Note: This guide will give you a sense of what will take place in Digital Storytelling: Argument and Advocacy. The course continually develops– assignments and requirements change. But this can give you a notion of some of what you’ll learn.

When it comes to writing, I believe that learning comes in two ways. There are things I can tell you– about how to work and about your work. But much of what you need to know you can only learn by doing– by creating, designing and writing. In that respect, my job is to design a class that create problems for you– good problems, problems worth solving.

One problem will be finding an issue that you want to write about, something you feel a passion for, something matters to you. Another problem will how to design a “story package,” a collection of audio, visual, and textual elements that work together to bring your issue to life for an audience. Another will be how to form these elements into whole that engages an audience.

Our work together will be a conversation. You’ll produce different kinds of work– a journal, practice assignments, plans and drafts. You’ll also participate in a discussion with one another and provide observations of each other’s work.

At the heart of this, though, will be a project that teaches you something. Don’t only think of something you want to say. Think also about how understanding this issue or topic more deeply or more thoroughly can contribute to your life. It’s not such a silly thing to imagine. What matters to you to know is also more likely to matter to you to tell others.

Since we’ll be working with technology and since some of you will be new to online classes, expect glitches and hitches. Don’t get stressed. Contact me immediately, though, and we can sort things out. I read email throughout the day. If you email me after five, I’ll respond the following morning. Always make a leap though. Unless you’re unable to do an assignment, take your best shot: it’s better to show what you understand. It makes it easier to help. Likewise, if you’re confused about an assignment, don’t simply write “I’m confused”. Instead, tell me what you think the assignment asks of you and how you intend to approach it. Most of the time, you know what you need to do, but may feel unconfident about your choice. In any case, if I know what you understand, then I can help you out. If only know that you feel confused, I won’t know where to start.

Our schedule covers the first week of class. The items in the schedule tell you day by day what is due. It’s a good idea to read the next day’s assignments so you have an idea of what’s ahead each day. Start with reading today’s assignment, then review the rest of the course guide. Get to know what’s in it. In addition to the syllabus, you’ll find the material that will help you understand the project you’re working toward (the story package) and the way you’ll get there. Thank you for taking the time to work together this winter. I look forward to your work.

Best,

Robert

Writ 351New Media Writing: Argument and AdvocacyWinter 17

Robert Danberg, PhDOffice: TU 3C Office Hours: TBA Phone: Upon request email: rdanberg@binghamton.edu

Course Description

In this class, we’ll explore the creative and critical potential of new media to argue and to advocate. Students will create, write for and edit stories that combine audio, video, graphic, and textual elements.

Learning Outcomes

• Be able to use a critical, rhetorical approach the content and design of online texts
• Be able to identify audio, video, textual and graphic forms and how they serve communication in mult-modal texts
• Use a critical rhetorical approach and knowledge of multimodal texts to design and compose their own online publications
• Draft, write, plan and revise online content

Course Text

The Multimedia Journalist, Oxford University Press,Jennifer George-Palilonis

Communication

I will communicate via email and announcements through Blackboard.  Please read all communication promptly.  At times, I will ask to “Please Reply” that you have read and understood the email I’ve sent. Communication is extremely important to your success in class.  If you have problems with assignment instructions or personal or technical emergencies that have an impact on your performance in class, you must contact me.  When you contact me, we can, perhaps, arrive at a solution.  

Disabilities  

The Writing Initiative is committed to open access for students with disabilities. If you have a disability that requires specific accommodations in this course, please let me know as soon as possible. This information will be kept confidential.  

Late or Missed Assignments

Late and missed assignments will have an impact on your grade. See Grading in our course guide for more information.

