Digital Storytelling

     I’m sure that most of us got into education for the sheer joy of teaching and working with children. We watched our own teachers and were inspired. But nobody warned us about grading and paper work and that was probably one of the great surprises of student teaching. Evaluating really creative work like fiction essays, poetry, drawings, and videos can present even more of a challenge than “simple” right and wrong answers. In AFI’s “21st Century Teacher’s Handbook: Protocol and Materials Guide to the Screen Education Process” there are two different grading rubrics.

     They are, of course, based on the familiar four star rating system, but what’s really remarkable and different about them is that one is completely based on the beginning of the project, the“Pitch & Presentation,” while the other is a more traditional finished movie/video evaluation.
     I really like the emphasis that AFI puts on preparation and teamwork throughout the whole process. It may be based on a Hollywood “time is money” reality, but it makes just as much sense in a school where limited time, the interest level and quality of work all depend heavily on a well laid foundation. So part of the grade rides on your ability to present your plan for making a video to the teacher and the class, your  overall content, how the team will collaborate, and “green light” rating which is the chance of overall success based on all the elements of the presentation. This is "show your work" on the way to your final answer in a very visual sense. With the initial plan shared and evaluated, students can begin production with a solid idea of their strengths and what needs work before turning the project in for its final grade.
     The final project rubric awards the range of stars for story, storyboard, camera work, acting, editing, and production values.

     Whatever type of rubric you use and however you weight the mile stones (like the pitch and presentation or drafts of the script and storyboard), students should have a copy and understand the rubric from the very start of the project. The final grade shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone involved unless the team took constructive feedback along the way to heart and used it to improve their project way beyond the initial indications.
     Two evaluation rubrics, one for the beginning and one for the end. Two thumbs up!

Picture and graphic are from AFI’s "The 21st Century Educator’s Handbook: Protocol and Materials Guide to the Screen Education Process."

     And the American Film Institute wants to give them a voice and a framework to learn to be critical viewers and to take feedback as a way to improve their own work.

     In the “The 21st Century Educator’s Handbook” that is part of the “Lights, Camera, Education!” program available on unitedstreaming, as you get close to the end after all the production ideas and before you get to the actual evaluation rubrics, there is a very structured, seven phase Feedback Protocol. Frankly, I don’t know if many teachers will take the extra 20-30 minutes per project that they recommend, but it seems to be a wonderful opportunity for the whole class to be empowered to offer feedback and dialogue BEFORE the project is turned in for a final grade. Three students assume leadership rôles as the Presenter who speaks for the project, the Facilitator who guides the class through the protocol and the Time-Keeper who keeps each part to its allotted time.

     Phase One is the overview delivered by the Presenter and includes a showing of what might be the next to last version of their video.
     Phase Two is clarifying questions (everything but “why”) asked by the class/audience.
     Phase Three is probing questions (now “why”) that could lead to longer answers by the presenter.
     Phase Four is an audience discussion that pretends that the presenting group is not there. This can lead to a rich analysis of what worked and what didn’t for the viewers. The presenting group remains silent during this part, but takes notes.
     Phase Five has the Facilitator giving a brief summary and offers possible next steps for revision.
     Phase Six lets the Presenter respond to the feedback and reflect on any new ideas that may have come up.

     Phase Seven gives the teacher an opportunity to reflect on the entire process and check on what was “learned, valued and could be improved.”

     Don’t forget to join us this Wednesday afternoon at 5:00 EST for an EdTechConnect webinar with Frank Guttler, Associate Director of the AFI’s K-12 Screen Education Center. Webinar information is at http://blog.discoveryeducation.comdiscovery_educator_networ/2007/01/edtechconnect_w.html

     Next up, evaluation rubrics for both the beginning and the end of the film making process.

Pictures are from AFI’s "The 21st Century Educator’s Handbook: Protocol and Materials Guide to the Screen Education Process."

