Tagging - Method to the Madness

I've always viewed tagging for personal use, before delicious, that is. Delicious is the first application that I can see the use of having multiple eyes viewing it for a purpose. I agree with the idea that it's "less intrusive" than e-mailing everything that is interesting to you that you think might be interesting to others. My older tags in my edublog and flickr were very representative to the moment. WYSWYG - What you see is what you get was the method to the madness last year. I was very novice in the idea of tagging, not truly understanding the idea BEHIND the purpose, but this year I'm getting a clearer idea of how it can be used effectively. When thinking about going to refine my tags, I'm having a hard time. Only the idea of a broader tag seems like the only revision. Such as the tags as "BATH" also having the tag of "VACATION" or dating it "2006." I realized that I was very specific, but didn't think of the basic labels that people may search under. For example, I have a picture of the Gin in Plymouth, England. I labeled Gin, Plymouth, and England...basic right? But not SIMPLE! SO I went back and included Barbican, and street. Trying to think about my iImage and what basic search terms while I had a sense of what I was looking for already is helping me refine my tags.

The Temporary-Final to my iImage

Iterative Design at its best

I was a little apprehensive going into the "Feedback" session of our iImage first drafts. I felt pretty confident in mine. I knew that there was strong emotion behind making, so I felt I was doing an adequate job of creating a compelling image. However, I was a bit humbled after the process. I realized, like many time you work on something so long your eyes start crossing, that I had hit a plateau that didn't continue on ahead and felt I had nowhere else to go with the image. But in fact, by hearing the input of my professors and classmates, I realized quite quickly that there was a figurative bridge to where I wanted my iImage to go, it just took some guidance to recognize the path that led to it.

Having others share their first impressions definitely helped me realize what message I was getting across to them. Some of those messages I quickly realized were NOT the ideas I wanted coming from my iImage. Taking that information and using it to further create my product resulted with a product I'm even prouder of then when I first thought I was "done." One of the articles we read taught me that we're never DONE until we're SATISFIED, but SATISFACTION can be a temporary thing as well. Going back to relook at the specific goal trying to be reached has helped me improve my work immensely! :)

iImage accomplished. Bring on the iMovie!

iImage first draft (published)

This is my first public draft of my iImage. It seems to be coming together. It's amazing after looking back on some of my previous drafts, how it can develop. I tried to consider the article on graphic design as I was going through. I matched the colors in the lips to the colors in the logo. I wanted to create depth so that the concepts upsetting the child were all around her (not just next to her). I want to invoke a feeling of sympathy first. Have the view wonder why is this child SO upset. Then I want them look around her and at least understand that there are math terms involved. Finally to look down (the same path the tears would take) and find the altered logo of No Child Left Behind (NCLB). I'm not sure which word I really want to have emphasis on. Obviously LEFT is the bolded (and changed) word from the original logo, but CHILD (to me) to be an option for focus in my crusade! I feel near the end with my iImage but not yet there. I need time away from it before I come back one more time to make sure it still invokes emotion in MYSELF. That seems to be the true test!

fireworks mini-project

iImage Idea part 1

My idea for my iImage started forming soon after October of this past school year. We have a curriculum change in the Math Department about 2 years ago, along with the first year of measuring our AYP. The first group of students did quite well, considering that they were the first group of students to come to 8th grade after attempting to complete the ENTIRE Transition Math book, whereas, previously, the students only did HALF of the content throughout the year. This year, administration was sure to remind the 8th grade staff (including myself) of the success we had the previous year and to make sure that we understood because of NCLB our scores had to continue to increase. We spent much of the first month "hammering" in ideas that we knew would appear on the MEAP, despite the fact that these students wouldn't normally be exposed to this type of content until near the end of the school year. I was beginning to feel that we were allowing the "TEST" to consume the time, discussion, and the personality of the classroom at the beginning of the year, which is typically a time used to get to know the students, their strengths, their weaknesses, etc. Instead, we were packing more "stuffing" into the pillows until the seams were stretched to their limits.

NCLB is a common grumble among teachers. The picture from afar seems to be ideal, however, to bring it into a classroom that is being funded less and less is to get a close-up of that pretty picture and realize the many flaws that exist when you study the work up close. My brain began to toy with the idea of how I can pull together my content area and the effects I SEE from NCLB. This is where my iImage began to take form.