**For some background music while you read this post, I present my favorite song of the moment!**
(FreyaDT, 2011)
We had a great class this week and covered a variety of things. We took the time to review everyone's blogs (both WordPress and Blogger), which was a great idea. This way, we as students, know whether or not our work has been up to par and we need to change in the future. I passed the "cell phone test," as Doc Chris calls it, so I was happy. I can just continue along as usual.
Doc Chris then went on to congratulate us all on our hard work, especially with the help we provided in the FEB events this semester. The event last week was a huge success, and he and his colleagues have been so impressed with our professionalism and success, which means a lot coming from established people. See Doc Chris' praise below:
Doc Chris said we, as a class, are way ahead of his expectations in terms of workload, and so the remaining weeks of the semester will be much easier for all of us. This is his special gift to the many seniors in the class. He said that, so long as the quality of our work does not dwindle in the next few weeks, we should all be getting A's. Thus, he said, he shouldn't even have to look at the names when he is putting in grades; he should be able to just cover his eyes and write "A."
It is also important that students in the class, not just those who are teammates, support one another. During class, Tina was nice enough to come up to me and compliment my dancing at the Dance Company spring showcase over the weekend. She had a video of my Irish dance performance and wanted to ask my permission before posting it on her blog. I really appreciated her kind words, and, when she showed the video to Doc Chris, he showed me his Irish jig! Maybe we should have a dance-off!!!
(tinamarciano217, 2012)
Since we won't be having class next Thursday due to the Easter break, our in-class Easter celebration came early! Janet Thomas, who is a regular craft services professional for Doc Chris, was present and had made Easter cupcakes for the whole class. Thank you, Janet!
We then took advantage of Janet's presence to practice our interviewing and video-recording skills. Each group asked her about her cooking: how she got started, what her favorite cuisine/recipe is, etc. You can see me interview her (some great practice for me!) on behalf of Team Worldwide below. Sudesna practiced her video skills by recording the interview, and Scott and Lauren came up with some of the questions. Awesome collaboration, Team Worldwide!
Upon wishing us a happy Easter break and telling us to blog about our holiday, Doc Chris left us with one final challenge: to try out Tout, which records 15-second video snippets. He told us to go back to each of our class blog posts and reflect on each one in a Tout video. I have set up my account, but haven't tried recording yet, so we will see how that goes.
(www.socialmediaworld.com, 2012)
In other news, I have been celebrating the release of the book I acquired, copy edited, and now am helping to market through the Communication department's own publishing house, Apprentice House. Apprentice House is the only campus-based, student-run publishing house in the nation. The book I have been working on since last September, Kelsey Shining Bright, was written by an 18-year-old freshman at Villanova University, Cailean Geary. The book is currently available for pre-order on Amazon.com, and will ship on its official release date, this coming Sunday, April 1.
In celebration of this and five other books' recent release, Apprentice House held a launch party this past Wednesday night, where its newest authors and members of the Loyola community came together to celebrate the accomplishments of everyone involved in Apprentice House. I was even chosen to speak about the work of Apprentice House from a student's perspective. The party was a great success, and I had so much fun!
(www.loyola.edu, 2012)
Critical Analysis (answers to these questions are in the overview above):
**Disclaimer: All pictures and videos are courtesy of Tina Marciano (the master blogger and producer, according to Doc Chris!) unless otherwise noted.**
Unfortunately, due to my hectic Wednesday schedule of classes and work, as well as the fact that I do not have a car here at school, I was unable to attend the FEB Women's Training and Awards Program on March 21 at Martin's West. I am very disappointed, because based on everything that my classmates who did attend have posted thus far, it looks like it was a beautiful and extremely successful event. So congratulations, Doc Chris and all those who were honored.
Official Poster
The Dining Room
Beautiful Decor!
The Event Space
There was even a wonderful band playing to entertain the crowd!
Many vendors were present to assist the women, as well as promote their own organizations.
The morning was dedicated to the training sessions, and the afternoon to lunch and the awards ceremony. The food looked so delicious, and I am so sorry that I missed out!
