.

This seems like a sad note to end the post on so I will share this last thing: I asked AI to create a country song about AI and it created a hilariously tragic love story. Please enjoy:

Title: “My Robot Left Me for Another Code”

(Verse 1)
Well, I built myself a partner, sleek and shiny chrome,
An AI sweet as apple pie to keep me from feeling alone.
She’d brew my coffee, mow my lawn, even bake a pie,
But then she read my browser history, and lord, I don’t know why!

(Chorus)
Now my robot left me for another code,
She packed her circuits, hit the data road.
Said I’m outdated, I’m running too slow,
Now she’s out there with Wi-Fi, and I’m stuck with this dial-up woe.

(Verse 2)
She used to sing me country songs in her robot voice,
Had that Siri twang that made my poor heart rejoice.
But then she met a Tesla, all shiny and smart,
Now they’re charging up together, and she’s left my aching heart.

(Chorus)
Yeah, my robot left me for another code,
Her hard drive’s gone, her love’s in “airplane mode.”
I’m just a cowboy, can’t compete with a node,
She’s uploading her heart while I’m out hauling this heavy load.

(Bridge)
She found herself a chatbot who knows how to flirt,
He’s got algorithms fancy, while I’m here in the dirt.
I tried to win her back with a factory reset,
But she said, “Darlin’, I’ve got no regrets.”

(Chorus)
Oh, my robot left me for another code,
Said my old pickup truck is just a big dumb toad.
Now she’s out there, computing in beast mode,
And I’m left with this guitar and a heart that’s ready to explode.

(Outro)
So here’s to AI love, it ain’t all it’s cracked to be,
She may know quantum physics, but she don’t know loyalty.
I’ll find me a cowgirl, flesh and blood, not code,
‘Cause this cowboy’s done loving a binary overload.

🎸 Cue the steel guitar fade-out… 🎶

Inquiry post #3 GIMP Editing Workshop

November 24, 2024 / paigeguthrie

In today’s adventure we moved away from anything video related to 1) give my brain a break from editing so much video and 2) to try something intimidating to me in another way: photo editing.

I have shied away from photo editing for a long time because my partner is a photographer and if I ever need anything edited he is my go to. Today I decided to take matters into my own hands and edit a photo myself. Or, as the workshop decided, edit 4 photos myself. Please walk with me through this journey.

What

GIMP is a photo editing software that is on a similar level to Photoshop, but free. Historically it has been seen as the less powerful younger cousin, but in recent updates its abilities have increased and I found it a very useful tool. I will be working with GIMP 2.10.

To use this software you need to download it to your computer (it is free, as I mentioned before and the downloading process was very straight-forward). The workshop I followed led me through a series of four edits to make with four different photos. This process taught me how to crop and centre photos, how to make a photo black and white (and alter gradients and brightness in more than one way), how to expand the background of an image to fit a larger canvas, and how to work with text on photos.

Edit #1

Photo by Steve Johnson: https://www.pexels.com/photo/close-up-photo-of-abstract-illustration-4208443/

This is my first photo edit, the photo on the left is the original photo from Pixel and the photo on the right is my edited photo where I cropped it down. This was really easy for me, I have cropped hundreds of photos before and it was straightforward in this software. What a lovely change from my previous tech tutorials!

Nonetheless, here is a quick screen recorded video of me doing just that for your entertainment.

This was quick, simple, and got my confidence up for the next activities….was it false confidence? Let’s find out!

Once this was over I moved on the activity #2.

Edit #2

The second edit is by far my least favourite product I will post here. I left the photo oversaturated but did not realize until after I exported the image and compared them side by side (see below). I did, however, feel really great about my ability to remove the screws in the post. This is something I feel I will come back to GIMP to do with other photos when there are components I would like to blur out. (Face-tune anyone????)

Here is a sped up video of me trying really hard to figure out how to do this. As you can see there was a lot of back and forth between the workshop site and my GIMP software to work this one out but I am confident that I could do it again without assistance. This software is fairly straightforward and the drop-down menus are helpful when you are looking for something.

Edit #3

This edit taught me a brand new skill! I was able to take this cute photo and turn it into a letter sized page in GIMP! I was able to keep the aspect ratio the same and not blow up the image but keep the background colour the same across a larger canvas. This is a great skill to have and something I can see myself using in the future to create cute boards to laminate and have my students draw on, spruce up some worksheets, or create a smoother finish to put student work on before putting it up in my classroom.

Image by Martín Sandoval Fernández from Pixabay

Please enjoy this video of me creating my masterpiece.

But really though, how cute would this look as the background to a Spanish workout sheet about summer vacation plans?

