Category Archives: Proposals

Can Photojournalism Change Our Biases?

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Overview

In an exploration of photojournalism, visual storytelling, and how it can potentially reshape our understanding of certain groups of people it offers insights which can potentially change our biases. I intend to introduce various types of images from the blog Humans of New York that can elaborate on how photojournalism presents an opportunity to change our biases beyond online mediums. Throughout this experiment, I will engage with images on a superficial sense, and on a practical level where I can probe certain visual literacies of an image within the context of Humans of New York.

Problem

Since the emergence of new media sites, it has given birth to various social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram which has offered individuals a way to express themselves in unique discourse communities than before. In doing so, many individuals use photos with or without content as a way of to give a voice to voiceless individuals. Does photojournalism paint a fair picture of our culture today? Specifically, can photojournalism reshape our understanding of certain types of people and offer insight, which can possibly change our biases?

Solution

Over the span of all of our lives we have digested millions of images. Many of these images has shaped how we perceive the world and it has been reinforced by mass media. My contention is that photojournalism offers individuals a chance to offer new understandings of certain kinds of people and perhaps in doing so we can end our biases about certain groups of people. For this project, I will examine the blog Humans of New York by Brandon Stanton, a blog that shares stories while offering a new light on photojournalism and cultivating a new type of visual experience. I will view 1,000 of out 3,530 photos and explore 3-5 that I find visually captivating and content that sheds light on the individual in an effort to chart how I am transformed through this experience. 

Deliverables

  1. To create a comparative analysis which I write about my emotion about a certain image and then write about my emotions are reading the content of the image and write about the emotions I feel after the image. This will be executed by leaving a comment on Instagram/Facebook below the image.
  2. A PowerPoint/Prezi presentation with images that carefully assess each photos for the overall image, the image point of view, the quality of the image, the subject matter of the image (if there is any) whether it is environmental, controversial, or presents a challenge to ethical values.
  3. A blog post to my personal blog Black Attire Aficionado that I can reflect on the success, emotions, and revelations of how I was affected by the images and contents of the Human of New York and if I was changed by the visual storytelling. (Hyperlinks to ePortfolio, to Black Attire Aficionado, and to OpenLab)
  4. Create a image that mirrors Human of New York and tracks its success on Instagram and Facebook. (Use hashtags on Instagram and Facebook)

Objectives

The visual language/ visual rhetoric, multimedia storytelling, and how our cultural beliefs leads to misinterpretation of an image has affected how we quantify ourselves and the people around us.

Questions to Probe

  1. How does cultural beliefs affect visual storytelling?
  2. Can an image stand without content?
  3. What factors play a part in interpretation?
  4. How does culture affect the way we interrupt an image?
  5. Why does culture affect the way we interrupt an image?
  6. Can we un-train our eyes?

Goals

To successfully chart my discoveries and offer insight on how we shine a new light on the ways in which photojournalism plays role in how interpret images and perhaps how we can begin to un-train our eyes.

Timeline

11/12 View 100-500 photos

11/15 View 100-500 photos

11/18 Narrow down on 3-5 photos

TBD

 

Methodology

TBD

 

Sources (subject to change)

Humans of New York

Photojournalism 

The Importance of Storytelling 

Visual Narratives 

Forbes 

Photojournalism and Rhetoric

Revised Final Project Proposal

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My focus for this final project will be framed around twitter and user engagement. I originally wanted to observe two very popular and active twitter accounts for their user engagement but now I’m tailoring it to build my brand on twitter. I am basing my strategy on the textbooks and material we’ve read in class as well as outside sources. My objective is to see if by applying these concepts I can gain a larger following. After looking through the material and realizing I would like to have a larger twitter presence I propose to apply one strategy a week and in the end seeing if they have increased my user engagement or following.

On twitter there is a feature that allows you to track the engagement of your tweets, it tells you how many users have seen my content. So I would in turn be able to see if the tactics are working.

REVISION: The deliverables i will be providing will be in the form of the analytics bar on twitter, i will be screen shotting and posting the weeks results on my e portfolio and then reflecting on the experience and then comparing the results to the sources suggested outcomes.

First I will average my current user engagement to compare to the engagement at the end.

I have broken down into 5 weeks the strategies I plan to apply and at the end of the week I will see by how much, if any my engagement increased.

Week #1- Leverage trending topics. I will explore the moments and trending sections of twitter and engage in the conversation for at least 2 of them per day.

Week #2- Boost visibility by tweeting with at least three content based hashtags that represent a call to action.