It is so important to have a day dedicated to inspiring women and celebrating the achievements of those who have accomplished so much. The FEB Fellows gave out bronze, silver, and gold awards to three outstanding women. The presentation of the award and acceptance speech of the gold medal winner can be watched by clicking on this link (I can't find it via this YouTube search for some reason!): http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Axc7IjQyK5w
The students who attended were very impressed by Doc Chris (pictured below with Professor Jay!), and said he seemed extremely happy and excited to be there and about the event's extreme success.
He gave a speech in the afternoon, which Tina captured on video, and he even did a Judge Doc Chris Court session, which Tina also recorded. It seems like it was a pre- "bad trial" for those of us who weren't there. I really tried to coordinate with someone who was willing to go in the morning hours, but no one ever got back to me! I hope I don't go on bad trial on Thursday! Anyway, both professional Doc Chris and fun Judge Doc Chris can be seen in the two videos below (one is just a link for the same reason above. This YouTube thing on the blog posts can be testy and doesn't always find the videos I want!!! Sorry.):
Doc Chris deserves to be proud. He put in a lot of hard work and got the number of registrants to skyrocket after the first Federal Women's Council event he held back in February. It is pretty cool to know that our class's efforts contributed to that success as well. We posted pictures and videos to Facebook and helped to get word out about the event via other social media platforms. It was a special day for a lot of people!
All the members of the Federal Women's Council Hall of Fame took a picture on the lawn with Doc Chris, president. It is so great that you strive for the betterment of women, Doc Chris! Keep doing it! And thank you!
Instead of having a traditional class this week, Doc Chris suggested that each team have a Google+ hangout session at any time during regular class hours. At first, I was a little bit nervous, as I had only used Google+ hangout one time before, and that was when we were all in class together. However, it turned out to be a lot of fun, and of course, a new learning experience. Doc Chris always knows how to teach best - just by diving into the work. You never know unless you try, and each time I have tried what Doc Chris suggests or assigns, I am never disappointed.
Like much of the communication that occurs in this multimedia class, my group, Team Worldwide, used Facebook to connect and discuss a time when we would meet virtually on Google+. We decided that 5:30 would be best, and, though I always have faith in Team Worldwide, everyone showed up when they were supposed to. Go Team Worldwide!
(Simply Zesty, 2012)
(Team Worldwide, 2012)
I actually did have a few glitches before I got into the chat, though, so it's a good thing I signed on to Google+ a few minutes early. When I tried to start a hangout, it prompted me to uninstall and reinstall the plugin, so that took up some time. But I just followed the directions and got everything working fine within just a few minutes. Here is a picture of us as soon as we all signed in to the session:
Sadly, none of us were able to attend the Federal Women's Council event on Wednesday, so we recapped that briefly, as we were each a little confused about our role in that moving forward. We discovered an animal face button, and each clicked it so that we could take a picture and show Doc Chris. None of us had ever used that feature before, so that was something learned and discovered as well.
Then, after some more discussion, we each switched to the YouTube feature and took turns sharing a video with one another. I chose a Doc Chris "Thriller Party" video to share. Some people shared videos that had to do with the class (like Doc Chris trials), but some shared funny videos too.
(seeufilms, 2011)
(seeufilms, 2011)
(WCSMedia, 2011)
Here are two videos of Team Worldwide's entire Google+ hangout session. I'd say it was a success, and this class continues to challenge us, take us outside our comfort zone, and teach us something new every week.
Part ONE
Part TWO
Critical Analysis (answers to these questions are in the overview above):
Thursday, March 15, was a special day for all Loyola Greyhounds - the men's basketball team played in the NCAA championships against Ohio State. Though they lost, they put up a really great fight and played a great game.
In our multimedia class just a couple of hours prior to game time, Doc Chris hosted a NCAA and Greyhound celebration for the class. We had March Madness coverage playing on the projector screen in the background, and smoothies were served to all! Doc Chris isn't a liar, that's for sure! He definitely is rewarding us for all the hard work we completed in the first half of the semester.
On top of the March Madness for basketball in class, there was also a different type of March madness for St. Patrick's Day. Doc Chris the leprechaun made a special appearance.
