Tag Archives: assignment

Midterm, Resources

Peer review workshop

Leave a comment

Peer Workshop

The purpose of this workshop is to improve your writing on both the global, and local levels. This means you are not only correcting grammar and mechanics, but content as well. Read your partner’s paper twice. On the first reading, DO NOT make any corrections. Just read the paper and take in the story in the same way you would as if you were reading an academic article. On the second reading, answer the following questions:

  1. What is the point of this paper? What is the thesis? Does the thesis clearly reflect the point? Is the thesis a claim that argues the author’s opinion on the subject of the paper, or a statement of fact?
  2. Is there evidence of research in this paper? Are the sites reliable? Are the sources clearly cited? Check the works cited page, are the sources listed there as well?
  3. Does the author utilize summary, paraphrase and quotation? Do they over use any particular device? Have the quotations been properly incorporated?
  4. Are the supporting points clear, relevant, and well organized? Would it benefit the reader to re-organize this essay?
  5. Highlight or underline examples of good, compelling details in the paper. Are there any instances where the author could use more detail? Less?
  6. What point(s) in this essay were you most convinced by? Why? What did you learn from reading this essay?
  7. What suggestions for improvement can you offer to the writer? Identify the weaknesses and help consider corrections.
  8. Did the use of multimedia enhance the writer’s argument. Can the author incorporate more/less media in effective ways?
  9. Finally, alert the reader to any spelling, grammar and mechanical errors they made.

Now switch papers! Ask me if you have any questions.

Announcements, Assignments

Midterm Assignment : Device Narratives

Leave a comment

Device Narrative

https://wp.nyu.edu/licastro_fall14/?p=513

In your “Digital Literacy Narrative” you explored the writing technologies that have shaped your literacy practices. For your midterm, you should identify one tool from your timeline to investigate on a deeper level. In order to do this, you should focus on the wider impact of this technology in terms of political and social issues. Consider, for example, how Jason Ponti isolates instances when interface design shaped writing practices in “How Authors Write.” Ponti uses historical examples (such as Baker’s use of footnotes) to argue that modern writers are not embracing the potential of new media. Similarly, in “The Geology of Media,” Jussi Parikka exposes the environmental impact of digital devices through the lens of new media evolution. It is your goal to develop an argument about the technology you are investigating through research and critical thinking.

Potential lines of inquiry include:

  • Labor
  • Gender/race
  • Environmental impact
  • Planned obsolescence
  • Cognition/attention
  • Privacy/surveillance
  • Anything you find interesting (and have evidence to prove)

As you are reading Kevin Kelly while composing this piece, I want you to imagine your audience to be the typical Wired magazine reader. Therefore, your reader already has an interest and familiarity with new media, but wants more information than a basic Google search can provide. Your audience seeks a balanced approach: intelligent critique in a relatable, digestible voice.

Our library visit will help you structure your research process. I require you to use at least three sources, properly cited, and archived in our Zotero group library.

You will post your draft on 10/14, and bring in a paper copy on 10/15. You must post the revised digital version on our site on 10/17. Heed Ponti’s advice, and think about using our digital medium to your advantage when composing your piece (for examples see: http://digitalmateriallabor.org/final-project/)

This project is worth 100 points, and will be graded on the following criteria:

 

RHETORICAL ELEMENTS [1]
Purpose The author establishes a purpose of the overall story early on and also maintains the focus on that purpose throughout the work. As in print-based composition, the purpose may be stated or implied.
Audience The choice of different media assets as well as how they are organized and presented shows that the student is aware of the audience/viewer. When asked, the student can describe how the subject matter and the selection, organization, and organization of the media assets fit a particular audience. The piece is written with a clear sense of the audience with a tone that will suit that audience; other media assets also appropriate and effective from an audience point of view.
Organization The overall structure of the story/argument and placement of assets in that structure are effective. There is a good beginning, middle, and end. The amounts of time and emphasis given to different parts or issues make sense.
Logos, Pathos, Ethos The work is intellectually significant, emotionally engaging, or appealing to the audience in other ways—based on its subject matter and purpose.
CONTENT
Subject matter Content is engaging — viewer is left with thought-provoking ideas.
Written elements The student worked diligently in drafting, revising, editing, and proofreading the piece with a particular focus on conciseness and precision. The “story” or subject matter of the piece is not only interesting/significant in itself but also reflects that the student has learned the content of the course.  The text serves as a logical framework for the rest of the media. The student has integrated external information, cited sources, and fulfilled other requirements of the assignment.
PROCESS
The student has been diligent with planning the project, doing research on the subject, creating or finding appropriate media assets, drafting and revising/editing their writing, effectively integrating media assets, appropriately referencing external source within the text and documenting them at the end of the work, and if the work is supposed to be presented before class, his or her presentation or performance is effective. If the work is done in groups, members of the group have each worked effectively in planning, coordinating, and contributing to group’s work.
MEDIA
Music and sound effects Voiceover, background music and other audio assets are layered effectively so that one medium is heard most clearly at a time. They are rhetorically effective; meaningfully integrated with other media; and have an effective volume, tone, and tempo.
Still images Images create a distinct atmosphere or tone that matches different parts of the story. The images add rhetorical effectiveness and symbolic and/or metaphoric meaning to the work.
Transition and other visual effects Transition and other effects created through editing of media do not just produce “cool” effects but are done meaningfully. The effects are seamless and unobtrusive.
Video Videos used in the work contain recognizable and meaningful images and movements, support the meaning of the story logically as well as aesthetically, do not take unnecessary artistic license, do not have distracting or unwanted visual information or background, are paced appropriately, and do not compromise relevance for the sake of interest or for technical reasons
Pacing and economy The media are presented neither too fast nor too slow; there is rhetorically effective increase and decrease of speed in the presentation of materials. Since digital “stories” should be short, the student has saved time and communicated the message in a precise and concise manner. No words, images, or sounds are redundant or rhetorical out of sync.
SYNTHESIS
Coherence All the elements and parts of the work rhetorically fit together and are effectively presented within the overall logical framework. For instance, images and sound effects that are meant to illustrate and enhance a verbal statement do not conflict with the text or with each other.
ACADEMIC CONVENTIONS
Credits The student has cited external sources in the voice over and in any visually represented text or media. There is a citation page at the end.
Language issues The student has paid sufficient attention to grammar, spelling, mechanics, and other linguistic issues in the voiceover, captions, and other places where verbal language is used.

