Wednesday, March 2, 2016
Follow-Up Blog Post!
As of March 1st, 2016, the magazine titled HUSKIESSERVE was officially published. My team did an excellent job of it, receiving lots of compliments and great feedback from teachers and students alike. Now, I am currently waiting on other students to upload their projects to Youtube, which will be uploaded to the website that I am currently developing, huskiesserve.weebly.com. In the meantime, my group is also assisting in any way possible for them to edit their videos to create the best finished product possible. Magisto remains the recommended software for doing so. Overall, developing the website was a nice experience and the perfect way for me to hone my skills for the Big Ideas Project.
Monday, February 15, 2016
Summary and Reflection Post!
As my ventures into the project began, I knew that my team faced three challenges: to be able to collaborate with our peers in period 2 on a continuous basis, to lay out the newspaper articles with all of Mr. Skillings' students, and to create a website where all the groups' videos can be presented in an orderly and aesthetic fashion. As project support, we not only had to be mindful of our tasks after everyone else's tasks were finished, but also we had to assist Mr. Skillings in helping out any groups while they were doing their projects. I was up for it all. On a weekly basis starting from week 1, the two teams from period 2 and period 4 had a recurring email, usually started by me, in organizing our tasks and how to accomplish the newspaper and video process. Secondly, in my web design class, I have been working on how to create a good looking product and website; these transferable skills will allow me to apply them when everyone has their video, ready to be encrypted in our site. For practice, this is one of the sites that I have created, possibly a preview of the design and layout of what our site will look like in the future: http://stemstats.weebly.com/. Thirdly, I have given many of my 4th period peers tips on the video shooting process, including the necessity of using a tripod, how to edit their videos using Magisto, and how to shoot B Roll and Sound Bites. This was done in a short presentation during class time. Although not many students have followed up with me on editing their video, Wanda and Yalda's group asked me one day in how to use Magisto, and I happily showed them how to add text into their video, to customize transitions, and to insert music into the background. All in all, though, as other groups are completing their projects and writing their newspaper articles, my group's tasks are beginning to unfold before us. These include building the website (of which we only have a skeleton), using InDesign for the newspaper, and lastly the publication process.
As I reflect on how I have got here, I believe my group and I have learned a lot, and given ourselves a plentitude of constructive criticism. Starting off with the positives, I am glad that I am taking web design this year, a class that has taught me how to make visually pleasing websites as well as what informative 21st-century websites look like. Although I may have accepted doing a Big Ideas project, I believed I have gone above and beyond in doing Project Support. Not only does this allow me to gain an insight while helping everyone in their projects, but I can also see the big picture, and help make that big picture get presented in the best way it could possibly be presented. However, there were some bumps in the road. Although I prefer to have worked on just the website or newspaper, and having Jaison or Randal work on the video, I learned that I cannot just push a task on someone else if I am not familiar with it. I had to learn Magisto myself at a quicker pace, so I could also teach it to my classmates. I regret to a certain extent that I had not learned how to use the Adobe Suite or iMovie before this. Even though, learning Magisto was a fun process, and being able to help some groups already was a great opportunity to teach and reinforce.
The ramifications of the project support group, I believe, can be everlasting for our classmates. Editing video is a life skill that can be utilized in many other scenarios in the real world, whether that be for a job or for another class. Even if it is just to show your friends something cool that was shot, presenting it in an orderly, beautiful, and stable form will make them appreciate it just so much more. Furthermore, with regards to the website and newspaper, they will serve as perpetual evidence and as insignias of the Big Ideas Project in Mr. Skillings' English Class. Hopefully the website will stay running on the server for future classes, and the newspaper will transcribe the efforts and successful work that everyone put their hearts into.
Edit: This post will be updated over time as we complete the newspaper, website, and video editing.
As I reflect on how I have got here, I believe my group and I have learned a lot, and given ourselves a plentitude of constructive criticism. Starting off with the positives, I am glad that I am taking web design this year, a class that has taught me how to make visually pleasing websites as well as what informative 21st-century websites look like. Although I may have accepted doing a Big Ideas project, I believed I have gone above and beyond in doing Project Support. Not only does this allow me to gain an insight while helping everyone in their projects, but I can also see the big picture, and help make that big picture get presented in the best way it could possibly be presented. However, there were some bumps in the road. Although I prefer to have worked on just the website or newspaper, and having Jaison or Randal work on the video, I learned that I cannot just push a task on someone else if I am not familiar with it. I had to learn Magisto myself at a quicker pace, so I could also teach it to my classmates. I regret to a certain extent that I had not learned how to use the Adobe Suite or iMovie before this. Even though, learning Magisto was a fun process, and being able to help some groups already was a great opportunity to teach and reinforce.