Statement of Support

If you are experiencing undue personal or academic stress at any time during the semester or need to talk with someone about a personal problem or situation, I encourage you to seek support as soon as possible. I am available to talk with you about stresses related to your work in my class. Additionally, I can assist you in reaching out to any one of a wide range of campus resources, including:

• Dean of Students Office: 607-777-2804
• Decker Student Health Services Center: 607-777-2221
• University Police: On campus emergency, 911
• University Counseling Center: 607-777-2772
• Interpersonal Violence Prevention: 607-777-3062
• Harpur Advising: 607-777-6305
• Office of International Student & Scholar Services:607-777-2510

In the event that you choose to write or speak about experiencing or surviving sexual violence, including sexual harassment, dating and domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, and rape, please keep in mind that federal and state laws require that, as your instructor, I notify the Title IX Coordinator, Andrew Baker. He will contact you and provide you with on and off campus resources and discuss your options with you. If you would like to disclose your experience confidentially, you can contact University Counseling Center, Decker Student Health Services, Harpur’s Ferry, Ombudsman, or Campus Ministry. For more information, please go to https://www.binghamton.edu/ivp/or https://www.binghamton.edu/rmac/title-ix/.

Plagiarism and Binghamton’s Academic Honesty Code

A primary goal of this class is to teach you how to use and document sources appropriately. If you have questions or are confused, please do not hesitate to ask. Any violation of the Academic Honesty Code, however, constitutes plagiarism, which can result in failure of the course or suspension from the University. The Academic Honesty Code defines plagiarism as:

Presenting the work of another person as one’s own work (including papers, words, ideas, information, computer code, data, evidence-organizing principles, or style of presentation of someone else taken from the Internet, books, periodicals or other sources). This includes:

• quoting, paraphrasing, or summarizing without acknowledgement, even a few phrases;
• failing to acknowledge the source of a major idea or ordering principle central to one’s work;
• relying on another person’s data, evidence or critical method without credit or permission;
• submitting another person’s work as one’s own or using unacknowledged research sources gathered by someone else. (http://bulletin.binghamton.edu/integrity.htm)

Go to Atavist.com.

Login: User Name: wywigs; Password: WRIT 3511

Note: After you’ve entered content, select “Save”. Do not “Publish”. When you publish, the document becomes available on the web. As long as you don’t publish, it remains in the project stage, open only to the class and me.

Create Your :

Name it <351 Last Name> example: <351 Danberg>

Adding Text and Saving

Adding text is easy. You can type directly into Atavist or paste text into it. With your early drafts, I suggest using Google Docs. Atavist is a terrific streamlined publishing program, but not a word processing program. You can’t revert to previous drafts as you can in Google Docs. It has not function for spell or grammar check, outlining or commenting. If I am writing something brief for a document like the course guide, I might type directly into Atavist, but even so, when my internet connection is slow, I type my content into a Google Doc then copy and paste.

After you’ve entered content, select “Save”. Atavist doesn’t save automatically so do save periodically. You can see how things will look once published by choosing “Preview”. But do not “Publish”. When you publish, the document becomes available on the web. As long as you don’t publish, it remains in the project stage, open only to the class and me.  

Choose a project theme and navigation type

Review Atavist Help Videos

Set Up and Basics

• 0-0:50 Opening up Your Project
• 0:50-2:05 Add Text 1, Intro to blocks to add images, video, sound, etc.
• 2:05-5:42 Set up a section (think of it as a chapter); Give it a title and subtitles; Choose a Title Design; Choose a Divider Color (Slightly different than video. Divider color appears only if you choose a design that is not “Simple” which is the default); Paragraph indent Save and Preview

Adding Text and Images

• 0-  2:05    Create Your Project, Give it a Title and Add Author’s Name
• 2:05-8:00 Title Design (Choosing Your Title Page), Navigation Bar (Left or Top Table of Contents– Slightly different than the Video:  to see the choice between paginate and scroll, you must choose left  or top table of contents– choose paginate); Theme (Type and style  of the text in the document; 8:00-end Preview

Review Atavist.Com Help Resource Documents

https://docs.atavist.com/– Choose “How to…”. The Atavist help pages are excellent and are good examples of multimedia documents of the kind you’ll produce. The writing is clear and organized, the page designs favor easy reading and navigation, and video/graphic elements are apt and easy to use. We’ll primarily be concerned with “Compose,” “Manage,” and “Design”.