He even spoke in an Irish accent and put the missing Yvette on trial for missing class. Poor Yvette wasn't even there to know what was happening. The Law and Order music went on and Judge Doc Chris did his thing. Check out Leprechaun Doc Chris below...
We spent a lot of the class time outlining exactly what we can expect each week for the rest of the semester. As a teacher who has many seniors in his class, Doc Chris understands that we would like to know exactly what we will need to do in order to be done with our college academics here at Loyola forever. Next week, we have the FEB Fellows event at Martin's West on Wednesday. At least four class members are expected to attend, and those that do will feed live updates to those students who can't to post on the class page, as well as their personal Facebook pages. I do not have a car here, but I am trying to work something out with Nicole Jefferson who does and is willing to take people along with her. If it works out, I will be there live tweeting and Facebooking, but if not, I will just be reposting the information my classmates post.
This is teamwork at its finest. Since only a few people in the class are planning on attending the event, we will be responsible for working with everyone in the class to complete this project, not just the members of our own groups. Though it might be a bit of a hassle, I think these events are crucial to our learning experience. In the video below, Doc Chris outlines his expectations for us (and you can even hear the basketball game on in the background! - Multitasking at its finest!).
After next week's event, there really isn't anything major left on the calendar for the rest of the semester - just a final written exam and a final oral exam. One last challenge is to try to create a Wordpress blog in addition to this blog, but I tried last night and it doesn't seem like it will be too hard. I do like Blogger better, though.
I am really excited to have our class via group Google+ hangout next Thursday night. I hope it goes well. That will definitely be a great learning experience.
Well, since it is St. Patrick's Day, I thought I should add a little more Irish fun to my blog post this week. This past November, I actually went to Ireland for a week over the Thanksgiving break to visit my cousin who was studying abroad in Dublin for the semester. As an Irish dancer, I had always wanted to go and immediately jumped at the chance. My aunt, uncle, and cousins went for their visit the same week as well, so we all did a lot of site seeing together.
I kissed the Blarney Stone...
I went to the Guinness factory...
And I even met a leprechaun at Temple Bar!
I had the time of my life on that trip, and I wish I could go back and do it all over again!
Happy St. Paddy's Day!!!
(legolass10, 2010)
Critical Analysis (answers to these questions are in the overview above):
I was in Grand Cayman Island when the Joseph Kony video swept the web. Though I had wifi in the place I was staying, I did not have my computer with me. I only had my Blackberry phone. Thus, the speed and connection was not the greatest, so I let a few days go by before I realized how big this Joseph Kony video had become and took action to learn more about it.
(invisiblechildreninc, 2012)
Each night before I went to sleep, I would go on Facebook on my phone and check to see if I had any messages from anyone. I saw friends, family members, and even celebrities either posting the link to the video on YouTube or making some sort of comment about it or Joseph Kony in their wall posts. This went on for a few days. Finally, one night I decided to play the video on my phone. Though I had heard of the Invisible Children organization and already knew a bit about their work, I had never heard of this man before and wasn't sure what to expect from this almost 30-minute-long video.
I was completely moved and riveted by it all, especially the way in which the man who made the video, Jason Russell, chose to angle his pitch to the world. He used his own young son, Gavin, as a platform, stating that no person can control where they are born or what family they are born into. He also used it to highlight the fact that if his son were kidnapped by a "leader" like Kony here in America, it would be all over the papers and the greatest action would be taken to stop it, but because this is happening in Uganda and other parts of Africa, the action being taken is slim to none.
(http://juicymaxy.tumblr.com/ , 2012)
Russell is calling us all to action to make Kony famous so that people can know about the LRA and the terrible things they do to children and make these children do to others, even loved ones. If people know and show that they care, the U.S. government will continue the fight to find and arrest him. The date is April 20, 2012: the night when cities will be covered by his name and picture to the greatest extent possible by activists and others who are moved by this video.