     No it’s not therapy, but it could be a good treatment for students suffering from a lack of interest. I was just going over “The 21st Century Educator’s Handbook” again in preparation for our webinar this Wednesday with Frank Guttler, Associate Director of AFI’s K-12 Screen Education Center. This is the teacher’s guide for the  “Lights, Camera, Education!” program that is downloadable along with video clips from unitedstreaming. (AFI = the American Film Institute.) I thought I’d prime the pump a little today and talk about the five step process they have developed to help students prepare and organize, shoot and edit, and evaluate and reflect on videos they can make that integrate with their classroom curriculum. Unlike what I call “classic” digital storytelling that usually focuses on individual experience and reflection, this model is a team project from the pitch to the exhibit/evaluation.
     All five steps include points to think about, challenge, reflect, and revise. They are all well illustrated in the accompanying videos.

     1. Script Development - After brainstorming with your team, pitch your roughed out story to your classmates and teacher. Does it follow the rubric? Does it flow and have a point? Take what you learn from their feedback and preparation for the pitch to…
     2. Screenwriting and Storyboarding - polish that prose and lay your scenes out comic strip style so you know what to shoot and where and how.
     3. Filming - this is the fun part, but it won’t be very enjoyable if crew members don’t understand their roles behind and in front of the camera, and if the preparation from the first two steps wasn’t sufficient to visualize the story.
     4. Editing - Back to the storyboard for guidance in putting the pieces together. Did you get what you needed? Is there an economy of words and images to keep the story flowing and the viewer interested? Do an assembly (rough draft) edit to answer those questions and then a final edit to polish it and add music, narration, credits, etc.
     5. Exhibit/Review/Reflect - Everyone watches each other’s films and everyone is a critic. Write a review of the films and then share them with the film makers. Reflect on your peers’ observations and go back to your own video to validate their critique.
     “See” you Wednesday afternoon at 5:00 EST. Webinar and registration information is at http://blog.discoveryeducation.comdiscovery_educator_networ/2007/01/edtechconnect_w.html

       Every spring, about a month before school lets out, the Chicagoland Television Educators Council gathers to celebrate and honor the best work of the students from our member schools. One of the high points of the day attended by 300+ young visual storytellers is the awarding of “Emmys” by our local NATAS (National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences) organization to the regional winners whose work is then moved on for consideration at the national level. There are seven categories in this high school competition ranging from straight news to public service announcements (PSA) to writing.
     Wait, please don’t tune me out just because you are not a high school educator or don’t have production classes. There is a lot to be learned here about good visual story crafting and being a critical viewer. Now allow me to jump up on one of my many soapboxes for just a few lines. I think one of the greatest, longtime benefits of students creating their own videos is that they become better viewers. I don’t think there are many students who ever look at movies or commercials the same way after they have made their own and watched their classmates’. The same goes for news, even if they are “just” broadcasting the day’s announcements to the rest of the school. Whether you would ever consider entering this competition or not, there is a wealth of good examples that can be imitated in any class old enough to aim a camera. You can go here for last year’s winning videos. And check this page for resources and a PDF download on best practices for TV journalism “…on how to be fair to the TV public.” Both the national and our Chicago/Midwest chapter have been very supportive. Find and see what your local NATAS chapter has to offer education.

     The CTEC group has put together a list of resources ranging from the FCC broadcast guidelines to free audio. There are also some clips of finalists from past video festivals. Our fourteen categories include the likes of comedy, drama and music videos.
     For those of you who have read this far and might consider entering, the deadline is February 16, 2007. Everything must be received (physically or electronically) including a $25 entry fee by then.
     For the rest of us, we can all be inspired and learn from their work while teaching others to be critical viewers.

     Digital Storytelling or Makin’ Movies doesn’t have to be a big technological or Hollywood production. A good way to get your feet wet and let your students concentrate on understanding and sharing is to take advantage of kits and grouped resources like Awesome Stories. Before our good buddy Hall Davidson left KOCE he had a hand in getting Kitzu and Schoolhouse Video up and running. Both sites offer copyright friendly resources like photos, videos and sounds that students can synthesize, arrange and share. Unlike traditional research projects where your students use the same encyclopedia article to paraphrase a report, multimedia projects spur individuality and inspire kids to put their own creative stamp on the material.