Week #3- Fuel my profile with shared content. I will share and comment on popular stories to attract or raise questions about the content.

Week #4- Branch out. I will locate and attempt to engage with three professionals in my desired career field (marketing).

Week #5- Cross post. In the last week I will share my content from linkedin and open lab on my twitter to show professional work on my twitter feed as well.

Week #6- For the last week I will gather and assess my data, see which week had the largest engagement and overall by how much (if any) my engagement increased.

My objective for doing this project is to better learn how to management my content online and build a profile to reflect that of an emerging professional. At the end and in the final version I want to answer these three questions.

  1. How did I apply each strategy? What was hardest and what was easiest about doing so? Which did I feel worked the best?
  2. Which one statistically had the largest engagement increase and over all by what percent did my user engagement change?
  3. Did I accomplish my goal? If not how do I plan on continuing to do so and what do I think my twitter profile now reflects of me as a student, professional and person?

My sources potentially would be:

Digital Literacy Text

Writing with new Media Text

http://www.forbes.com/sites/johnrampton/2014/09/29/25-ways-to-grow-your-social-media-presence/

http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/26-tips-strengthen-social-media-marketing/

http://mashable.com/2011/12/15/branding-and-social-media/#j_qJ42Q0haqM

I plan to add additional sources as I go into depth about why people are drawn to certain content, what makes content engaging and what is the best time of day to publish content.

 

Becoming Unavailable

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Vision:

To successfully and adequately capture through daily vlogging reflection and blog posts how ‘unavailability’ from social media networking sites such as Tumblr, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram strongly affect a person’s’ attention and participatory structures, along with the effects it has our wants,needs, and interpretations of people, persons, and things. All of which will be justified and supported through research of willing individuals and attestable written resources. The end-result will be presented in the form of short short film/video of some sort which will be posted to Mariah Rajah’s e-portfolio site.

Introduction:

Throughout the semester we have covered a wide range of topics but in all of them we always seemed to return the topic of availability. We question time and time again that in this day in age is it possible to be unavailable? And what does it actually mean to be unavailable in a world where not being able to reach someone is a sign of tardiness and carelessness.When thinking of a possible project idea the focus was drawn on three main topics that are of interest:

  1. Availability
  2. Attention structures
  3. Participation

After focusing in on these three topics the realization came that they each play a part in tackling the question of, “Do we have the ability to ever become completely unavailable? ” First of all, availability is by far one of the biggest affordances and constraints of the internet. Social media has allowed us to constantly be in touch. We can tag, track, and see when we’ve read each other’s messages. All of these affordances have in a way lead us to always be online even when we aren’t. Being available online means you are expected to participate in conversation both personal and global.

As an individual of an online community you have the responsibility to share, comment and create and if you do not you are therefore doing that community a disservice. Your participation is always needed and wanted on both your and your audiences’ end. This want and need to participate ultimately allows us to choose whether we are or are not available.  It also means that you are aware of what is going on around you and you are in a way forced to take part or else you are “creeping”. Being available has also had an impact in the way we divide our attention. What we focus on and how we focus on these things ultimately affects our participation and our availability. These three concepts all interact and interfere with our ability to actually disconnect and become unavailable in a world that demands availability.

Objective:

This project proposes an experiment in which I will purposely disconnect myself from all social media networking sites (such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr)  which I participate in for two weeks.

In those two weeks I will vlog, blog, and capture photographs daily about how I am dealing with not being available online. Since a large portion of the project will be reflections I plan to capture this by doing daily vlogs that give detailed descriptions as to how I am dealing with the disconnect.

In tracking this I want to highlight the shift in myself and the transition from an avid online user to someone who has become “unavailable”:

  1. In order for this project to be executed properly test subject  will research how other people have dealt with taking breaks from social networking sites (via online resources: Videos, articles, etc.)  and interview colleagues; then compare this to self-assessed criteria in order to accurately record whether or not it is an internal or an external issue that has had the same effects across the board.
  2. By conducting research that almost entirely embarks on the premise of availability and the affordances and constraints it entails, student will try to also highlight the psychological effects this disconnect has upon an individual such as anxiety, worry, detachment etc. Also with the hopes that this project demonstrates that availability has changed our wants,needs, and interpretations of people, persons, and things.
  3. Lastly, in this project student wishes to prove that there is a way by which we can become unavailable in a world that desires for everyone to constantly be online and involved.

