Please take a few minutes to share your thoughts on this semester’s class via a short survey here.
Below is the schedule for Thursday’s class:
Thursday, December 20:
Urban Evolution: Anesha, Donna, Zu Qiang
Social Effects of Development: Saqif, Terry, ChuXin
Investigating Public Space: Renso, James, Giuseppe
Urban Design: Ericka, Katherine, Chimdiebube, Joel
Next week’s class meetings are devoted to listening to each group’s podcast and reviewing each group’s contribution to the OpenLab project site. One member of each group should leave a comment on this post by the end of the day Monday to let us know which day your group plans to introduce your work in class – Tuesday, December 18 OR Thursday, December 20. Yes, we are listening in class!
Best of luck on all of your projects and finals, everyone.
Today in class groups worked on their scripts, and most were able to determine dates, times, places, and equipment needs for podcast recording. On Thursday, groups should be prepared to offer a status update for their podcast scripts. Any groups that wish to use the library’s equipment or spaces for podcast recording (especially outside of class meeting times) should let Prof. Leonard know their plans via email, OpenLab message, or in-class communication. The library’s Multimedia Resources Center has USB headsets with microphones and iPad Minis you can borrow. The free Anchor app lets you record and edit podcasts on your phone or tablet.
December 11: in class time to rehearse and record; finalize technical production; podcast scripts due at the beginning of class.
December 13 is reading day! Time and space for group work is available though classes do not meet
December 18: Podcast listening part I
December 20:Podcast listening part II; all content must be posted on OpenLab project site; reflections & wrap-up
On Thursday, November 29 we will have more time in class to plan, research, and write the script for your podcast. Each group should have a script ready for your professors’ review in class on Tuesday 12/4 or Thursday 12/6. Starting Tuesday 12/4 we will have access to L540, the library classroom, and the Multimedia Projection Room. Groups might also use library study rooms to record. If your group wishes to use Jean-Pierre’s recording equipment, someone representing your group should reply to this post with a comment telling us when you plan to record.
Your podcast assignment is the final project for the semester. Each group will contribute a page to an OpenLab project site we will create together. Each page will contain the following elements:
See the step-by-step podcast instructions from Prof. Almeida for technical assistance with recording and editing.
In addition to creating and editing an audio recording, each group will:
This activity will be completed in 4 stages
Key Dates
November 27-29: planning and prewriting – in-class time to research, write, rehearse, and record; OpenLab project site creation
December 4: research and script development – in class time to write and rehearse
December 11: in class time to rehearse and record; finalize technical production; podcast scripts due during class
December 13 is reading day! Time and space for group work is available though classes do not meet
December 18: Podcast listening part I
December 20:Podcast listening part II; all content must be posted on OpenLab project site; reflections & wrap-up
Resources for recording
The Multimedia Resources Center in the City Tech library lends out USB headsets with microphones. Use your college ID to borrow a headset/mic. Headsets must be used in the library. You can borrow an iPad Mini for up to 3 days from Multimedia with your college ID.
If you need a quiet place to record, reserve a library study room. During class time, you may use the library projection room. Bring a laptop with Audacity or other recording software already installed. You can record with your phone using the voice memo app or Anchor for iOS or Android.
Grading criteria
Today Prof. Nora Almeida from the library presented Podcasting: Like the Radio, but Different. Past semesters’ podcasts live on SoundCloud, and you can browse podcasts on all topics through Stitcher (and download the app to your phone). Complete guidelines for the podcast project will be posted soon. Consider what kind of your creative work with Creative Commons licenses you will want to assign to your podcast. As we move into group work on the final project, additional work space will be available. We will be able to use L540, the big library classroom, and L432, the projection room, to research, write, and record. You do not have to do all recording, editing, and production in class.
The group annotated bibliography is due on Tuesday, November 27.
Looking ahead to the rest of the semester, here is a (slightly) updated schedule:
| Tuesday, November 27 | Group Work: Final Project; Annotated Bibliography due |
| Thursday, November 29 | Group Work: Final Project |
| Tuesday, December 4 | Group Work: Final Project |
| Thursday, December 6 | Group Work: Final Project |
| Tuesday, December 11 | Group Work: Final Project Editing |
| Thursday, December 13 | Reading Day; group work optional and strongly encouraged! |
| Tuesday, December 18 | Final Project Presentations |
| Thursday, December 20 | Final Project Presentations / Wrap Up |
Enjoy the holiday weekend, everyone!
In class today we briefly reviewed the article “Tturning your Investigation into a Podcast” and discussed some of the qualities of a good podcast, like using a hook or narrative arc that appeals to your audience, rehearsing your script, speaking clearly, and sounding natural (not like you are reading from a script). On Tuesday, November 20, our guest Prof. Nora Almeida of the library will speak on producing podcasts, so be sure to bring any questions you have about the technical aspects to class.
The annotated bibliography is due on Tuesday, November 27, after we return from the Thanksgiving break. Please get in touch with your questions about the assignment and any questions you may have about books, articles, and other media.
In class we explore various databases to conduct research on demographics. Below are links and descriptions:
Library databases (off-campus login with barcode from college ID):
Social Explorer – create your own maps, graphs, and other visualizations from contemporary and historic US Census data
InfoShare – create custom tables from New York and national demographic data | guide
Statista – statistical and demographic information with an emphasis on business and industry
Free to all:
American FactFinder – portal for US Census data, no login or authentication required
Stats and the City from Crain’s New York – economic and business data from Crains, a business news source
NYC Open Data – includes 311 data
NYPD – data on crime and traffic
Today in class we formed research groups and completed group résumés:
gentrification breaking into our homes: Maricel, Edith, Daniela, Ralph
urban design: Joel, Chimdiebube, Katherine, Ericka
open space & safety: Giuseppe, James, Renso
Le clé (BC architecture): Sabrina, Davit, JP, Mirna
Community Before & After: Zu Qiang, Anesha, Donna
the flow of people : Saqif, Terry, ChuXin
It’s time for the midterm student survey. Please complete the survey by the end of the day Wednesday. The next assignment is the group project outline. Assignment guidelines and a rubric are on the Assignments page and will be distributed in class Thursday.
If you did not complete the podcast listening and blogging assignment for today, please do so before Thursday.
Really nice work on the midterm presentations, everyone. Don’t forget to submit a PDF of your presentation slides by the end of the day today. For Tuesday, please listen to one of the podcasts linked below and write a 100 word blog post in response to this prompt:
What do you think the speakers and interview subjects did particularly well to communicate their ideas? What questions do you still have, or what do you think they could have explained better? Feel free to link to 1-2 of your favorite podcasts if you regularly listen to ones you want to share.
Podcast episodes:
There Goes the Neighborhood: East New York: Did it Work
Trickery, Fraud, and Deception
Our Town
Here’s the Plan
Daily News Sports Talk: How Brooklyn’s Atlantic Yards Bruised the Neighborhood
Learning Places Summer 2016: Influence of Beaux-Arts on Grand Central Terminal and Penn Station
The OpenLab is an open-source, digital platform designed to support teaching and learning at City Tech (New York City College of Technology), and to promote student and faculty engagement in the intellectual and social life of the college community.