 

 

[1]Adapted from: http://www2.bgsu.edu/departments/english/cconline/winter2013/digital_s/rubric.html

 

Announcements, Reflections

Kevin Kelly Provocations

Leave a comment

For Kevin Kelly’s What Technology Wants, you will be leading the class discussion in two groups. If your last name begins with A-K, you are Group 1  and if your last name begins with M-V you are in Group 2 for the Kevin Kelly “fishbowls”. I will explain this activity in class.

Group 1 will need to post a response to the first section (this includes the text from Part 1: Origins and Part 2: Imperatives in the book) of Kevin Kelly’s book by September 29th at midnight . This response should highlight two main points that you must summarize and then analyze for the class (hint, use direct quotes). I suggest focusing on one point you agree with, and one you find problematic. Your post must end in a discussion question for your classmates. If you are in group 2, you must respond to at least two of these discussion questions by class time on Wednesday.

Group 2 will then post on the second half of the book (Part 3: Choices, and Part 4: Directions) by Oct 3rd at midnight. Group 1 must respond to two of those provocations by class time on the 6th.

Remember, I have posted the grading rubric for your posts here: https://wp.nyu.edu/licastro_fall14/tag/rubric/

This is reflected in our adjusted schedule.

Uncategorized

Karen’s Digital Literacy

1 Comment

Disclaimer: No media was added because I didn’t know how to but will be fixed on the timeline. So, here is the timeline: http://www.tiki-toki.com/timeline/entry/336102/Karens-Digital-Literacy/

When I started coming up with events for my digital literacy timeline, I couldn’t come up with anything. Then, I thought a little more and put down incidents that were not necessarily life-changing, but were quite meaningful in shaping who I am today. After having a concrete idea of what I would include in my timeline, I saw that there was a common theme between the stages of my digital literacy.  This theme pertained to my values, my global perspective and my most central interests. Essentially, these points represent me very well and I would have never thought that my use of writing, reading and technology would define me as much as it does.

Learning how to read and write around the age of five is a milestone that most people go through. However, I became literate in Spanish because I moved to Barcelona before I learned how to read and write. Already, my first written word was in a language that was not my mother tongue, as I am from Brazil and spoke Portuguese. This brings up an event that happens just a few years ago, in sophomore year of high school, when I read my first book in Portuguese. It was extremely ironic that I could read and write properly in English and Spanish but took much longer to do that in my first language.

The following steps, that still relate to the idea that I am a global citizen, is the fact that I started learning new languages such as Dutch and French. Therefore, I was exposed to new vocabulary through books and it made my literacy more holistic.  What is interesting is that I don’t remember how to speak in those languages as much as I am proficient at reading and understanding them. It is odd but learning it in class and not practicing it in conversation has made me frame my knowledge of the languages through texts. Moreover, studying Mandarin through tutoring while I lived in China was a whole new experience with my literacy because I delved into learning characters and it changed my prior perception of writing. The characters require a certain sequence to be written and are basically drawings.

Then I started exploring my religion/ethnicity by going to Sunday school to learn Hebrew and then went on to study for my Bar Mitzvah. Through that, I was able to start reading Hebrew but still don’t understand what I am reading, even though I somewhat understand the language.

Moving around and travelling brought me to buy an Amazon Kindle and then I could read as many books as I wanted without having to carry them around wherever I travelled, which proved inconvenient for long trips.

Later I moved back to Brazil, after eleven years abroad. This was a huge shock for me because I didn’t fully grasp my own culture. Then, protests started happening against the government all around Brazil. I only watched CNN and BBC, as my news sources, and felt that there wasn’t enough international coverage on the protests and so I got a Twitter account only to tweet about wanting more attention to be given to what was going on in Brazil. I was successful, as the next day I was emailed that CNN acknowledged my concern and was going to focus more on the protests. This moment of political advocacy led me to start writing about social justice issues on my school’s magazine The Talon, specifically about women’s rights. This ran along with participating in Model United Nations, and there I developed an ability to write resolutions and make them compelling.  I wasn’t just more political by using my literacy; I was using it creatively as well. I began to explore my more artistically literate side when I started writing scripts on Celtx for film class, but they were still quite politically driven.

Finally, my literacy has led me to the final stage of my life, in which I am in now. I got here by writing my college applications. Now that I am at NYU, I have subscribed to the New York Times online and home delivery, but I feel like I will just have the online version because paper takes up too much space and kills trees. To have some mental health, I have also started journaling to connect with my thoughts for only a few minutes and also record my time here.

Overall, my literacy demonstrates my background and has evolved to take me to where I am today.