Post #6

1. The group video project was easy and fun, though the process of using Windows Movie Maker was a bit of a challenge after already having lots of experience with much more advanced programs (iMovie, Final Cut).
My partner and I decided on a fun topic that is very relatable to college students, that of using the social networking site twitter. We found valid statistics on its use and the sorts of posts that are made using the site and used those to come up with a movie that would hold viewers' interest. We chose a basically silent movie that would make our student anonymous and therefore relatable to all students and since we were using the premise that twitter is a waste of time, to have the student failing at studying and eventually being kicked out of the library because they wasted all their time that could have been spent studying on twitter. The student was shown in various positions, on a couch, at a desk, and at a computer while flipping back and forth between twitter and studying. We even showed the student using twitter in the bathroom. Finally, we added some student-friendly music that plays along with the movie. 
2. I think some videos have value in the classroom. In the art classroom, movies can be shown about artists or used to demonstrate a technique. It can show the students things in a different way than just lecturing on a topic. 
In the art curriculum, a particular style can be chosen, such as watercolor. Then, to get the students engaged in the lesson, a video on a watercolor artist can be shown, which also can serve as a sort of demonstration in addition to demoing watercolor techniques. Challenges would be making sure the students paid attention so that they learn the information in the video. Also, it would be important to make sure the video had the specific information that the students need to learn. The outcome would be enriching the experience of learning a new technique and also engaging the students. 

Post #5

1. It was surprising the things that can and cannot be copyrighted. I didn't know that titles could not be copyrighted, while the related material to the title can be. It was also interesting to see that all forms of art can be copyrighted. In schools, a lot of teachers copy pages out of books and articles with no copyright information, sometimes without any information other than a title. Students copy pages of assignments out of textbooks rather than buy their own individual copy. Out of school, people are sharing anything they possibly can. Books, movies, music. Anything that is in a digital format can be shared over torrenting sites. 
I think in some aspects it is important for teachers to teach copyright respect, but in art it is a fine line between stealing and appropriation. In most cases, as long as the artist uses the appropriated item(s) in an original way, it is okay to take parts of other people's ideas in art. An art lesson on copyright could show examples of derivative works and the originals, discuss appropriation, and then have the students find an original work and create their own derivative of it. Part 5, Digital Citizenship, seems to cover copyright in relation to technology. 


2.  Chapter Seven opens with a introduction that states that most data on the technologically literate undergrad students has been quantitative, rather than qualitative and Educause chose to do a study that contained by qualitative and quantitative measurements. I did not expect so many of the students to own desktop computers rather than laptops, although I did come to school as a freshman with a desktop and quickly switched to a laptop for more convenience. I also did not expect so many students to use technology for educational purposes first, since the trend at Albright is to use computers (Facebook, Twitter, etc) as a means to procrastinate. Not many of the students seemed to use higher levels of computer software such as Powerpoint or Dreamweaver. It seemed like many of the students surveyed are not of a demographic that would use those advanced tools. I don't think all the answers seemed to be in line with the NetGeners because they are supposed to be super-tech-savvy and use the internet for more than just education. I would assume that many of them are into the internet, most specifically, web design and graphics, but the survey didn't support that. I think I would use similar questions but with a wider demographic so that there is more data to analyze.