Dialogue Journal

To create your story package, you need to identify an issue that benefits from the rich possibilities that multimedia storytelling affords. In your journal, you’ll start developing your ideas. I’ll read your journal and, every other day, reply with a few sentences: thoughts, suggestions, questions. Whatever I think might help.

Format

In your project folder, create a section called “Journal”

1. For each day, put the date in bold-faced. Under it, start your entry.
2. If you discuss a source, give source information: Publication or site where you found the source, date when it material was published and when you accessed it, the name of the piece, and the author’s name. You don’t need to put this in the form of formal citation entry. Treat this as simply telling you reader what you have found and will talk about. Names of publications should be in bold and names of articles or blog entries or any kind of title should be in italics.
3. Feel free to upload videos or images or provide links.

Length

Each entry should be between 100 and 200 words long.

Week 1- Day 1 Topic

Introduce yourself to me. Think of yourself as a writer/editor for an online publication. You’re going to be responsible for a “beat”– you’ll create a story package on a specific issue that interests you. In your first blog entry, tell us about yourself. This can be a hard, vague, assignment, so imagine that, to an extent, you’re trying to show us you background see that we can help you identify an area of interest to write about– we help you better if we know you better. Some angles on this task are: what interests do you have, what issues are important to you, what concerns do you have about the world around you, where would you like to make an impact in the world, what would you like to learn, what would you like to experience, how would you like to contribute? If already have an issue in mind, tell us what you’re thinking.

Week 1- Days 2-5 Topic

Start to collect sources and story package ideas. You can

1. Describe and summarize a source of information. You should be sure to include bibliographic information.  
2. Describe the evolution of your thinking on the issue. You can connect the day’s source to a source from another day. You can describe how the issue is coming into focus, along with any questions that you have or things you want to know. You can talk about how a source can be useful to you.
3. Brainstorm a design feature of your story package. Do you have an idea of a graphic element, a chart or image, a video element, an aspect of the text you might write? Imagine what it might be.

Story Package

Overview: You’re a writer for an online magazine, TestingOne, an online news and culture publication for Binghamton Students. You’ll create a story package (see Chapter 11, p. 237 in our textbook). It will combine different elements– audio, video, graphic, text– to report on a story, the topic of which you will choose. It can come from your academic background or pertain to current social, political, or cultural issues. Over the first week of class, you’ll explore potential topics and analyze story packages to see how the different forms (audio, video, etc.) combine with textual elements to engage an audience. During the second week of class, you’ll research, plan and design your story package. During the third week, you’ll revise and assemble the text. Along the way, you’ll analyze examples and practice forms. When it’s completed, your story package should be a text that integrates two of the following three elements:  audio, video, and graphic. On Tuesday, you’ll begin to analyze some story packages, but for now, take a stroll through the following collection of examples at Atavist.  Skim over several and linger on the ones you like. It’ll help you envision the project.

You’re responsible for an article that identifies a problem and reports on it.  The problem may be something you believe

• We are not paying attention to but need to pay attention to or,
• We do one way but need to do another way, or
• We are unaware of but need to become aware of, or
• We think about one way but need to think about a different way.

Your story package should have a purpose– to expose, inform, explain, persuade– and a point of view. Unlike an argument, you are not taking a position on an active dispute. You see the problem a certain way and believe it requires attention.  You should, however, acknowledge alternative perspectives.  Your job is not to undermine those perspectives, only to acknowledge them in context.

Length: 1000 to 1200 words of text divided up across several different short sections that cover aspects of your topic.