     Kitzu lets you search by grade level and/or key word, and is tied to California’s standards. In addition to its kits, Schoolhouse has other helpful resources like a five page Word document of helpful websites compiled by…Hall!
     Of course, we can’t forget our own unitedstreaming with its editable clips, images and clip art, and songs and sound effects. But you already knew that.

     Here’s another quick gift. For the time being the Awesome Stories website is waiving its $9.95 annual fee for educators and individuals. It’s ALWAYS FREE for educators, see below. An education account allows up to 50 people to log on at the same time. Great for researching with your classes!
     Here’s how the site describes itself:
     “Enjoy an interactive learning experience as you see thousands of hand-selected and relevant links to pictures, artifacts, manuscripts, documents and other primary sources, IN CONTEXT, within each story.”
     I just found out about this myself and wanted to spread the word before the free offer expires. Anyone out there already a subscriber and can tell us more?
     I just heard from the AwesomeStories team:
    Access to the site for educators, schools and public libraries is ALWAYS free.  A group subscription - which teachers can have by requesting it with this form  - will allow up to fifty people simultaneous access with the same password.  Many schools and libraries have more than one password so everyone there can have unrestricted - free - access. 
     We provide MANY links to primary sources.  We try to cover the full range - from elementary-school needs to graduate-school needs.  Some of the higher-ed links, for example, go to original language documents - or detailed scientific analyses - while other links provide students with the on-line ability to create a mummy, build a pyramid or design a Viking ship.
     We decided to give free individual memberships - which normally cost $9.95 a year for non-academics and the general public - as a holiday gift this year.  Because we made that decision late, and because the response to it has been overwhelmingly positive, we decided to extend the free offer for everyone through January.  But with "Black History Month" just around the corner, and people (from everywhere!) telling us how much they appreciate the easy access to primary sources which we provide throughout the site, we are considering extending the offer even further. 
     Check out their "January Highlights" newsletter. 

       Picking up on the “camera as character” line from the last post and preparing for the “Lights, Camera, Education!” webinar on January 24th, I thought I’d share some thoughts and video clips a friend and I made for my former school district a few years ago. Students seemed to take to their fiction stories and still picture histories naturally, but interview type videos were in need of guidance, so these clips are aimed in that direction.
     Framing. Looking straight into the camera is fine for a reporter type clip. For an interview situation, set the camera fifteen or more degrees off the line of sight between the two people talking to get a more natural and conversational feel.
     Shot Composition. Wide shots establish the scene. A medium or “two shot” closes in on both speakers, emphasizing their relationship. And the close up focuses all our attention on the speaker.

     Lighting. Video and still cameras still aren’t as good as our eyes and brain when it comes to adjusting to light. Barring a crash course in lighting or lugging your own light sources around, students should simply keep the strongest light source behind the camera. An easy way to check for that is to hold your hand in front of you and slowly do a royal wave. Your palm will show you where the brightest light is coming from.
     Sound. Light waves and sound waves have a lot in common (teachable moment here, science teachers). So the strategies are similar. Shoot away from unwanted sound sources, especially the wind. The further you are away from the subject, both the subject and the sound (with built-in microphone) get smaller.

      The “Lights, Camera, Education!” program goes into much greater detail in all of these areas. Without much effort, students can learn a few more camera angles for dramatic effects. Three inexpensive work lights can give you a professionally lit set. And a modest investment in microphones can greatly improve your sound. Take a peek at the program on unitedstreaming and download the teacher’s handbook there.

      Since we’re still in the 12 day gift giving window, here’s something just for you - a free, bulk subscription to “Student Filmmaker” magazine for schools and universities in the US. Just download the application from this site. This magazine leans more towards older students and longer projects, but there is always an idea or two that is applicable to the shortest learning stories (as my friend in New Zealand likes to call them).  One of the last issues of the year had some great insights into storyboarding and point of view: using the camera as a character.