Deliverables:

As the nature of this project is to produce multimodal aspects I hope to:

  1. Capture daily videos reflection that track my changes in behavior (participation & attention), needs, wants, interpretations, and emotions. (which will be posted on openlab e-portfolio by the end of each day for the 2 weeks)
  2. Photographs that highlight how I spend my time in being ‘unavailable’. Which will be accompanied with short captions/posts as to explain the thoughts and noticed changes. **all which will include hyperlinks to sources that either support or argue against points** (which will be posted on openlab e-portfolio by the end of the day)
  3. PowerPoint presentation at the end of experiment to showcase learnt experiences, changes, and understandings of how unavailability effects more than what we think it does.
  4. In its entirety, answer what I have found the answer to be for the question: “What does it mean to be unavailable?”

Target Questions for Daily Vlogs:

  1. How are you feeling today without your online presence?
  2. Have you noticed a change in yourself?
  3. How has your relationship with your smart device changed?
  4. What other activities have you been participating in?
  5. How has your attention shifted? Has it shifted?
  6. Do you appreciate the new found freedom that comes along with not participating in online social media networking sites?
  7. What is the biggest and hardest part of this transition?

Projected Timeline:

Initial starting date- TBA

  • First two weeks – document and capture the ‘unavailable’ time period. Keep detailed records in reflections that will allow myself to compile an archive as to which draw information from for film.
  • After initial steps are taken next step will be to begin the editing process as to allow enough time to properly capture essence of project.
  • Further capture video, composite adequate research which adds to an archive that will support short film and answers the question of unavailability.

Research Materials:

  1. What Does Profile Unavailable Mean on Facebook?
  2. 7 Important Reasons to Unplug and Find Space
  3. Get Off The Internet: A Challenge to Reconnect With Yourself
  4. Facebook effects on social distress: Priming with online social networking thoughts can alter the perceived distress due to social exclusion
  5. When Your Smartphone Is Too Smart for Your Own Good: How Social Media Alters Human Relationships
  6. Measuring Emotional Contagion in Social Media
  7. Generation Z: Technology and Social Interest

Resources to be Used: TBA

*Revised Proposal Posts due 1pm Th 11/12

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As we discussed in class, you should post a revised proposal by tomorrow before class (please post no later than 1pm, so that I have time to read through them before class). More detailed information about this is on the Schedule, but I’ve copied the relevant info. at the bottom of this post too, for your convenience.

If you want to get a head start on your ePortoflio work (due Monday), please feel free to do so. You can find specifics about that assignment on our Schedule (including what you need to do on the ePortfolio, and the reflection post you need to make discussing that work).

As you work on your projects, don’t hesitate to email me with any questions, or schedule a time to meet me to discuss it in person (we can cover much more in 5-10 minutes together talking than we can in a whole series of email exchanges). I’ll be on campus this Friday (11/13), next Monday (11/16), so if you don’t want to wait until my regular office hours next Tuesday, feel free to email me to set up something sooner.

—
Revised Proposals (due: 1pm on Th 11/12), categorize as “Revised Proposals”

  • revise proposal according to Professor Belli’s feedback & comments (written, in class, and individual conferences)
  • key is to provide as much specific detail as possible
    • propose at least 3 new media composing experiments (aside from final presentation & ePortfolio work): don’t just list things, but explain how/why they will be integrated into the project
    • present/discuss/integrate 5 additional sources (not the ones we’ve read together), showing how this has extending your thinking about the project
    • timeline: what is your timeline (week by week) for your particular project – what do you plan to do each week?
    • If you have particular questions about the project, clearly articulate them (pose them to Professor Belli and your classmates).

Final Project Proposal

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Throughout this semester we have covered a variety of new media trends and how they change how we use the affordances of social media. For my project I would like to focus on virility and how stories, ideas and even current fads spread.

My focus or main tool will be twitter as that is my favorite social media platform, it is also the one that changes the fastest and is the most fluid in its trends. I propose following two verified (twitter’s label for reputable users) sources, one being entertainment or trends and one being news and current events. At this moment I have two main twitter feeds I would like to track the first being Cosmopolitan and the other being CNN.

My goal is to sit down daily and track both accounts daily activity and then record their virility. I will ask the following questions,

  1. Which account posted more, was it frequent throughout the day or grouped together?
  2. Which account got more retweets or shares, mentions and overall response?
  3. Were there any similarities in the stories, if so how were the reporting of the events different?
  4. Which account saw a more positive user engagement? Why might that be?

My goal is to see what type of information a twitter user notices and gives reaction to. For example does a political story about Syria or a “Top 5” blog from Cosmo rake in more web-traffic?

