4.2. Multimedia | Video

I decided to play with multimedia technologies by making a stop motion video. It seemed to be an effective way of combining digital imaging, audio and video. The plan was to use whatever software/technology I had access to at the time. 

The idea for the stop motion video came from watching the Youtube clip above. Teacher, Nicole Dalesio, explains how technology fits in to her year five classroom. The use of technology has been structured in a way that combines several subject areas. The main subject areas covered in this example are technology, literacy and the arts. On top of this, Dalesio highlights the way in which other skills such as collaboration and planning are utilised by her students. Another notable feature is how Dalesio has differentiated the assessment. Students have the opportunity to select a task that will appeal to their interests. Finally, the end result is meaningful in that students can share their projects with what Dalesio refers to as an 'authentic audience.'

Below is the stop motion video I made. Afterwards, I outline the technical processes that took place.  

 

Technical processes:

• Photos were taken with my mobile phone
• Imported the images into Photoshop
• Resized the images and made a few colour adjustments
• Used the Animation panel in Photoshop to sequence the images
• Exported the project as a Quicktime movie
• Imported movie into Garage Band
• Visited Youtube to find a tutorial on how to play‘Twinkle Twinkle Little Star’
• Recorded the tune in Garage Band
• Synced sound to the movie
• Exported the movie a final time
• Uploaded to Youtube

All up, this 7 second video took 2-3 hours to make. The quality is good enough for a quick prototype. However, more time could have been spent on getting the timing between the sound and visuals more accurate. That is the drawback of this type of technology – it is time consuming.

Overall, I found this to be a useful task. The Youtube clip I found was quite helpful. It provided a live example of how multimedia can be used within a learning context. Although there are a couple of drawbacks to a project such as this (namely, time and resources), I feel that positives outweigh the negatives. There is great potential to develop a range of skills; there is flexibility in the design of projects; and learning can be achieved through play. My findings are summed up in the PMI chart below: 

PLUS	MINUS	IMPLICATIONS
Creative Learn through play Multi-disciplinary Engages / develops 21st century literacy Real world project ‘Authentic audience’ Potential for collaboration	Time consuming / labour instensive Large files File compatability May spend more time co-ordinating the lessons / assessment	Differentiation of assessment Developing life long learning skills: problem-solving, creativity, planning, teamwork Students in charge of their learning / active learners

Reference

Pearson Education (Producer). (2012, June 13). Tech2Learn Series [Video file]. Free online resources engage elementary kids. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=o6y49RXG7zg