Week 1: Introductions
Welcome to the course! This week serves as both an introduction to the course (generally, the course content, the pacing, the format, and so on) as well as an introduction to the kinds of platforms we’ll be building on throughout the semester (mainly Adobe software). You’ll notice that the course tends to focus heavily on stories and there’s a reason for this: they’re effective, engaging, and often universal. At every point along the way of becoming a great presenter of stories (and interpreter of them, too!), you’ll need to constantly improve your skills and reflect upon your strenghts and weaknesses.
Your main deliverable during the first week, which, again, is really an introduction to the course, is an introduction to none other than you! Using Adobe Spark, Adobe’s rapid media creation tool, you’ll make a video all about yourself and how you got to be where you are today. More on that below.
You are also encouraged to keep notes throughout the semester on what you’ve done, what you’d like to get better at, and what content you feel really strikes you. This can only be beneficial, I assure you!
Learning Objectives for Week 1
These are the learning objectives for this portion of the class:
- Familiarize yourself with the course structure.
- Compare and contrast literacy types including digital, media, and information literacies.
- Utilize a popular, current technology (Adobe Spark) to present asynchronously via digital video online.
- Convert a typed script into an oral, video presentation.
- Compare and contrast informational sources with regards to credibility and viewpoint
- Explore social media as a reliable information dissemination tool
- Critically analyze media types for effectiveness in communicating information
- Define “story”
- Identify the critical components of a story
- Explain “explainer” video
Consumables
Each week there will be a number of items for you to consume, be it reading, watching, listening, or a combination thereof. Note that some of these are local pages and some are links outside the site!
Readings and videos
- This Is a Generic Brand Video
- “Dissolve incorporates cynical humour in a simple, yet hilariously impressive video. They decide to poke fun at the tendency of modern marketing to use the same old, clichéd footage in so many campaigns, but in a bold and funny way. The humour they use was so relatable to their audience of creatives working in advertising and marketing, it’s no surprise the video was shared in huge numbers, attracting media coverage and going viral in a short space of time.”
- Throughout the semester, you’ll be focusing on not just telling but showing. There’s no surprise that YouTube and TikTok are major drivers in how we consume information and engage with the world, after all. This video is a tongue-in-cheek look at film imagery (but think about how it can also be instructive in terms of being inclusive when producing content!).
- Explainer Videos
- “The immense swell of a tsunami can grow up to 100 feet, hitting speeds over 500 mph – a treacherous combination for anyone or anything in its path. Alex Gendler details the causes of these towering terrors and explains how scientists are seeking to reduce their destruction in the future.”
- Explainers are exactly what they sound like: content that is produced specifically to explain something. As you watch this, consider its effectiveness and whether you found it engaging.
- Great Presentations
- “You’ve probably listened to scores of presentations over the years. Stop and think for a second how many could be described as ‘great' (not just ‘OK'). How many were memorable? Caught and held your interest from the word go? Entertained as well as informed? Inspired you to actually do something? Not many, I’ll bet. In my view there are seven characteristics of a great presentation, and any which does not have at least five of them is probably destined to be filed mentally under ‘F for Forget'.”
- What is Information Literacy?
- “What is information literacy? This video briefly explains, in plain English, information literacy in light of the ACRL Framework for Information Literacy in Higher Education and explains how these concepts apply in the real world, beyond the classroom. It is geared toward students, faculty, and anyone wanting to learn more about IL. Copyright: Vanessa Garofalo, MLIS”
- What is Digital Literacy?
- “Digital literacy is the ability to identify and use technology confidently, creatively and critically to meet the demands and challenges of living, learning and working in a digital society.”
- Everyone Around You Has a Story
- “Dave Isay opened the first StoryCorps booth in New York’s Grand Central Terminal in 2003 with the intention of creating a quiet place where a person could honor someone who mattered to them by listening to their story. Since then, StoryCorps has evolved into the single largest collection of human voices ever recorded. His TED Prize wish: to grow this digital archive of the collective wisdom of humanity. Hear his vision to take StoryCorps global — and how you can be a part of it by interviewing someone with the StoryCorps app.”
- Write Your Best Story
- “The following is excerpted from How to Write Your Best Story by Philip Martin. It may seem to address a simplistic question, but I must agree with Steven Spielberg when he said, “People have forgotten how to tell a story.” So I hope you won’t be too proud to remind yourself what storytelling is all about.”
- What is a story?
Software to install
If I were you, I’d just go ahead and install everything we’ll be using for the semester. That includes getting access to Adobe Creative Cloud and installing OBS Studio. Adobe Spark has no software to install. You’ll also need to install Microsoft Teams
Assignments
Your assignments for this portion of week 1 are as follows:
- Video Editing survey: find this in the Week 1 folder in the LMS.
- P1 Adobe Spark Introduction activity
- Update your D2L profile with a current photo
- Request the Adobe Creative Cloud software. Install at least Premiere Pro and Audition. You’re welcome to explore the suite beyond this, however.
- Install OBS Studio.
- Install Microsoft Teams