Citation: MLA Format Two kinds required: links in the text to articles available online as well as MLA  style in text citations and a Works Cited page as well for all sources on a separate page at the end of the document. See The Norton Field Guide for instructions on MLA Citation

Required Sources: You are required to research and source your article– five sources, at least.

You can earn a total of two hundred points. Rubrics can be found at the link.

Project Folder: Homework assignments:  25 Points

Project Folder: Research Blog/Journal Entries:  25 Points

Discussion Board: 25 points

Peer Review: 25 Points

Briefs: 25 points

Story Package: 75 points

After I’ve assigned your points, I subtract points for the following: a pattern of late and missed assignments, failure to respond to emails I send that indicate I need a response and other behaviors contrary to the professionalism the course demands. I will lower your final grade by a step: A becomes A-, A- B+ and so on.

If you miss a peer review assignment or don’t post work for people to respond to, I will lower your final grade by a step: A becomes A-, A- B+ and so on.

Chapter Notes: Instruction Manual

When you take notes, you read with a purpose in mind, so your note taking should serve that purpose.

“Instruction Manual” is a simple note-taking technique that serves two purposes. I should be a reference point for you so that you can refer to your notes first then go back to the source. It demonstrates to me that you’re thinking discriminately about the subject matter.

Instructions:

In your project folder, create a section for reading notes.

All instruction manual assignments belong in the instructional manual section.For each new set of notes, put the chapter and the date before begin and them.

Pretend your notes will form the basis of an instruction manual. Make a

that tells a reader what she should do or not do, remember or ignore, that provides her with any definitions she needs, things to watch out for or concepts to remember. No more than ten, no fewer than eight.

• Choose items based on their significance to you.
• Be concise and direct.
• If you use any special phrase directly from the reading, put quotes around it and a page number in parenthesis.
• Put page numbers in parenthesis at the end of the bulleted statements to remind us where the information came from in the book.
• Define terms you use that might be unfamiliar.
• Offer examples from outside of the reading if you feeling that would help make something clearer.

At the bottom of the page, in bold, write a chapter summary that explains what the chapter does (it describes…, it explains how…), how it’s laid out (It’s divided into sections that…Each section explains an…), and what the chapter says (the writer says that journalists need to …There are several different kinds of…)

This assignment is a version of question #3 on page eighteen of our textbook. Write a 600 to 800 word brief on a multimedia story package. A brief is a concise statement or summary that outlines a text, an issue, or a response to an issue. In your brief, you’ll analyze a multimedia story package. You can analyze one of the stories from our discussion board, use an example from the atavist examples page, or look at publications like TheAtlantic.Com or The New York Times, two news sources that have made multimedia packages an important part of their reporting.

On page 18, you’ll find ten questions that your brief should answer. But you don’t want to simply lay this out like a list of questions you answer one at a time. Instead, group them together in sections. You’ll notice that the questions are related to one another– 1 through 3 deal with content, 4 through 6 with design and 7 through 10 with your evaluation. When you evaluate something like this, you want to be sure your criteria are clear and part of any claim you make. You’ve read the chapters and had the discussions– don’t just say that something is “weak”. Instead think of what makes something work or not and explain why. Show what you’ve learned and give examples.

To Submit:

To submit, create a section in your Project Folder called Brief 1: Name of the Story the Brief is About.

In lieu of heading, put the name of the piece that you are analyzing at the top of the page. Embed a link in the title so that I can find my way to the piece easily. If you are using at Atavist example, the link will be to the example page. I’ll know to scroll down.

When you write something like this, you’re doing something different than when you write an academic essay. You’re reporting the outcome of your analysis. Don’t work your way toward your point, make your point. Provide examples. Elaborate and explain. Think in terms of writing like this as an action: to inform, to report, to explain. It doesn’t begin with a formal introductory paragraph. The reader– myself– requested that you submit this. You can look at the rubric: there’s a button below that takes you to the link. That’s how I assess the written work (you can rewrite for the end of the term.

For an example of annotation, you can view my annotations of “On the Waterfront”.

