Методичні рекомендації "Projects with Multimedea"

Olha Marchuk,

 teacher of English,

 school 4,

 Zmerynka, Vinnytsia region

Project Work and Multimedia Technologies

   It is obvious that nowadays the biggest problem we face in teaching is to get students interested in learning. Project works prepared with the help of multimedia technologies can contribute significantly to solving this problem. They make the process of learning brighter and more involving.

   Such project works increase students’ motivation, develop thinking skills, reveal various inclinations and talents of children, make them feel more independent. It’s a kind of student’s activity, which involves their experience, imagination, knowledge and great desire to share them with others. Students become the creators but not mere receivers of knowledge. In such a way students learn by doing things themselves. It’s important that project works attract students of different levels. The result of the project work encourages the participants and makes them feel more confident and experienced.

   Furthermore, multimedia projects provide a variety of cross-subject connections.

   Projects can be prepared over a short period of time or can be extended up to several weeks.

   Multimedia projects can be divided into three categories:

1.                                  Information and Research projects (Power Point and video presentation);
2.                                  Survey projects (Power Point presentations including photos, charts, maps, graphs; different reports summarizing survey findings);
3.                                  Production projects (students’ video films, electronic newspapers, e-cards, etc.)

Project Samples with the Use of Multimedia

Using Pictures and Photos

Technology and materials: photo cameras, photographs, Power Point presentations, a lap-top, a projector and a multimedia board.

Unit objectives:

Students will: 1) describe the photo in English;

2) identify and describe the basic composition terms (framing, arrangement, placement, lighting, colour);

3) discuss photo images;

4) take photos, display them for the class and explain their intentions as photographers. 

Activity1. Meet My Family

   This is an individual project. For this activity ask your students to prepare Power Point presentations of their families. Tell them to be ready to describe appearances, characters, hobbies and favourite pastimes of the members of their families. Children can present the images of happy moments in their family life, like a birthday celebration, vacation, friend’s party, a new baby in the family etc. Talk to the students about photography in our lives. How many of them have ever taken a picture of family or friends? What are some other objects that they photographed (pets, landscape, historical sights etc.)?

   At the end a teacher can prepare media presentation of the students’ childhood photos.

Each student is to describe the child in the picture and, together with the class, guess who is depicted in the picture.

Activity2. Story Time

   For this activity you can use original photos or make photocopies of pictures from different sources or, if the computer lab is available, you can use Power Point. Join the class into groups of 4-5. Give each group a set of the same photographs (5-7). Each group should then put the photos in the order that, in their opinion, could tell a story. Pupils in groups develop the story and present it to their classmates.

Activity3. Virtual Excursions

   Join the class into teams of 2. Tell them to take photos of some interesting places of their native town, which they would like to recommend to see or visit the guests of the town. Then ask them to prepare Power Point presentation and some information about these places. Pupils should present their project works to the class. The class chooses the most interesting presentations.

Using Films

Technology and materials: cameras, video-cameras, a lap-top, a projector and a multimedia board.

Unit objectives:

Students will: 1) discuss their film preferences;2) identify and describe general cinema  terms and professions in the media industry; 3) analyse the structure of a film poster; 4) create a movie or a movie poster; 5) explore the relationship between sound and image, the effects of basic camera shots.

Activity1. Analysis of the Opening or Clips

   Each student should choose and prepare a video of their favourite movie in English. Then in turn they play the opening sequence of their film to the class (3-5 minutes). Other students listen to the music without seeing the images. They have to guess what this movie might be about, what genre it is. After this, turn off the sound on your computer and let the students watch the same sequence but without sound. Draw the students’ attention to the relationship between the sound and image in an audiovisual medium like film.

   Students also should explain why they have chosen this or that film, and share their impressions on it. It’s very good to find additional information about the creators, actors, soundtrack and the plot of the movie.