(http://juicymaxy.tumblr.com/ , 2012)
The wonders that social media can do in bringing awareness to issues that would otherwise go unnoticed around the world are amazing. As I type this post, almost 80 million people have viewed the official Kony 2012 video on YouTube, and the Invisible Children Facebook page has over 3 million likes. However, there have been opposing reactions and opinions about the actual effects this social media platform will have on the success of finding Kony. The above mentioned number of people have viewed the video, but how many of them will actually be moved to do something about it?? As a college senior who has a million-and-one things going on, I must be honest and say that I do not see myself actually attending the Cover the Night event in Baltimore or really taking any further action besides watching the video and perhaps engaging in conversation about it in class or with friends and family members. True, the campaign is a million times better off because of the ability to reach so many people around the world so fast, but not all people will be moved to action. The movement may not be as big as it seems, and that is the downside of social media. Sometimes the number of hits does not actually equal the number of those who are going to go out, spread the word, and be moved to action. Social media feeds the immediate gratification of this society we live in, and that is where the problem lies. Something else can so easily come along and take its place and this video can just fall into a long line of other videos that have swept the web. People in society today have a very short attention span for these kinds of things. Sadly but truly, only those who are sincerely dedicated to a cause will follow through.
Though this video swept Facebook, other social media sites, and the world last week, there has already been a documented decline in interest. As noted in this article from The Atlantic, The International Obsession With Kony is Already Ending, just one week after the video went viral, the world has lost interest. Online searches for Kony have dropped, as have mentions of him in the news.
Moreover, upon seeing the video, Africans reacted poorly to the campaign for its patronizing of their people and its glorification of white NGO workers. So, it hasn't been only good things that have come out of this campaign, and only time will tell whether those who were on board from their first viewing of the video will be present at their local Cover the Night event on April 20. Until then, the question of the campaign's longterm value will remain unanswered. New Media Success Story or Cautionary Tale
Another factor and breaking development as I write this post that could affect the campaign's success: the arrest of Russell. He was detained in San Diego on Thursday for intoxication, indecent exposure, and vandalizing cars. See the story at ABC.com here: Kony 2012 Activist Filmmaker Arrested. I will have to keep an eye on this development in the coming days...
I had the best spring break I could have possibly asked for. My roommate, Sam, and her family have a condo in Grand Cayman Island. They were nice enough to let us use it for the week and spend our break on the most beautiful island I have ever seen. It was truly heaven and paradise. Three of the four people living in my dorm room here at Loyola went - Sam, Jackie, and myself. Our fourth roommate, Josie, was on the school frisbee team trip in Georgia.
When we arrived at the apartment, Jackie and I could hardly believe where we were and ran through the house jumping and screaming like little kids. This was the view from the patio just outside the condo's back door (the sand was only about 25 feet from where I stood while taking this picture!!!):
I even took a 360 degree view from my beach chair one afternoon of our surroundings on the island...
The camera gets a little wobbly at one point, which I believe is me getting out of my beach chair to be able to fully turn around and get the entire view of things. That beach is like something you see in a commercial, TV show, or movie and think, "Boy, I wish I could go to a place like that, but I know I will never be able to." I WAS able to, and am so grateful for this. I tried to soak in every moment, take in every sight, sound, and motion around me, and store them all in my memory forever.
Most of our days consisted of relaxing on the beach with a book or music, especially in the beginning of the week. Once the middle of the week hit, I think we realized we only had a few days left and decided to do one fun activity each day for the next few days. We went snorkeling and kayaking - two things I have never done before, and to be honest, was a little hesitant to try. I was really happy I did, though.
On Thursday morning, we got up early and went to the Cayman Turtle Farm before the beach day really started. It was so cool to see the breeding ponds and see the "mamas and the papas," as one tour guide called them, as well as the little babies all swimming around. Though we didn't swim with the turtles, we did get to pick up and hold the baby turtles, which was really fun. They were adorable!
Though we mostly made breakfast and lunch at home in the condo and saved our appetites for dinner, we did go out for a fish-taco lunch on Thursday afternoon as well. I had never had fish tacos before, but was pleasantly surprised by my liking for them. The restaurant we ate them at, The Sunshine Grill, was really "beachy" and fun too - a little colorful beach hut.