Overview:

Annotation can work in several ways. Often, it provides information that elaborates on or supplements the text for a reader. It might explain something, define something, summarize or offer background information. An annotation can ask a question, offer an opinion, or supply an interpretation.

For your first annotation assignment, I want you to read the piece and examine the various story forms involved, including images, videos, and links.(Follow the link, for example, and come back to describe its function or value). By now, you’ve read about story packages and multimedia. Provide three comments. You can comment on a paragraph, a section, a passage, a video– any element. (You can’t annotate a video with Hypothes.is, so if you want to comment on a video, choose a place in nearby text to provide an annotation and be sure to explain tat you’re referring to the video, image or link.)

Instructions: Log into Hypothes.is, got to the WRIT 351 Group and link to the day’s article. Read the article and annotate to complete the following task.

Go paragraph by paragraph, story element by story element, and think in terms of our discussion board questions to ask yourself these two questions about the story elements involved.

• What does it say?
• What does it do?

This very simple exercise is the bedrock of critical reading and analysis. If you want to learn how a work of communication “works,” break down its parts and ask yourself those two simple questions. “What does this part say to the reader?” “What does it do as a part of the piece.” Each part of the piece contributes to the whole by saying something to the reader and by completing an action. For an example, see my annotation of On the Waterfront by logging into hypothes.is and our group.

Watch the video below for a further explanation.

The Elements of Your Story Package

1. Point of View

What is the main point of the story and what is the perspective of the author? Point of view is an angle on things, an attitude or stance, toward the subject.  It should be strong and clear and reflected in the angle of vision you provide the reader.

2. A Dramatic Question

What is the key question that keeps the viewer’s attention and will be answered by the end of the article. This is the compelling reason why the subject is  important to the audience.

3. Emotional Content

What issue come alive in a powerful way and connects the audience to the story’s subject? The most compelling articles are ones that have emotional content that the audience can connect to and understand. The article offers details and stories that brings the subject to life.

4. The Gift of Your Voice

How does the writer’s stance on the issue come to life for the audience?

In an article, voice is an important part of the telling. You don’t have to be dramatic. In fact, it’s likely that if you’re overly dramatic, you’re more likely to tell the audience more about how you feel and turn them off. Your voice comes through in how you bring the article’s subject to life for the audience. It’s important to speak the story in a way that shows how it matters to the audience’s community.

5. The Power of Detail and Evidence

What kind of appropriate information and credible supporting evidence do the writer provide to help the reader experience the subject? Your goal is to bring the subject to life for the audience. The audience relies on you for information. To be powerful, though, that detail and evidence must be credibly source and offered without immediate judgment.

6. Structure

How are the parts of the piece organized and how is the piece organized into logical parts that enhance the reader’s experience of the article? Effective structure depends on the purpose being clear to the reader and on the writer providing the reader with just enough direction to read confidently and make sense of the journey through the piece.

7. The Power of Story Forms

How do the various elements combine to provide readers with different ways to connect with and interact with the subject matter? Each element may play a different role within the content of the story and the context of the telling, but together they form a whole that engages the audience.

8. The power of the “lede” and the closing.

How does the writer open the reader to connect the audience to the story and close to leave the audience with a strong impression?

Articles like the ones you write open and close powerfully and emphatically. The opening, which is often called the lede, connects the audience to the subject. Similarly, the last moment you have with the reader. It should be vivid and and powerful, leaving the reader to ponder the implications of what they have learned.

9. Navigation and Architecture.

Is the reader able to easily find her way around the various story forms and feel control over the experience of the story? An advantage of the story package, or at least an aspect that can make it a uniquely powerful experience,  is that readers can control the experience of the story. They can read from beginning to end, but they may choose to look at elements separately or navigate the story in their own way.

The Story Package Pitch report is your first effort to articulate your story package– the final project that you’ll submit.