We as a society do most of our day to day activities online but how much of that information do we actually process and are we jaded or indifferent to the current events of the world and more interested in what’s keeping us entertained. By following both these twitter feeds over a month’s time I hope to see overall which twitter account garnishes more regular recognition and engagement. Both accounts are big names in their respective worlds and are widely recognized names.

At the end of the project I plan to answer the following in my final product,

  1. Which account consistently had more user engagement? Was it positive, negative or neutral?
  2. Which account posted more regularly and was that a factor?
  3. Formulate a hypothesis with the collected data as to why one was more favored over the other.
  4. Does this data suggest a change in the type of information we prefer to see online?

Viral posts are a norm online and often we will see the same story told through multiple channels and we all have a favorite source. However is that source a cookie cutter news outlet like CNN or FOX or is it a blog like the gothamist or Cosmo. I hope to gage whether or not there is a preference among twitter users and if so what it is.

The only variation to my project that i am on the fence about is potentially following two types of each account for example CNN and FOX and Cosmo and US weekly to better back up any results i may find. Overall though the general idea is news vs. entertainment.

Journalism & Politics: The Perfect Duo

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The topic I will be exploring is the flow of social media in journalism, specifically in regards to politics. With the presidential elections becoming a popular topic in the digital world, it is clearest to track the development of connected discourses. The idea came from the influence of social media in traditional journalism as explored in Week 5 of the semester. With networking platforms allowing further dialogue outside of the tradition confines of journalism and politics there is much to observe and participate. Some of the mediums that would be used are live tweeting during debates and joining discourses surrounding Facebook and political blogs. The goal of the project is to see if there is a breakdown in the makeup of traditional journalism and politics when social media is added. The platforms that will play a major role in my research are:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Wikipedia

With the increase in media based journalism, election based stories are being distributed faster and disregarded with a similar speed. However, when looking at some of the comments included in news reports on different platforms there is a level of discourse that is new to the political world.

Possible questions:

  1. How can I explore this topic in the best way?
  2. How have politics, culture, and media started to blend?
  3. Where is the divide between traditional journalism and how is that boundary becoming less effective?

Online Personal Branding – Digital Footprints

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My project is about online personal branding. The purpose of my project is to show how people brand themselves online by expressing their interest, beliefs, ethos, values, talents and skills, and how social media plays a significant role in how our peers and employers perceive us. I am interested in this project because an online identity is a growing trend and is very important in today’s society.

This project will teach me how to use social media platforms to create a digital footprint and analyze how I can build my reputation by contributing to online communities. This project will address the following questions:

  • what do you want to be known for?
  • what differentiates you from everyone else?
  • where are your passion areas?
  • who are you at your core?
  • what makes you unique?
  • what do you do everyday that is true to you?
  • what content do you want to share?
  • how do you want to be perceived?
  • what is your authentic brand?
  • how can you best enhance social relationships?

This project will also act as a quick reference guide to personal branding. With the growing job market, it is important to create contacts that will provide options for establishing networks and embrace social media. I will examine blogging, social streaming, video channels, and websites as mediums for networking and reputation building.

I will discuss the following steps to building a personal brand and the tools to engage on social media and develop an authentic voice:

  • identifying personal passions
    • likes, dislikes, unique creativity and personal style, natural talents and gifts
  • Developing a core message
    • mission statement
    • own unique view
  • Choosing web mediums
    • domain name
    • content management
    • creating a theme
  • Blogging and starting a website
    • embedding videos, presentations, and images
  • Actively participating in the following communities:
    • Twitter
    • facebook
    • linkedIn
    • youtube
    • google+
  • Using Social Media Dashboard

I will discuss some of the following advantages that can result from having a personal brand:

  • Increased recognition
  • opportunities
  • partnerships

Sources:

quicksprout.com/the-complete-guide-to-building-your-personal-brand/
Producing New and Digital Media: Your Guide to Savvy Use of the Web, Cohen and Kenny

Visual Rhetoric and Culture

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Since the emergence of digital media, it has led to the creation of how various online communities play a role in shaping visual rhetoric and culture. An online community is a group of people with common interests who use the Internet (web sites, email, instant messaging, etc.) to communicate, work together and pursue their interests over time. Each of these communities has attracted individuals of all kinds to participate within that community of shared interest. Some of the communities are within platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, OkCupid, Buzz Feed, and Flickr to name a few. When I examined all these communities there was one common thread, many individuals used photos as a way to use visual rhetoric/ visual storytelling to quantify themselves. This had led me to several question, Do photos need content? Are images cultural? How has multimedia affected visual storytelling?