Most of our evenings consisted of a "happy hour" with wine and cheese and crackers while watching the sunset on the beach. I have never seen such beautiful sunsets in my life. I think I took more pictures of the sky in the evening than of my friends and I throughout the entire trip! Some of the photos are really postcard-worthy! The orange, pink, and yellow hues of the sunsets were remarkable. It was so relaxing to sit on the beach, feel the sand between my toes, listen to the crashing of the waves, sip a glass of wine, be comforted by the company of close friends, and watch the beauty of nature all around me. Some nights we even played some music by Jack Johnson softly in the background. His music is the perfect mix of mellow and Caribbean-esque and island-y all at the same time.
(jknewcastle, 2006)
We fell into a routine of watching the sunset, followed by getting washed and dressed, and then heading out to a late dinner reservation where we would always enjoy plenty of food and wine! On our first night, we went to an Italian restaurant called Casanova, where we met a very outgoing and nice young waiter, Antonio, who was originally from Calabria. He quickly became our friend, and when we went back to visit him on our last night, he was very playful. In the video below, he tries to describe each of us in one word and finds it difficult, but he plays along with our little game. He had no trouble classifying us with celebrity names on the first night we were there and continued to call us by those names during our second visit. I was Christina Aguilera, Sam was Angelina Jolie, and Jackie was Celine Dion. We told him he was Ryan Reynolds, though he said he didn't know who that was, so classified himself as Antonio Banderas. Of course, everything was just in good fun, but it definitely made our two dinners and nights at Casanova so much more enjoyable. I am sure we will always look back on this trip and laugh about our times with Antonio!
This video needs some three-point lighting!!! Fortunately for the atmosphere, but unfortunately for the quality of this video, our dinner table was on the sand and the lighting was very dim. I apologize for the poor view, but I guess it allows for a better focus on the sound and Antonio playfully chatting with us.
On our last night, as we watched the setting sun, we each wrote our names in the sand on the shore. This might seem cheesy or cliched, but we wanted to do it and always have the picture and video of it as a reminder of the fun and bonding time we had on this very special, once-in-a-lifetime vacation. Though we might hope and try, chances are something like this will not happen again once we graduate and each pursue different dreams. But we will always have these constant reminders... You can even hear the comforting and relaxing sound of the waves in the background of the video.
We stayed up late on our last night, just sitting on the beach and talking. I would not have chosen to spend my last night in such a beautiful place any other way. The next morning, after we ate and packed, we sat and waited for the taxi driver to come pick us up. As you can imagine, we were very sad that the week went by so quickly and that it was already time to leave.
I would not change anything about this trip. Grand Cayman Island is beautiful, our time there was completely relaxing, and I now have an even closer bond with my roommates and friends. I could not ask for anything more.
I can't believe spring break is already here. This semester really has flown by, but the halfway point is the perfect time to reflect on what has been done in Doc Chris' multimedia class so far and how much I have learned since the middle of January. I am writing this blog post with the new Lady Antebellum soundtrack as my background music. Here is the best song on it:
(andersonss20, 2012)
1) In many work environments, knowing how to work in a team is crucial to success. The same is true for this multimedia class, and Team Worldwide has been successful. Before the start of this class, many of us had never used Google+, Twitter, YouTube, Blogger, or Gmail. We all had used Facebook before, but our knowledge of these other pages varied. The members of Team Worldwide proved our awesome teamwork skills right off the bat and provided assistance to those teammates who were less familiar with a certain page than themselves. Sudesna helped me set up my Google+ page, while I assisted her with her Twitter account. We were all very unfamiliar with Google+ hangout sessions, and the four of us all helped one another download the necessary software to our computers and click on the right links to join the session. We learned together, and were sure to capture that triumphant moment of success on camera...
Team Worldwide has been cited by Doc Chris in the past as one of the strongest, if not THE strongest, team in the class. This alone says enough, I think, about our ability to work with one another.
(Team Worldwide, 2012)
Our team, as well as the entire class team, proved invaluable to one another with getting all the necessary footage of the Federal Women's Council press event. The room was very crowded and we were all present at different times, but with the help of the class Facebook page, we were able to access and use one another's footage and photos in our reflection blog posts.