To access the documents you need to complete, follow this link:

Story Package Pitch Report

This is a multi-part document that begins the process of submitting a pitch. I and your classmates will offer responses to it to help you develop a pitch for your story package. I may ask you to revise it before you submit the pitch. I may also ask you to revise the pitch in response to my comments. You cannot begin the story package process until your pitch has been approved. You cannot begin the pitch until your report has been approved.

For this assignment, you’ll create an audio script, which you’ll also record. The assignment is based on the From Where I Stand audio stories we listened to on The Newest Americans.

Overview: The From Where I Stand audio stories (Link 1, Link 2, Link 3) provide listeners with a view of an issue from the reporter’s perspective. Among the pieces we listened to, we hear reflections on transgender experience, refugee, and the immigrant experience. An important aspect of these pieces can be found in the phrase “From Where I Stand,” which implies two things. One is that the author’s perspective is at the center. The second is that author is looking outward. The writer sees his or her experience as a way to talk about an issue that concerns them. You have two choices: You can create a piece that reflects on some aspect of your particular issue or you can reflect on another issue. Remember that this is more like an essay, than a memoir. The writer’s experience is a starting point or a vantage point, but it’s not “about” the writer, it’s the writer’s view of some aspect of the world he or she feels compelled to reflect upon. Take your issue into account. Think about what motivates you.

Once you’ve written the piece, print the script. I want you to read it aloud several times, then record it. Once you’ve recorded it, I want you to listen back to it and edit your piece with readability, conciseness, intonation, and other features related to voice.

Instructions: Compose a 375 to 350-word script. The script will be assessed based on the features laid out in the rubric linked below, which you’ll be familiar with from your reading and discussion.

Rubric: From Where I Stand Rubric. It can also be found in the submissions folder.

Form: Write your script in a way that that shows spacing and rhythm. Think in terms of short paragraphs that chunk sentences together.

Submit: Upload your script to your submissions folder.

Font and Spacing: 12 Point Type, Times New Roman, Double-spaced

Overview: Think of this as a virtual editorial workshop. Consider your feedback to have the following goal: to reflect back to the writer possible lines of inquiry and interesting stories. Our goal as a group is to sharpen our approach to the work we’ll publish and to support writers in their efforts to produce good work. In this kind of meeting, the goal is not to critique, but to reflect back to the writer what strikes you as fruitful in their approaches, to offer topic knowledge you might have or suggest lines of inquiry you think might help the writer accomplish their work. That last bit is key: you want to help them find their own work, not imagine what they might do if they were you.

Instructions: In the Research Blog, read your classmates entries. They may only have posted three at this point since the Friday entry is not due until 11:59 pm. Choose two classmates entries to read closely (skim them all to make sure you have something to say). At the bottom of their pages, in bold face, write a paragraph long letter along the lines below.  You can respond to someone else’s letter, too. If you find that someone already has two letters from classmates, move on to someone else. The limit per person is two.

Thinking like an editor: What interesting stories come to mind when you read their entries? Editors think about their audience’s interests and make suggestions based on their knowledge of the writer’s area of expertise and their own understanding.(which in our case, would be the kind of audience that reads publications like The Atlantic, The Guardian, The Wall Street Journal and New York Times– educated, whether formally or self-educated, up to date on political, social, and cultural events and trends. Don’t mistake this characterization to mean they are knowledgeable on all issues, just open to reading about many different kinds of events and issues). Try to cite specific elements that you see.

Thinking like a colleague: Suggest sources or ways to think about the topic that might supplement your colleague’s work. In this respect, you don’t want to take the approach of correcting colleagues. You want to share knowledge, point out places they might look for information, or suggest ways you might think about the things that interest them.

Length: 50 to 125 words.

Format: Put the letter in bold face. Start as you would a letter– Dear So and So. End with your name, as you’d sign off an email.