Activity2. Film Makers

1.                                  Read a short story with your students. Then ask them to imagine that they are producers of a movie based on the story. They must choose the director, actors and locations for shooting  the film. Let the students work in small groups and present their ideas both visually (by using magazine cutouts, booklets, postcards, Power Point presentations etc.) and orally (explaining why they chose this or that director/actor, location etc.).
2.                                  Choose some problems actual for teenagers and ask them to shoot a documentary revealing this topic. For this purpose students may use video-cameras and 
3.                                  Windows Movie Maker, Windows Live programmes.

The Meaning of Television

Technology and materials: Power Point presentations, a lap-top, a projector and a multimedia board.

Unit objectives:

Students will: 1) identify and discuss different types of television programmes;

2) compare and contrast different television genres; 3) analyse representations of different groups of people on television; 4) identify/recognize stereotypes on television; 5) summarise plots, predict future events; 6) write script proposals.  

Activity1. What’s Your Favourite?

    Ask your students to form groups of 5 and discuss within the groups their favourite television programmes. Each group then prepare Power Point presentations of 1-3 most popular programmes. The students must say why they like these programmes, and what they do not like about them. In order to get a more detailed response than “I like it because it is interesting”, encourage  pupils to think in terms of time of the broadcast (convenient, inconvenient etc.); characters (realistic/unrealistic, funny, etc.); situations; action (fights, chases etc.); special effects etc.

Activity2.  Talk Show

   Join the class into 4-5 teams. Tell them to choose some popular singer whom they would like to meet and ask some questions. They should prepare some information about the star, Power Point presentations, a person who will play the role of the star and a presentation of some of the star’s song. Then role-play the talk show.

With the Help of the Internet

Technology and materials: the Internet resources, the program Public Publisher, Power Point presentations, a lap-top, a projector and a multimedia board.

Unit objectives:

Students will: 1) use the Internet; 2) identify and discuss different types of websites;

3) develop creative skills; 4)write newspaper articles, e-cards, advertisements.     

Activity1. E-cards

   Connect this activity with a coming holiday, e.g. Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, St. Valentines’ Day etc. As pre-task, give pupils a home assignment to do an Internet search and learn about the origin of the holiday, the customs of its celebration. In the classroom, ask the pupils if they celebrate this holiday. Then ask them to go to the website that provides free electronic greeting cards such as www.yahoo.com, www.hallmark.com, www.bluemountain.com etc., look at several cards in this category, write out the greeting expression in their notebook. Next, the pupils are to choose one card, write their own greeting and e-mail it to the classmate. If the pupils do not have e-mail accounts, you can help them to open one with www.yahoo.com or another free website.

 Activity2. Travel Agents

    Ask pupils to make teams of 3. Assign one city or country for every team, e.g. team 1 – London, team 2 – Ottawa, team 3 – Washington, team 4 – Sidney. Each team will represent a travel agency that develops a new itinerary for their clients. The task for (each team) is to do the Internet search on their city, find the information about the location, main sites, attractions etc. and develop the itinerary for the 4-day tour to that city/country. The itinerary should include daily sightseeing, evening entertainment, hotel description, suggestions about places to eat, cost of the 4-day tour including the hotel. Of course the idea is to “sell” the tour for travel agency’s clients – choose the most interesting and attractive sights for the pictures, find the cheaper prices for plain tickets and hotels. Pupils present their projects to their classmates by creating a travel brochure, a poster or Power Point presentation and giving an oral presentation.

Activity3. Advertisements

   Pupils work in groups of 2. They search some information about the world’s national parks and with the help of the programme Public Publisher create their own advertising brochure about this or that place. Then pupils should present their information both visually (by using, booklets, postcards, Power Point presentations etc.) and orally.

Activity4. Thematic Newspapers

   Pupils may work in groups or individually. Their task is to create a thematic newspaper with the help of the program Public Publisher. They create their own design and find necessary information on the Internet sights. Finally pupils should present their creative works.

References:

1. Buckingham, D. Media Education: Literary, Learning and Contemporary Culture. – Cambridge, UK: Polity Press, 2003.

2. Lozytskaya T. The Benefits of Using New Technologies: “English” #9, 2010 – 4-7pp.

3. Novikova A. Teaching Media in the English Language Classroom. Activities for Media Education. – Taganrog: Kuchma Publishing House, 2004. – 52p.