The ramifications of the project support group, I believe, can be everlasting for our classmates. Editing video is a life skill that can be utilized in many other scenarios in the real world, whether that be for a job or for another class. Even if it is just to show your friends something cool that was shot, presenting it in an orderly, beautiful, and stable form will make them appreciate it just so much more. Furthermore, with regards to the website and newspaper, they will serve as perpetual evidence and as insignias of the Big Ideas Project in Mr. Skillings' English Class. Hopefully the website will stay running on the server for future classes, and the newspaper will transcribe the efforts and successful work that everyone put their hearts into.
Edit: This post will be updated over time as we complete the newspaper, website, and video editing.
Wednesday, January 13, 2016
January Update
So far, our project has been going swimmingly, with only a few small bumps along the road. For example, we were not as good at video editing than previously thought, as the individual assigned to the job, Jaison, is not much of a "pro" at video editing. However, we are confident that we will look at tutorials and other applications, in creating the best video experience possible.
We have been observing other groups and their projects during the routine check-ins, and thinking of good ideas for them to use to edit their videos. Besides that, we are just working on finding the best and cheapest equipment that may be used for recording video, and staying mindful of our future tasks, such as the newspaper.
The only thing that may interfere with the project from being completed on time is if some groups fail to carry out their actual task to benefit their respective communities. If so, then we cannot document their activities, nor help them actually document their activities.
We have been observing other groups and their projects during the routine check-ins, and thinking of good ideas for them to use to edit their videos. Besides that, we are just working on finding the best and cheapest equipment that may be used for recording video, and staying mindful of our future tasks, such as the newspaper.
The only thing that may interfere with the project from being completed on time is if some groups fail to carry out their actual task to benefit their respective communities. If so, then we cannot document their activities, nor help them actually document their activities.
Monday, December 14, 2015
Tuesday, December 1, 2015
Mentor Report w/ Ms. Burns!
As our group began our ventures into the real world of digital videography and web hosting, we had realized we had some questions needed to be answered in order to truly extract the best fruit out of our efforts. We realized that we needed a mentor to lead us through the project, to guide us through the maze of inhibitors. We looked no further than Mrs. Burns, the Web Design teacher at Washington High School. Our team scheduled a meeting with her on Thursday November 12th during Husky Period in her classroom at Washington : F245. (She can be reached via email at lburns@fremont.k12.ca.us).
At the meeting, my fellow team members: Jaison Selvajothi, Taj Shaik, Matthew Krawczyk, and Randal Wood were present. First, we thanked her for all of her valuable time and proceeded to start the meeting.
We started our stream of questions with a question about marketing our site to increase views. She stated that, marketing your site will be easy through "social media campaigns" (Burns). She wanted to make sure that before marketing our site, we should have a clear purpose or image so that way viewers can easily find what they are looking for. "Viewers should be greeted with a simple web interface and easy to use UI" (Burns), and with the help of stock images Burns stated that creating an appealing website would be very easy.
We continued our interview with another question about getting sponsorship from the district for the website. She stated that the district uses wordpress and "doesn't know the logistics of FUSD sponsorship of websites" (Burns). She said that some of your best options are Weebly, Wordpress, one of the school loop sites the district provides, or GoDaddy (with subscription based fees). She definitely promoted Weebly as it is the platform she uses in her classes.
We went on to discuss about web UI and some of the ways to get a good looking UI to attract customers. "So of the best platforms are those provided by Weebly or Wordpress" (Burns), but also to look at designing one through GoDaddy's services. She stated that the place where we can obtain a UI will be dependent on where we find obtain web hosting.
As we finished our questions regarding web hosting, we moved the meeting's focus to one about developing content on the website. We asked her specifically about uploading content onto the website and ways to upload video footage onto the site. She stated that the best way to handle about these things is to use the web hosting service features "by using the plugins to external video sites like Youtube provided by the web hosting service" (Burns). She stated that by using such external plugins, we can run a much cheaper site and not worry about storage issues.