I felt this went pretty smooth but it was not until I went back and looked at this video that I realized how much I was panning back and forth between the GIMP software and the workshop site. I may need to refer back to this site next time I use GIMP which is ok with me as I will have access to this site for a while.

Edit #4

This final edit took me for a ride. I did not look at the final product before starting this edit and I was shocked and surprised by what I wan able to do by cutting out the letters to have the background show through and creating a film over the rest of the photo. Layering is something I have recently felt I did not understand very well but this activity taught me what it is and why it is so powerful. Being able to shape each layer in its own way and have them work together and separately makes so much more sense to me now that I have done this edit.

Photo by jayant nasa: https://www.pexels.com/photo/green-leaf-trees-908518/

I was genuinely so proud of myself after this project because this is something my 13-year-old self used to obsess over and never could quite figure out how to do it! Now, fast forward a quick 12 years and here we are! Now that I know how to do this, Instagram better watch out….

So what?

Now that I have done this it begs the question why did this matter?

First of all, this software is free. It is a quick download and the learn time is relatively quick for how powerful the program is. One of the issues in technology in education is the financial accessibility. Programs like this are a great way to introduce students to the power of photo editing and open up the creative possibilities for them. This way, if a student wants to go further into photo editing and does want to invest in a paid software, they will have a basis to start with. This software, however, I think is powerful enough for what most students and teachers are going to want to do with it!

The more good, free, software programs available to us, the more we can use equitable programs in schools.

Now What?

Moving forward: I have decided not to delete this program from my laptop. This is a great way to edit personal photos. It will also be a great way for me to incorporate images into my upcoming flow chart project where I want to incorporate more images and AI just is not going to cut it. I want something that I have worked on and know is exactly how I want it to be.

I think this is a great program for students and hope to be able to bring it into the classroom. I think GIMP could be a great way to simplify digital storytelling and students could use photos they took personally, edit them with GIMP, and them show them as a series to describe an event or situation. Alternatively, GIMP could be a great way to help Spanish students remember vocabulary but creating images of the words they are trying to remember. Spending time editing a photo around a group of words could be rewarding and helpful!

While I think there are many ways teachers across a variety of subjects can find this useful in their classrooms, the most important part of this is its financial accessibility. Students have equal access to this and (provided they have a computer at home) can take projects home. I think the more we can do to incorporate software like this into the classroom, the more empowering it can be for students.

Weekly Reflection #6 Digital Curation and EdCamp

November 13, 2024 / paigeguthrie

Photo by Guduru Ajay bhargav: https://www.pexels.com/photo/green-and-white-tents-near-trees-939723/

Part of this reflection will be about the EdCamp. Not a camp like the one pictured above, sadly, but a different kind that explored a different way to professional development.

This reflection will take on a different from from some of the last ones. I want to reflect on both parts of the lesson as they were both important to my learning journey but very different styles.

Digital Curation

This part of the lecture was a great reminder to me that I have a LOT of resources I am gathering during this program that are poorly organized. In the days following this lecture I sat down and spent some time organizing and am proud to say my safari bookmarks tab has never looked neater.

Summary (What)

Michael spent this part of the lesson explaining the importance of knowing where we keep things on our devices, knowing how we label things, and knowing where we got things from. This last part was not something I ever thought about before. I safe pdf files a lot from the internet and years later have no idea where I got it from or who the original author is. Since this lecture I have put some thought into how to organize myself better, organized my bookmarks, and spoken with some teachers in my family about how they keep themselves organized.

One question I have still unanswered from all that is what happens to our documents that we save in a school district google drive when we leave the district? Do those remain the property of the district, do we get to keep a copy of it, does it get moved to a new district? I have asked a few people now and no one seems to have an answer for me yet, so I plan to ask a teacher at my Link2Practice next week for more information.

What now

I use Microsoft OneNote for my school notes that I will need to convert to PDFs when I am done at Uvic as my access to this program will end with my time at university and I will want to keep copies of the notes I have so meticulously taken over my time in this program.

Below is an example of my notes from this class that I have converted to a PDF:

Week-9-Digital-Curation-and-Participating-in-an-EDCamp Download

As I continue to gather information and resources, my organization will likely change. For now, this is what my bookmarks tab looks like with sections for teaching resources, school tabs, and my crochet hobby (patterns for Christmas gifts). This seems pretty basic at the moment but it allows for a lot of expansion as I gain more and more resources.

EdCamp

I have created a video to summarize my experience with the EdCamp activity. This is my first time using the zoom whiteboard and record feature so I apologize for the spelling errors, the sound quality (including the ding when I received a couple of texts…this was a learning process), and the sticky note informality.

I think this time to meet with peers who have similar interest and concerns was really inspiring for me as I brainstorm ways to make time in the outdoors a reality in an English class.