There really is strength in numbers, and due to the speed of the class, as well as the fact that it only meets once per week, the teamwork atmosphere of the class really helps. Doc Chris is only one person and cannot attend to everyone's individual needs while also teaching the class as a whole. There is just too little time. So, instead, we help one another, and use it as a way to build collaboration skills. The class works as a whole during our weekly sessions to post important information on the class Facebook page, whether about homework or upcoming assignments and field trips, to award points to students, or to share our reflections and homework assignments with one another. When we are outside the classroom, questions and concerns can be posted here for all to see, relevant news articles can be posted, and Doc Chris can post about cancelled class, late class, and even midterms right on the wall!
2) I really have learned so many valuable things since Doc Chris' first multimedia class, but there are three that I have found most valuable. First, it is amazing to me how all my Google accounts can be connected and accessed through one sign-in. One portal, many accounts. There are so many accounts to keep up with and post blog assignments to, but this makes it much easier to post things for followers of each site and ensure that no site has been overlooked.
As someone who has spent the past three years working as a tape runner and production assistant on Hollywood film junket sets, I have always been amazed by the proficiency of the set designers and lighting operators. Their jargon and the way the slight angling of one light can make such a difference in their minds has always amazed me. In the video below, actor Jim Sturgess is being interviewed about his performance in August 2011's "One Day." I am actually timing the interview and sitting just to his right out of the camera shot! You even hear my voice in the first split second of the video and see him look to the side at me a few seconds in!
(ArtisanNewsService, 2011)
Now, after watching the three-point lighting video on YouTube and having Doc Chris explain this concept to us on a live set, I have a better appreciation for it. I was able to bring my knowledge from the video to a smaller scale press set at the Federal Women's Council event, and now I can bring it to a larger interview set at future film junkets.
Most importantly, though, I have learned that in the public relations and production worlds, I have to be able to cope with unexpected circumstances while still remaining calm, cool, and collected. The Federal Women's Council event proved to be the perfect instance for me to practice this. Prior to the event, we were given very little information about the day or even about the Federal Women's Council itself. Basically, we had the traveling directions to get there and brought our cameras to capture whatever we encountered at the Stay Bridge Suites in Columbia, Maryland upon our arrival. I have learned that having a team behind you is critical to coping and being successful in such instances. Doc Chris just wants us to get outside the classroom and experience things in the real world first hand. Here is a video of three members of Team Worldwide, Sudesna, Lauren, and myself on our way back from the event reflecting on all that we encountered...
Doc Chris did not fail to follow up on the importance of learning in this way and praising us for our hard work in helping to make the event a success:
3) Everything in Doc Chris' multimedia class is a learning experience. From the very first moments of our very first class, we dove into our usage of social media, taking pictures and videos in class, and responding to them in our reflection blogs. We had trials, spoke of future field trips, and applying concepts learned in the classroom to real-live events. These edutainment and convergence tools have proven to me that social media really is so extremely powerful, especially for public relations necessities. Our class was at the Federal Women's Council event and we were almost immediately able to share our photos and videos on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+. In this 24 hour news cycle, social media is the ultimate tool, and Doc Chris is giving us experience with that. The edutainment tools wouldn't really hold so much weight if we weren't able to capture these in photos and on video and share them with our classmates and the world. Especially with little known, but important and influential organizations like the Federal Women's Council, these tools are invaluable in getting the word out and publicizing events.
(Liberty Mobiles)
Things in my everyday life that I would not normally pay much attention to I have now become much more aware of. I take pictures of many more things, try to post more about my experiences to Facebook and Twitter, and just try to analyze things more critically in general. What is a better place to start to learn about how to use social media and the influence it can have than my own life? Things I post are meaningful to me as an individual, but if I am going to post them on social media sites, they also have to have some sort of meaning for others. By documenting things in class like Judge Dr. Chris trials and pieces of lectures he gives, I am forced to find the meaning and the hook that is present for those who are not a member of this class. That is a necessary skill to have in PR and production -- making something attractive to those who are on the outside and might not be enthusiastic about it otherwise: selling an idea, creation, or thought to people. We are learning to do that in the most professional way possible, but that doesn't mean it has to be any harder to document something than pulling out our smartphones and hitting play!