Overview: A single image video story is a simple and often powerful way to incorporate image and sound. For us, it’ll be a step towards a lengthier digital essay. At this link, Single Image Digital Stories, you’ll find the genre well explained, along with some technology instructions. I offer additional considerations about technology with respect to Atavist below under the section Technology. For the first draft, however, you won’t have to record.

Heading: Write a title on the top line, centered and underlined. It should be a title that reflects the story. Don’t call it “Single Image Digital Story”.

Length: 250 to 350 Words

Instructions: Choose an image or graphic that you believe can contribute powerfully to an understanding of your topic or you point of view. Write a script that elaborates upon, interprets or contextualizes the image or graphic. Consider what your voice and the information you can impart adds to what, for the viewer, might otherwise be a visual experience alone. Consider, also, that you want the image and audio to work in tandem: Keep asking yourself, “What can my voice offer that the image can’t?” But also ask,”What kind of image would spark interest on its own, but be even more interesting with information added.”

It is conceivable that you can do this with video. If there is no soundtrack, you can add one. If there is a soundtrack, you can fade it.

Submit: In your submissions folder, create a document “Single Image Video Story.” At the top of the page, insert the image by using the Insert drop-down menu at the top. Underneath it, write any citation information. Beneath it, past your script. If you have a video, upload it into your submissions folder and indicate that I can find it there.

Recording voice: A voice recording can be done in several ways. You can record your voice on your phone, then download it to your computer and later, upload it to Atavist.

Recording Voice: There are several ways to record voice. Perhaps the simplest is to use your phone or a recorder, then download your file to your computer and, finally, upload it, in our case, directly into Atavist. (Tip: No matter which technology you use–  phone, recorder, direct to your computer– you get clearer sound that is easier on your listener if you use a mic. No need to invest; even a mic on earbuds gives clearer sound than recording on the internal mic on a computer). There are several programs for recording voice on your computer that can give you editing capability as well, a capability that can enable you to make changes without re-recording the whole, to cut or add, and to add sound effects or a soundtrack easily.

• Mac Users: Macs come with GarageBand loaded onto your computer. It’s fairly easy to use and YouTube is full of instructional videos. When you make a GarageBand recording, however, you need to remember to export your file to your computer as an Mp3 file to upload to Atavist. If you’d like me to put together a brief tutorial for you to refer to, let me know. You can also use QuickTime to record video, but QuickTime requires one extra step to make an Mp3 file. You need to put export to Itunes, then use Itunes to convert. QuickTime doesn’t allow for the same ease of editing.
• PC Users: For PC users, I recommend downloading the free version of Audacity to record audio. You can make the Mp3 you need to and also have access to editing. Audacity is also available for Macs, but GarageBand does the same work you need.

Overview: Our conference will be concerned with talking through your project. Write me a 150 to 200 word memo that provides me with the information below.

Instructions: Your memo should do the following.

• Paragraph One: Use this boilerplate sentence: “In the following, I summarize our conversation, outline my plans and describe the steps I intend to take next.” The next sentence or two should say what I will find in the body of the memo, for example: “I describe how I intend to focus on the role that computer-assisted writing technology can help dyslexic students. I also describe my next research steps, which are to identify specific technologies and find first-person and research accounts of how they are used.”
• Paragraph Two: Summarize what we discussed about the project, including any concerns either of us expressed or things we agreed.
• Paragraph Three: Describe how you see your project’s topic, what you believe your audience needs to know, and the story elements (video, graphic, image, audio, etc.) that you think you’re think you will include.
• Paragraph Four: Describe the information and content you’ve collected and what you feel you need to find.
• Pargaraph Five: Write a one sentence closing paragaph. Thank you for reviewing my project. Please let me know if you have any additional questions or comments.
• Closing: Sincerely, Your First and Last Name.

Heading: Use the heading that you used for your Pitch Report.

Submit: Create a section in your project folder for the memo.

Section 1: Opening– computers programs to aid college writing instructiong instruction. Breakthrough or loss?

