Sean Canread on PhotoPeach
Sean Canread on PhotoPeach
Experience
Preparation
I followed the track recommended on the 50 ways website where I created my story first, then chose my media and finally the tool. I found this advice very valuable when it came to the actual authoring process as uploading my media and text content were more effective than trying to search for the media and create text within the tool.
My Story
The educational focus of the exercise created potential dangers of creating media that was a lesson rather than a story. In the end I decided to use a personal experience that was very tied to the concept of education technology and this made the authoring much more real, personal, engaging and relevant. I told the story of a young boy who has literacy problems and my experience in trying, and failing, to assist him in the way I would have liked.
Choosing my tool
I tried a number of tools: Empressr, Babble, Slideshow, Xtranormal and finally PhotoPeach. The one I really wanted to work with was Empressr because I wanted to work with text, pictures, videos and voice. However, the video upload was problematic. Xtranormal was fun but had potential costing issues and also the story was so real to me that I wanted to present it using real characters. Babble was also fun for animating pictures but I wanted to use several images in my story. Slideshow and PhotoPeach were ideal for this.
PhotoPeach was a lot more user friendly for uploading images and text, adding music and adding text. Editing was also easier. Because of the restriction to images, absence of voice and video, I invested a lot of time in sourcing photos that related not only the idea but the emotional qualities experienced. In this way the use of mashups really felt like an artist using a variety of media to generate an art piece. I had to be more efficient with my words in order not to create lengthly text on slides. It was actually good that the captions had a word limit.
This experience actually reinforced efficiency of language and focus in presenting ideas clearly and succinctly. When reviewing the presentation I found that the lack of audio focused on the emotions within the pictures. It is often said that a picture is worth a thousand words and I saw that evidenced here.
Use in the Educational Context
The story itself carries material that can be used to generate discussions, create problem sets and collaborative problem solving exercises. I ask questions of the design, use, and management of technology to facilitate and enhance learning. It addresses issues of inclusion and individual design and roles and responsibilities in order to create more meaningful learning (Chickering & Ehrmann, 1996). In its stimulation of critical thinking and problem solving it satisfies the International Society for Technology in Education standards for students’ digital learning (http://www.iste.org/standards/nets-for-students.aspx) while also meeting standards for teachers in: facilitating and inspiring student learning and creativity and designing; modeling digital-age work and learning; and developing digital-age learning experience with the opportunity for use as an alternative form of assessment.
The tool itself can be used to engage students in creating, viewing and analysing multimedia presentations utilising ‘mashups’ and ‘remixes’ thus increasing creativity (Lamb, 2007) and also catering to diverse learners and multiple intelligences (Howard Gardner).
PhotoPeach is free and easy to use and easily accessible for students. It is alo very user friendly and will rate highly in integration and use of technology within higher education as assesed within the SECTIONS framework (Bates & Poole, 2003). It offers opportunities for active hands on tasks, which reasearch shows increases motivation and retention of activities (Dale’s Cone of Experience, http://www.indiana.edu/~molpage/Cone%20of%20Experience_text.pdf).
One essential point to note is that considerations of copyright severely restricted choice of images that were culturally appropriate. I utilised images and music from sources operating under creative commons (http://creativecommons.org). Therefore, although the story is useful as is I would encourage creating and using original content where necessary to satisfy relevance.
References
Bates, A.W., & Poole, G. (2003). Effective teaching with technology in higher education. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Chickering, A.W. & Ehrmann, S.C. (1996). Implementing the Seven Principles: Technology as Lever. American Association for Higher Education Bulletin, 49(2), 3-6. Retrieved from: http://www.aahea.org/bulletins/articles/sevenprinciples.htm
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 19, 2011 http://www.educause.edu/ER/EDUCAUSEReviewMagazineVolume42/DrMashuporWhyEducatorsShouldLe/161747
National Educational Technology Standards for Students. Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/standards/nets-for-students.aspx
National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers. Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/standards/nets-for-teachers/nets-for-teachers-2008.aspx
Resources
Alan Levine. (2007). “50 Web 2.0 Ways to Tell a Story.” Accessed 17 July 2011 http://cogdogroo.wikispaces.com/StoryTools
http://www.dreamstime.com/
http://openphoto.net/gallery/http://www.pics4learning.com/
http://www.pics4learning.com/