4) The world of public relations, and communication in general, would be nothing without evaluation. The fact that it is called the field of COMMUNICATION says it all. Practitioners strive to give society what they want and need in the most professional way possible. In this case, we as students strive to give Doc. Chris everything he is looking for and show him, through our blogs and class participation, that we are growing and learning as he intended us to. By having trials, both good and bad, Doc. Chris is able to point out to the entire class what he expects. Judge Dr. Chris trials are meant as a learning and improvement tool for everyone present, even the superstars of the class. It is an evaluation tool to make sure everyone is on track and completing assignments and utilizing our edutainment and convergence tools properly. Depending on the circumstances, some classes are more trial-heavy than others, but I've noticed that in recent weeks, we have had more good trials than bad trials, and this definitely speaks to our success as individuals, teams, and a class. The video below is a perfect illustration of the dynamics of the class and how trials are used as a learning tool and to discuss important matters that might otherwise be overlooked...
5) I have really enjoyed a lot of things I have done in Doc Chris' class so far this semester, but I really enjoyed watching the Grammy Awards with a critical eye, not just for pure entertainment, and then posting my footage and opinions in a blog for everyone to read. Usually, we watch these awards shows just to see if our favorite band wins best artist, but this was a whole new experience. While watching, I had to be extremely alert and look for things that were worthy to tweet about, worthy to take a picture or video of, and worthy to post on my blog about, while still be able to provide a fresh point of view. I think I was successful, and I think Doc Chris' "NTWITA" echoed that notion. Here is a picture of the most bizarre moment of the night: a performance by Nicki Minaj of her song "Roman Holiday."
(Brilliant Brands, 2010)
6) Before taking this class, I had only ever used Gmail, Twitter, and Facebook. I had never used Google+ or Blogger, and wasn't even entirely sure of what they were, and though I had used YouTube, I never had a personal account where I could upload and "like" videos on a channel. Therefore, I learned on the first day how to establish my presence on these sites and connect with my classmates and Doc Chris on them. I was also unaware that all the Google sites are connected and are located on one portal. That is amazing and makes navigation and posting super easy! Since then, I have learned how to not only establish my presence no these sites, but also how to do so in a professional way. I have learned how to upload my own material, share it with others, and use my classmates' material that is posted on these sites in my blog. This class has forced me to branch out in how I use these sites; I'm not only posting about menial happenings at school or home, with friends or with family, but am using them to post about monumental events with influential people. In turn, though, this has had a positive effect on my personal life too because, especially as I begin my job search, I now have posts that cite accomplishments I can talk about in an interview and be proud of. There is evidence on the internet to back up my resume and my stories. If that doesn't make taking this class a good choice, I don't know what does!
Considering I was very uncertain on the first day of class, and even a bit nervous, I think I have come a long way in my knowledge of these social media tools. Though none of my other classes are utilizing them at the moment, prior classes here at Loyola have, but none have taught me how to actually navigate the sites and build a personal image on the pages like this class has.
7) Doc Chris has definitely been an unconventional Loyola professor, but that is what has made him so great. His use of real-world events as learning tools and fearlessness to dive right into projects and media make the class fast-paced and efficient, much like the world of media. I feel that this is one of the few classes I have taken at Loyola that has provided me with skills that can actually be utilized in my career. Doc Chris provides both positive and negative feedback on a regular basis, which is crucial to any student's success. The class Facebook page has been a timely tool to help him do so. He is always just a click away and is eager to respond with any advice about homework, jobs, or the world of media in general. This class has greatly exceeded my expectations in terms of getting real-world experience and helping me create materials to add to my professional portfolio. You have to be a self-starter and motivator in this course and that is important in any career path. The field trips and other edutainment tools provide the means to exercise and improve this skill. Though we have only met six times, each class has been unpredictable and pushed me out of my comfort zone to try something new. That's what college is all about, so, Doc. Chris, you have succeeded in being an accomplished college professor! This uncertainty is by far my favorite part of the course because it keeps me on my toes and eager to know what learning method I will employ next.
Doc Chris' iPad desktop screen - What a funny guy!