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Section 2: The promise of Computer Assisted Writing INstruction

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Section Three: What the research shows

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Overview: Your story package needs images, which can come in the form of infographics or collection of images. See pages 117 to 119 in our

Infographic: Use one of the programs we’ve worked explored to create an infographic, graph or chart that can be used in your story packages.

Image Package: Collect five images that can form a powerful part of you story package. In the end, you may not use them all. It is conceivable that a graph or chart you’ve found can be one of them, but it must be uniquely powerful or valuable. Avoid stock images for “decorative” effect. For example, a story about teachers with a picture of a teacher behind a desk chosen from Google Images. Curate powerful images we otherwise wouldn’t find.

Submit: Upload your Infographic or Images into a section in your project folder. Each should have a caption or cutline as described in our textbook reading listed in the overview. Include citation information in the caption.

Infographic Peer Review

Overview: Your classmates have created infographics using one of the programs that we explored or put together a package of images. In the peer review, your goal is to reflect back to your classmate what you observe in their images or graphics.

Instructions: Go to your classmates project folder and find the page for the assignment. At the bottom of the pages, write your classmate a note in response to the following. Remember that you yourself have tried to accomplish something similar, so think in terms of your efforts, what the textbook has said, and what you have seen elsewhere. Try not to read your classmates notes, so that the creator of the graphic you’re responding to gets each individual response.

• What story does the graphic element tell, that is, what is meant to show, tell or explain to viewers?
• How does the graphic element tell the story or portray the information?
• What features of the graphic element do you see as most effective (color scheme, mode of representation– bar chart, pie chart, images in a particular order, cutlines and captions)?
• Is there anything you can suggest that you believe can enhance or make the graphic feature stronger or clearer?

Creating your Digital Essay or Slideshow with Voiceover:

Recording a digital essay or slideshow with voiceover is fairly straightforward. Whether you use Imovie, MovieMaker, PhotoStory, Power Point or any other slideshow program, you’ll work with two tracks, a track for your images and a second for audio. Your first submitted draft is a rough cut. A rough cut is subject to revision. It won’t have opening titles or closing titles. Although it’s not required in your piece, it will not have sound effects or a sound track.

Make sure you have access to your completed story board and that your images or graphic elements or organized for easy access while you work.

Below you’ll find links to instructional videos.

• Windows Photostory
• Imovie
• Windows MovieMaker Part I;Windows MovieMaker Part II

In principle, these programs work the same way. Imovie and MovieMaker have more capability than PhotoStory or a program like PowerPoint but PhotoStory, PowerPoint and programs like it serve perfectly well.

The programs all work in similar ways. Within the each program there are separate tracks or timelines for each kind of element. There will be a track where you will place the visual elements, and a track for you to place your voice over. You can create additional tracks for a soundtrack or sound effects.

You’ll build each track separately by importing elements, which you then place on the timeline. Your first step will be to import the images you wish to use. Place them on the timeline according to your story table.

After you’ve created the visual timeline, create the audio timeline. The easiest thing to do is to import record your audio in another program and import it.

People record their audio tracks in two different ways.

• The record their entire script following their story board. When they do, the pause between frames so that if they want to make cuts later, they can.
• They record the script in chunks, one for each frame of the story table. Then, they import each separate clip and align it with their images. Some people find that this makes it easier to manage the timing between images and video.

Watch the Digital Essay/Slideshow in your class mates’ project folder. As with the other peer review, your goal is to reflect back what you “get” so the creator knows if he or she has accomplished their goals.

Write a note that does the following:

• Express what you understand to be the central question that the piece answers.
• In a short narrative, describe from memory the narrative arc of the piece– beginning, middle, end?
• What do you consider the strengths of the piece? Be specific and explain what makes that feature effective.
• What would help you, as a viewer, become more engaged in the piece? Where do you think the creator can develop (voice, graphic, order of slides, timing, etc.)?
• Are there any questions the piece raises that you think the creator might answer?