As our meeting came to a close, we felt extremely prepared for conducting this project. We thank Mrs. Burns for all the time she spent with us answering our questions! We definitely feel prepared to make the first steps into the world of the Big Ideas Project.
At the meeting, my fellow team members: Jaison Selvajothi, Taj Shaik, Matthew Krawczyk, and Randal Wood were present. First, we thanked her for all of her valuable time and proceeded to start the meeting.
We started our stream of questions with a question about marketing our site to increase views. She stated that, marketing your site will be easy through "social media campaigns" (Burns). She wanted to make sure that before marketing our site, we should have a clear purpose or image so that way viewers can easily find what they are looking for. "Viewers should be greeted with a simple web interface and easy to use UI" (Burns), and with the help of stock images Burns stated that creating an appealing website would be very easy.
We continued our interview with another question about getting sponsorship from the district for the website. She stated that the district uses wordpress and "doesn't know the logistics of FUSD sponsorship of websites" (Burns). She said that some of your best options are Weebly, Wordpress, one of the school loop sites the district provides, or GoDaddy (with subscription based fees). She definitely promoted Weebly as it is the platform she uses in her classes.
We went on to discuss about web UI and some of the ways to get a good looking UI to attract customers. "So of the best platforms are those provided by Weebly or Wordpress" (Burns), but also to look at designing one through GoDaddy's services. She stated that the place where we can obtain a UI will be dependent on where we find obtain web hosting.
As we finished our questions regarding web hosting, we moved the meeting's focus to one about developing content on the website. We asked her specifically about uploading content onto the website and ways to upload video footage onto the site. She stated that the best way to handle about these things is to use the web hosting service features "by using the plugins to external video sites like Youtube provided by the web hosting service" (Burns). She stated that by using such external plugins, we can run a much cheaper site and not worry about storage issues.
As our meeting came to a close, we felt extremely prepared for conducting this project. We thank Mrs. Burns for all the time she spent with us answering our questions! We definitely feel prepared to make the first steps into the world of the Big Ideas Project.
Wednesday, November 18, 2015
Research Article: High-School Promoting and Rhetorical Precis!
Link to Annotated Article
High school teacher and newly acquainted journalism class editor Tina Gainer, in her article, "High-School Promoting" suggests that managing a magazine publication with informative entries can be a rewarding process that even ends up being a true work of art. She develops her claim by first illustrating the original challenges she and her students faced in sharing something so huge with a community, then by illustrating the process of initial organization. Next, Gainer follows chronological order as she discerns the ways that the team marketed for funds, followed by choosing the finalized software that was used, before finally detailing the editing and publishing process. Gainer's purpose is to inform high school students and other scholars about how beneficial publishing to a real audience can be in order to also guide some motivated students along their way of doing so. She creates an informative tone for her students, advisors, and any interested readers alike.
High school teacher and newly acquainted journalism class editor Tina Gainer, in her article, "High-School Promoting" suggests that managing a magazine publication with informative entries can be a rewarding process that even ends up being a true work of art. She develops her claim by first illustrating the original challenges she and her students faced in sharing something so huge with a community, then by illustrating the process of initial organization. Next, Gainer follows chronological order as she discerns the ways that the team marketed for funds, followed by choosing the finalized software that was used, before finally detailing the editing and publishing process. Gainer's purpose is to inform high school students and other scholars about how beneficial publishing to a real audience can be in order to also guide some motivated students along their way of doing so. She creates an informative tone for her students, advisors, and any interested readers alike.
Tuesday, October 27, 2015
Research Part Four: A School's First Attempt to Publish a Newspaper!
Some schools are attempting to bring back a student newspaper for a variety of 21st century purposes, including exposing free speech, and informing others. In her article "PHS Brings Back Student Paper" Colleen Williamson explores how four students in a 21st century Journalism Class are bringing the old newspaper back into publication. For example, "Parsons said he and his class are receiving guidance and help from the Parsons Sun in laying out and publishing their papers, but the content is developed by the students through brainstorming sessions" (Williamson). Just like them, we have the guidance of Mr. Skillings and the Hatchet as experienced people who can help us make this paper look as good as its potential allocates it.
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