PSA Responses

The following is my analysis of two PSAs from the perspective of a school administrator.

The first PSA I analyzed is:Telenor The Essay Commercial

Main Idea: The main idea seemed to be that this new 3G Telenor phone is so innovative that it’s almost futuristic; the phone has features that could only be dreamed up in a fictional story. 

Audience: It’s difficult to identify a specific audience. At first, it seems like the audience may be  the skeptics of technology advancement in order to show that achieving the seemingly unachievable is in fact possible. However, I believe another intended audience would be individuals who yearn to have the newest, most innovative pieces of technology. The ambiguity in audience is addressed below in regards to the effectiveness of the video.

Effectiveness: Overall, the methods used to create this video were not effective. First, the heavy accent of the young girl made some of her words difficult to understand. As a result, parts of the message were lost. Also, I think the message was taken a bit too far. It seemed that everyone thought the young girl was medically insane. No consumer would want to connect to such a person, and I also do not believe it’s fair to judge her ideas as insane. The commercial would be more effective if it focused more on everyday people questioning her story and less on medical personnel listening grimly to her ideas; that way, the message would be more along the lines of “unique thoughts lead to innovation” instead of “our product was designed by mentally unstable individuals.” As an administrator in a school, I would want to promote acceptance of unique and individual ideas without labeling people as having medical conditions. I think that with some editing, this PSA could be drastically improved.

The second PSA I analyzed is We Think

Main Idea: The main idea is that “the 21st century equals mass innovation” and sharing more ideas on the internet will lead to an overall better society.

Audience: The audience is individuals who have access to Web 2.0 tools, specifically younger generations who are susceptible to accepting new ways of thought.

Effectiveness: The overall methods used to create this video were effective. I believe this would send a useful message to the students in my school on two levels. First, the content promotes the importance of sharing ideas through the web, which is something that my district emphasizes strongly. The simple drawings and handwritten text also sends the message that ideas can easily be shared through videos made by individuals such as this one. It helps students see that sharing ideas digitally does not require a large budget with hired actors and professional scripts. I believe this video could inspire the students in my district. The only changes I would make would be to make some of the handwriting neater and easier to read and to try to shorten the message to keep viewers engaged throughout.

References

[CharlesLeadbeater]. (2008, February 26). We think. [Video]. Retrieved from https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=qiP79vYsfbo

[WirelessFederation]. (2013, February 12). Telenor the essay commercial. [Video]. Retrieved from https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=z-uOO6O9uus

Infographic Reflection

 Infographics can be extremely useful classroom tools and help differentiate assessments by appealing to multiple intelligences. Web 2.0 tools such as Canva, Google Photos and Drawings, and FotoFlexer enable students to create original infographics digitally. By creating timelines or statistical representations, students can analyze course material and demonstrate mastery.

One way to use infographics in the classroom is to have students create timelines through tools like Google Photos or Canva. I outlined several ways timelines may be used to connect pieces of literature to the real world in my Adobe Spark Unit 6 Timeline Infographics Post. Additionally, students may create timelines to outline events in the plot of a story. Having students create timelines is an effective way to assess both their comprehension of the story and their ability to locate the main idea of the story. Students can find applicable Creative-Commons licensed images that relate to each event and combine the plot events and images into a visually-appealing infographic. This activity would appeal to the visual-spatial learners and may be a more effective assessment than a traditional exam.

Another way infographics may be used in the classroom is to create statistical infographics through tools like Google Drawing or FotoFlexer.. Even though I teach English, statistics can be applied to my classroom. For example, in my Animal Farm Unit, I have students discuss which animal was ultimately to blame for the downfall of the farm. After the discussion, students could compile the opinions of their classmates into a statistical infographic and then write a reflection explaining whether they agree with the consensus. Additionally, students could create a statistical infographic indicating which novel was everyone’s favorite for the year. As an end-of-the-year reflection, I always have students complete a questionnaire explaining which novel they liked the best and least throughout the year. This activity could be taken one step further by having students create an infographic that displays the results. In addition to reaching the visual-spatial learners, each of these activities also appeal to mathematical-logical learners.

Since I teach high school students, creating the above infographics would be appropriate to their age and grade level. Although my students do not have daily access to Web 2.0 devices, these activities could easily be completed in 1-2 class periods by reserving the library or signing out a chromebook cart. Creating infographics is an engaging way for students of multiple intelligences to demonstrate learning.