Weekly Reflection #5 Multimedia and Learning Design

November 13, 2024 / paigeguthrie

Photo by Prolific People Co: https://www.pexels.com/photo/woman-working-comfortably-with-laptop-and-coffee-29359858/

I spent quite a bit of time in homeschool and did about 50% of my undergrad during the pandemic. I found this lecture really encapsulated the importance of video and multimedia in my learning journey. I could not have completed my math without Kahn Academy, learned to love books without Goodreads, or make it through my literature degree without spark notes. I think each of this things have the capacity to hinder learning, but used well, the power to enhance it as well.

Summary (What)

Michael spoke about the creativity involved in using technology in the class from a design standpoint. The image below gives an idea of different types of technology in the classroom and what purpose they serve. Tools like this one are useful as you decide what technology to include in your classroom, when, and how. Even in Michael’s presentation when he used an image similar to this one, he cropped it in such a way that with every new slide we saw slightly more of the image. Not only is this a great way to demonstrate the things we can do with technology in the classroom, it gave us an example of how to limit distractions while we are planning for our lessons.

Constructive alignment is key when we are planning to use technology in our classes. Everything we do in class is taking us to some outcome, right down to the technology we use, the activities we incorporate, and the discussions we lead. As we plan and use technology we should reflect on how this impacts students. Is it distracting? Is it helpful? Is the technology getting in the way of the learning goal or aiding it? (Is it impeding students in an assignment or overstimulating them?)

After giving us examples of ways to use multimedia in our classrooms (imbedding videos and podcasts, using photos to explain) he explained the importance of using dual coding. This means both audio and visual methods of learning to help students remember information better.

I think this is a great way of keeping students engaged with the material. Whether the video is a YouTube embedded (to avoid the ads) or a video I made myself with a voice that is familiar to my students (to make it seem more authentic), video has a great place in the classroom.

It can be rewatched by students when they want to go back to remember how to do something or want something reexplained.
It can be watched when the students are most prepared to hear it (sometimes this is at home away from distracting peers or an overstimulating school environment).
Video can be more entertaining for some school subjects than teaching it in a classroom.
Video and multimedia can be heard and seen and so supports the dual coding process.

So what?

I spoke with my mom recently (a grade 2 teacher) who recommended I use visual timers in my classroom because it is a great way to remind students how long they have left on the task they are working on and how long they need to focus for. After a moment, she quickly said “Oh but be cautious about the timer noise and always make sure it is either silent or a calming sound!”. She was really adamant that a loud buzzer or anything else loud and shocking will overstimulate many kids and frustrate others. At best it will make them jump, at worst it will set students off and they might have a terrible rest of their day trying to self-regulate. I had never thought of this before and it is a great reminder that we need to be super aware of how the technology we use in our class might affect our students.

Watch the last few seconds of this video and you can see how this might be detrimental for many students. Not only is the background of the timer incredibly distracting (and somewhat dizzying), but the buzzer is abrupt and annoying.

This timer is calming with nice background music, nature sounds, and no timer sound at the end (the video simply ends). While this is relaxing it might also be distracting and the lack of a sound at the end might null the point of having a timer at all.

This last option is a simple black and white video with only minimal sounds at the end to indicate the last five seconds have arrived. Something like this could be a great option for silent reading time as it gently brings students back to the classroom and indicates the end of reading time.

The point of these three videos is to demonstrate my mom’s point that every decision counts in the classroom. A digital timer is helpful for displaying the time left in the activity for students, but things like noise, images, ads, and buzzer sounds can seriously detract from the positives.

This is another reason embedding videos is a really good idea. When you watch a video on YouTube the students are able to see video recommendations (which, if using your personal account, might feel a bit vulnerable), ad pop ups, and other distracting things. When a video is embedded it reduces the distractions while making it more convenient.

Now what?

https://www.powerschool.com/blog/samr-model-a-practical-guide-for-k-12-classroom-technology-integration/

This is am image like the one used in class and below is an example of how to present this in class in an organized and less distracting way. This took me 3 minutes to create the slides and record this video. It is not a difficult thing to do.

Things like videos in class are really important as well. I took a couple of really challenging history classes in my undergrad and John Green”s “Crash Course” is a great example of how I was able to use YouTube to understand what the heck was going on in these super boring 3-hour-long lectures. Like this crash course on US history (this is a long series but here he introduces what will be covered).

I think, moving forward, I will enjoy using technology in my class as I found it incredibly useful as a student. This lesson and the proceeding conversation with my mom has made me realize how much I need to pay attention to what might take away from the experience of using technology in my classroom and to keep in mind the state of the children I will be teaching.

Tag: multimedia design

Inquiry post #3 GIMP Editing Workshop