Follow these steps:
Choose one of the items below. Insert your cursor below the item, and then write about the projects in this class in terms of that item for four minutes.
Choose another of the items, and then write freely about the projects in this class in terms of that item for four minutes.
Choose a third item from the list. Without discussing directly the projects, write freely about the activities and processes experienced in this class in terms of that item for five minutes.
- Creativity
This class requires a lot of creativity, especially when it comes to the meme project. When we first started that project I was a bit worried because I didn't think I would be creative enough to make anything good. I would search the internet and constantly bother my friends to try and come up with any ideas. In the end, I'm proud of the memes that I created. For one of them, I decided to draw inspiration from my Twitter argument and make a meme about anti-vaxxers. While in the beginning, I was worried about the creative aspect of this project I ended up really enjoying it and being proud of what I had created. I think it goes to show that anyone can create things like this and they don't necessarily have to view themselves as creative to do it.
- Problem Solving
When it came to the gif and meme projects, I had a lot of problems. Most of my problems stemmed from me having never used photoshop before. I was unfamiliar with the technology and that made creating these projects, especially the gifs, more difficult than it needed to be. There were several times that I had to scrap ideas because I wasn't sure how to make them work. In order to complete these projects, youtube became my best friend. I would spend hours watching youtube videos break down different photoshop processes as I tried to copy them on my own projects. I would watch the videos and constantly pause them to make sure that I was following them step by step. In the end, I found these youtube videos to be extremely helpful. With Photoshop it's easier to visually see what I need to do than read about it.
- Critical Thinking
- Leadership
- Communication
- Collaboration
- Information
- Risk-taking
- Adaptability
- Curiosity
- Reflection
For the app argument, I focused on a topic that would not only make me reflect on our society but those that played the game as well. When creating this app, I wanted to focus on a topic that would make people have to think and reflect on their own lives in relation to the topic. This is why I decided to focus on marijuana decriminalization. It's a topic that is being hotly debated in our state governments and even a bit in on the federal level. It is also something that negatively affects a large portion of the population in the United States, more specifically African Americans. Because I already knew what I wanted the outcome of this app project to be, it was relatively easy to come up with the storyboard outline for it. In the end, the app forces the player to take a walk in someone else's shoes and forces them to reflect on their own privilege.
- Motivation
Finally, choose one item from the list below. Write freely about the projects in this class in terms of that item for five minutes.
- Logic versus emotions
When I decided to study #vaccineswork for my Twitter argument, I went into the project expecting to find a lot of logic-based arguments being made. It was what made the most sense to me. Facts and logic over emotion. There is a ridiculous amount of evidence and facts to back up #vaccineswork. However, that is not what I found. Instead, most tweets relied on the use of emotions, especially using the topic of children in their arguments. At first, I didn't really understand this because if facts couldn't win an argument than why would playing on people's emotions work? After studying the #antivaxx, it became a little more clear to me. The people that were arguing against vaccines didn't care about facts or sciences. Instead, they would just wave it away and label it as a conspiracy theory made by big-pharma. While they ignored facts, they did pay attention to their emotions. Most of the arguments against vaccines were child-centered. So these tweets with #vaccineswork were essentially attacking these arguments by using their own points against them and relying on the emotional aspect of these arguments.
- Role of visual, sonic, and textual media
- Networks and social exchange