Importance of a good logo

As part of trying to make the interactions with ITA instructors and students more meaningful, AJ decided to split up our homerooms into formal "houses". The house that I'm a part of is Symonette, named after a former instructor. Our responsibilities as being the first year of the house are special, as it also tasks us with making a logo and motto of our house. As I see the students busily working on their own projects, hoping to come up with ideas that will become a permanent fixture of Symonette, I think of the important of a logo for a brand, or in this case a house. 

I'm a bit of a design nerd myself, and frequently look at blogs and books on design. One of my favorite examples of logo evolution, or lack thereof, are the logos of Coca-Cola and Pepsi. 

Flowingdata.com, a data visualization website, has an excellent breakdown of the history of the logos here. Notice that both styles of logos have changed, with pepsi the more drastic of the two, but none of the changes signal a dramatic shift from the original designs. Coca-Cola still has that cursive handwriting synonymous with the brand, and pepsi while simplifying the font still keeps a semblance of their design from 1950. To completely rebrand a product or company is to try to escape from the negativeness of the past, and can be quite successful as in the case of the private security firm Blackwater going through several name changes to Adelphi, thereby escaping a large deal of the controversy surrounding the Blackwater name. But since Coca-Cola and Pepsi are so famous and well-known, a rebranding of their lines of soda can't completely separate themselves from the history.

Logos can be a powerful thing, and hopefully Symonette will have a logo that keeps with it a sense of history behind the name and an identity of the students who are Symonette.

Re: Major Goals & Ken Robinson Response

In order for meaningfulness to be a term that students not only know but feel is important to them, we have to make sure to listen to students' requests and wishes, not simply thinking we know what is best for them.

So what do I mean by that? We at ITA talk to them about taking these classes so they can get great jobs in college, make films and music, or program; but primarily our speeches are presented in the future tense. We tell students that they should listen in class so that in college, but not know, their skills will be vital and marketable. We need to become more involved with the students NOW...learning what these students WANT to do, rather than what we feel they NEED to do.

Sure, ITA is a program that if completed leads to a student having this "free ride" to UW-Madison, which for many is more than enough motivation. But not everyone, myself included, has the ability to keep that future vision without thinking about some sort of immediate fulfillment.

A good example to prove this point is our we approach mobile phones and the acquisition of these phones. I think of my iPhone as having a limited shelf life, and once I get to the end of the two-year contract I'm ready to switch to the newest and fastest phone. I toss away my phone, and now I have another phone. But I don't think of where that phone goes, the resources involved in making that phone, and what the effect of that waste will be when I dispose of the phone.

May seem like an extreme example, but it shows that in many cases, and with mobile phones usually a constant case, we don't think about the long term implications but rather our immediate benefit. So let's take advantage of this...and get to know these students on a deeper level than remedial banter in the hallways, and find out what they care about and what's important to them NOW.

So as an ITA instructor, I need to start learning about what the students actually care about NOW, instead of speculating or in worse cases not being concerned with that facet of their life. The lab environment is sometimes far too pressed for time...and maybe as the lead instructor in some activities I'll have to take some time out of strict instruction and just talk to the students. I'm willing to do that.

As for the Ken Robinson talk, I'm do not disagree with any of what he is saying. I frequently caught myself nodding in agreement to what Ken was saying about schools being another example of a factory model. We tell students what "important knowledge" is, without accepting the fact that to the students this method and mode of knowledge is of absolutely no use to them.

How do we change that at ITA? I'm not entirely sure, to be honest. Our classes have cooler names to them, and sure they don't exactly have "game design" as a part of their high school curriculum, but our method of teaching, and their method of learning, is almost IDENTICAL in many respects to what they get in a high school.

We need:

- to change the layout of ITA, the aesthetic, and the hierarchy of power at ITA
- to accept what is immediate knowledge for the students, and what is long-term and secondary to students' education every other Saturday
- to realize until we do this, we're not so much part of the solution as adding a bend to the problem

But things are changing at ITA. We have started to add CHOICE programs for students...worked through what Senior Capstone should really be to Seniors, and understood in some ways that typical teaching models should stay far away from this particular learning environment. Slow progress? Sure. But we're working at it, and I have yet to see anyone give up.

New Instructor Reflection

Well...it has not been quite a year yet, but here I am reflecting on my own free will, my time here at ITA.