The key elements of my project are:

*Visual language

*Are images cultural?

*Multimedia storytelling

I want to explore the following questions “Has our cultural beliefs affected the way we interpret a image and why does it affect the way the see a image?” Over the span of all of our lives we have digested millions of images. Many of these images has shaped how we perceive the world and it has been reinforced by digital media. The visual language/ visual rhetoric, multimedia storytelling, and how our cultural beliefs leads to misinterpretation of an image has affected how we quantify ourselves and the people around us. Perhaps culture does not only play a role in who we are but severely affects how we see the world. Often times the media reinforces their interpretations of an image and try to feed it down viewers throats. This can have many affect on the psyche’s development, whether for good or for bad.

For this project I propose an experiment in which I will research 5-10 images with and without content and interview people to see how they interpret them. These images will stem from online sites such a Human of New York, famous paintings, images that have been remixed into memes. In my research I hope to identify how different cultures interpret visual images with and without content. Secondly, by . I want to examine the phycology, environmental factors, traumatic events, fear, and age to chart how those factors play a role in how our psyche interprets an image. I hope to shine a new light on how we interpret images and perhaps how we can begin to un-train our eyes. I want to provoke the questions, are we an extension of all the images we have seen throughout our lives.

Questions:

  1. How does cultural beliefs affect visual storytelling?
  2. Can an image stand without content?
  3. Is age an important factor when one views an image?
  4. What factors play a part in interpretation?
  5. How does culture affect the way we interrupt an image?
  6. Why does culture affect the way we interrupt an image?
  7. Can we un-train our eyes?
  8. Are your mind and body performing better?

 

Sources

“Producing New and Digital Media”-Cohen and Kenny

“Writing & Editing for Digital Media”- Carroll

Wikipedia

 

 

Unavailable.

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Throughout the semester we have covered a wide range of topics but in all of them we always seemed to return the topic of availability. We question time and time again that in this day in age is it possible to be unavailable? And what does it actually mean to be unavailable in a world where not being able to reach someone is a sign of tardiness and carelessness.

When thinking of a possible project idea I focused on three main topics that interests me:

  1. Availability
  2. Attention structures
  3. Participation

After focusing in on these three topics I came to realize that they each play a part in tackling the question of, “Do we have the ability to ever become completely unavailable? ” First of all, availability is by far one of the biggest affordances and constraints of the internet. Social media has allowed us to constantly be in touch. We can tag, track, and see when we’ve read each other’s messages. All of these affordances have in a way lead us to always be online even when we aren’t. Being available online means you are expected to participate in conversation both personal and global. As an individual of an online community you have the responsibility to share, comment and create and if you do not you are therefore doing that community a disservice. Your participation is always needed and wanted on both your and your audiences’ end. This want and need to participate ultimately allows us to choose whether we are or are not available.  It also means that you are aware of what is going on around you and you are in a way forced to take part or else you are “creeping”.  Being available has also had an impact in the way we divide our attention. What we focus on and how we focus on these things ultimately effects our participation and our availability. These three concepts all interact and interfere with our ability to actually disconnect and become unavailable in a world that demands availability.

For this project I propose an experiment in which I will purposely disconnect myself from all social media sites that I participate in for two weeks. In those two weeks I will vlog, blog, and capture photographs daily about how I am dealing with not being available online. In tracking this I want to highlight the shift in myself and the transition from an avid online user to someone who has become “unavailable” which will be captured daily via video interviews. Secondly, by conducting research that almost entirely embarks on the premise of availability and the affordances and constraints it entails I will try to also highlight the psychological effects this disconnect has upon an individual such as anxiety, worry, detachment etc.  I hope to  to demonstrate that availability has changed our wants,needs, and interpretations of people, persons, and things. I also hope to answer the question of if we are truly able to become unavailable or not.

Possible questions:

  1. How are you feeling today without your online presence?
  2. Have you noticed a change in yourself?
  3. How has your relationship with your smart device changed?
  4. What will you or have you done to replace the time you spent being available online?
  5. What other activities have you been participating in?
  6. How has your attention shifted? Has it shifted?

Research Materials (thus far):

Cohen & Kenny

Jones & Hanfer

http://smallbusiness.chron.com/profile-unavailable-mean-facebook-72521.html

http://www.becomingminimalist.com/unplug-please/

http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/challenge-to-disconnect/

 

In-Class Work for Tu 11/5: Researching / Drafting Proposals

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Hi everyone, from utopia (aka, the Society for Utopian Studies annual conference, this year in Pittsburgh):

Today in class you’re working to flesh out your ideas for your final project proposals, conducting research, developing the specifics of the project you are designing, and drafting the actual proposal.

