Using Alan Levine’s 50 web 2.0 ways to tell a story has been very exciting and illuminating. For me this assignment was two fold, I learned how to create a digital story but it also showed me that for me to really get the most out of any web 2.0 application, I really need to change my habit of thinking when it comes to creating content.
My Choice
I have gone back and forth on which version to submit. My first version of my digital story was created in Pixton, a comic of Act II scene i and ii of Macbeth. With my second version I took the comic I created in Pixton and put it in SlideRocket, a premium power point presentation tool. It worked well, and the end result was similar to a guided reading activity. However, it did present me with a dilemma. My dilemma was this: while I think my original is a better product (more crisp) the second version displays a better use of web. 2.0 tools. The second version of my story’s quality is not as high as the original. With the awareness I am most likely going to lose a point with either version, I have decided to hand in the second version of this project. This course IS about learning how to use the tools available to us. That being said, If I were just using this for the classroom, I would be using my original version.
You can view my digital story HERE.
Why A Comic
I realize now it would have been a better to create a story using more than one web 2.O tool if I had create a video and added audio to it. However, my goal for this assignment was to experiment with a F2F class assignment that I have done in the past and see how it transfers over to the web. I am glad I did this experiment, I found a tool that I really love that will allow me to take a project that I am familiar with and take it o the next level. I have always done a graphic novel unit alongside of the Shakespeare unit. It helps break up the heaviness and also allows for some interesting comparisons in story telling and language. At the end of both Units the students create their own adapted comic version of the play that they read. Almost always it ends up being one of their main show pieces for their portfolio at the end of the year. I wanted to see how this would translate through the use of technology.
I was very pleased with Pixton and I would absolutely introduce this to my students as a tool they could use to create their project. It was very user friendly and it gives the creator more control and flexibility than the other comic creators on the list. What I like about it the most is that it will allow the students who may not be artistic to create an artistic piece.
When I decided to try and add a second web 2.0 tool (the dreaded phrase “at least one web 2.0 tool” was haunting my dreams) I searched through the slide options. I came across Sliderocket and decided to use it because it seemed to match Pixton in quality, control, flexibility and ease of use. What really sold me on using it in the end was the fact that I would be bale to see who viewed the presentation and for how long. As a teacher, this is very beneficial for me. I would be able to know easily which students viewed the presentation and how long they spent on it. If any students were having trouble answering the questions related to the presentation I would be able to see quickly if it was a time on task issue or perhaps a comprehension issue.
What I really learned
I had not considered using a second web 2.0 tool on my comic until I saw what another student in this course had done. He had created a comic using the same tool as I had and had added one of the other slide options. The end result was really great. I realized I had been going about this project as if it were still limited to the dimensions of a real classroom. I was applying my old way of thinking to a new medium. What this assignment really made me realize is that thinking outside the box when it comes to web 2.0 tools is really the key to creating something useful, engaging and unique. I think it is going to take some time to change my habit of thought, but at least the seed has been planted and hopefully the next time it comes more naturally.
Resources
Lamb, B. (2007). Dr. Mashup; or, Why Educators Should Learn to Stop Worrying and Love the Remix. EDUCAUSE Review, vol. 42, no. 4 (July/August 2007): 12–25. Accessed online July 8 2009 http://www.educause.edu
Lambert, J. (2002) Digital storytelling: Capturing lives, creating community. Berkeley, CA: Digital Diner.
Roby, T. (2010). Opus in the classroom: Striking CoRDS with content-related digital storytelling. Contemporary Issues in Technology and Teacher Education, 10(1). Retrieved from http://www.citejournal.org/vol10/iss1/currentpractice/article1.cfm