Work Plan for Class Today

2:15pm-2:25pm: Freewriting

  • Continue the freewriting you did in class last Tuesday. Take some time to gather your ideas, get the ideas flowing. Remember, the goal with this short activity, as it is with all freewriting, is to simply keep writing, and let the ideas get down on the page.

2:25-2:45pm: Research

  • Using the Internet, but also the texts, materials you’ve brought with you, do some research surrounding your proposed project, to work on becoming informed about the particulars of your topic, to learn key concepts, phrases, and keywords, and to help you to refine your focus
  • This research process should prompt you to ask new questions, explore new potential trajectories for the project, and spur your thinking. Take notes on what you’re finding, and include these sources (with citations) in your proposal.

2:45-3:10pm: Proposal drafting (I encourage you to do this on OpenLab, drafting a new post–that can then be revised to the post you need to have completed by Saturday)

As you draft your proposal, make sure you consider / address these questions:

  • What is your project? What is its purpose? Its motivation (why are you interested in this?)? What do you hope to learn / gain from doing this project? What will others gain from your project (how should others care about it? ask yourself, “so what?”). Really attempt to articulate a clear vision for this project.
  • How can you focus/narrow down your topic so that it is manageable in this short-term project?  Remember, you don’t want your topic to be too broad or general … isolate just one variable (focus is very important).  What kinds of questions do you hope to address through your research?  What, specifically, do you want to learn about this topic?
  • What kinds of sources will you use in your project?
  • What will the components (process, products, deliverables) be? What forms of new media composing will you experiment with (what genres will you work in, what online communities will you explore, etc.; use the textbooks to remind yourself of the various genres you can include)? What do you hope to achieve? How will this be practice-oriented (not a standard, traditional research project)? How will you build reflection into the process?
  • How do you plan to present this material in a portfolio (on your individual ePortfolio)? What kinds of write-up will you provide? What kind of multimodal compositions will you create?
  • Timeline: What is the proposed timeline for conducting / completing this project? What are the logistics involved? What makes sense, for your particular project? (remember, as we discussed, for example, if you are exploring the impact and analytics of some type of new media composing, you will need to produce the content relatively early in order to allow time for this analysis)
  • What questions do you have about your proposed project? What do you most want feedback on (for both the peer review today, with classmates, and for discussions with Professor Belli)?

3:10-3:35pm: Peer Review of Ideas

  • You’ll work in groups of two: Mariah & Fola, Pam & Jodie, Ashley & Sam
  • Taking turns, each person will first present, orally, her proposed project to the other, talking through it for five minutes or so, and then hearing the other person’s response, and having a discussion after to help revise (this is meant to be a conversation: do not simple read each other’s drafts).
  • Your goal is to provide helpful feedback to your peer at this early stage at the proposal drafting process. While you may not be an expert in the proposed topic area, don’t feel as if you have nothing to contribute. The most helpful thing you can do is to offer your impressions as a “reader” (of this proposal): is there a clear sense of the project? Does it seem like it will be do-able in the timeline of this assignment? Does it address the particular expectations, guidelines, and requirements of this project? Are there considerations that are being overlooked? Underexplored? You should ask clarifying questions and offer suggestions, to help your classmate to think through / articulate the particulars of her project,

3:35-3:55pm: Drafting (with focus on revision / expansion)

  • Return to drafting, based on the feedback you’ve received, and revise your proposal accordingly. You should take notes for yourself, noting where you need to do further research or thinking (before you submit your full draft to me, as a post on OpenLab, by Saturday night)

 

HW / Reminders / Announcements:

  • Proposals Due by Saturday night (11:59pm), 11/7. Must be submitted completely and on time, in order to receive feedback
    • Remember to be a specific and detailed as possible, and at the end, to ask for targeted feedback (what are you most struggling with? what can I offer most help with as we work to design / focus the project?)
  • Response blogs due M 11/9
  • In-Class Presentations on Th 11/12, on revised versions of proposals
  • Professor Belli’s office hours have slightly changed, due to her being assigned to advise from 4-5pm on Tuesdays. Office hours remain Tu 1-2pm and always by appointment.

Looking forward to reading your proposals, and seeing you all next week. Again, if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to email me. Have a wonderful weekend!

Cheers,
Professor Belli