When I originally came to ITA, I was excited about teaching students and being in a classroom atmosphere. Much of the same sentiment has not changed over time, but rather I've become more grounded in my expectations of myself, the students, and ITA.

For instance, the students at ITA, as well as the instructors (most especially myself) need to be preparing for the next sessions right after the end of the previous ones. So I help teach Flash, but teaching Flash to students becomes difficult when many do not attempt to use the programs on their laptops during the two weeks. I've learned to curtail my expectations of what the students will want to learn. In addition, I simply need to prepare for Flash much more than I do now. I find myself rushing in the last two days before the session to re-familiarize myself with everything...and that can be problematic.

Some of the great successes I can think of is the connection I've been able to make with many of the students. It's great to be able to talk to the students about things outside of ITA but are school-related, and helping them try to understand whatever it is they're doing at the time that requires some particular attention.

If I had to go back in time to tell myself something...probably would be that the mornings are going to be terrible regardless....the students are tired, you're tired, but you're both there and have to make the most of it. Stop being so deflated from the first session and try to make those sessions at the very least more fun....get creative, you jerk.

I like reflections....

short reflections, that is. So, without further ado, here are my short reflections for the day.

1. Photoshop went well. It was good to know that some students have already worked on Photoshop from their ITA issued laptops. A lot of the students were quick to pick up on the materials and for the most part worked independently with little help from the instructors. From what I have seen with the students' Pac Man examples, they should be well up to the task of being able to complete what we throw at them. I was surprised to see that despite the teachers and the students being very drowsy in the morning (it IS Saturday, after all), people got to the task at hand and handled the job effectively.

2. Senior Capstone project will allow the students to work on projects they may have otherwise not been able to try out in a classroom environment. I like the fact that myself and Ann act as facilitators, not necessarily instructors, to the students. At this point of working within the ITA structure, these students should have at least a small amount of independence in regards to taking on their own projects or developing interests based on working with the software we provide. To see them develop these small interests into somethng more substantive will be great to examine over the course of the year.

Because hey, I was on "vacation"

Late blog postings, that will definitely happen with me. I become preoccupied with something else, fly off into the universe, and then come back thinking, "oh crap, I got this and this to do". All of that said, I haven't updated in awhile.

Well, since my last posting I have helped teach the Many Uses of Computers Camp. It was great to finally get an idea of whom I'll be working with in regards to students and teachers. There was an awful lot to cover, some we were not able to cover. The students probably figured this was my first time teaching, and they were good sports about it. Students were amazing, the unit coordinators were fantastic, the teachers were great, these are truths which I want to put out there right away.

Only because, when I make commentaries in the upcoming paragraphs, I'm going to talk about things I believe need some changing, or at least tweaking, and I'm rather blunt in assessments. With that disclaimer out there, away we go.

What do you still wonder about or still need to learn more about to feel 100% comfortable being assigned and tackling the role of Unit Support?

I believe in order to become comfortable as Unit Support, I have to come to classes 100 percent prepared for that day's lesson, with the idea in the back of my head that the lesson may completely unravel, and I'll have to prepare for whatever that may bring. More familiarity with the lesson plans or at the very least the general aims of that day's lesson would, on my part, be a necessity to become better at Unit Support.

What do you still wonder about or still need to learn more about to feel 100% comfortable being assigned and tackling the role of Unit Coordinator?

A lot more experience, to be completely honest. Either that, or the ability to understand the VERY GENERAL concepts of the day's lesson plan (today we need to learn the parts of the computer, how to animate using flash, etc.) and then I can tailor a lesson around that. In this case, I think there should just be a very general outline (there may already be, I believe there is) of what needs to be taught during the unit on the wiki. Examples of previous units and how they were taught are there, and I believe need to be in the same tree as that unit's page.

Any other thoughts or reflections about the system of Unit Coordinator/Support should be included.

I believe the roles of Unit Support and Coordinator are clearly stated, and are very good for teaching the classes. If anything, I believe the two unit coordinators (at least in the case of the two week camp) should work together and act as floaters between the two classes to make sure that support in real heavy exercises (such as taking apart the computers) is provided. Otherwise, it seems in those classroom spaces, three teachers in one room leads to a lot of claustrophobia.

Any thoughts/reflections/love/hate/etc. about the 3 periods system, would also be greatly appreciated.

So here comes my bluntly honest part...I'm not a fan of the three period system, at all. I like the three breaks, because I think the students need to decompress especially with the amount of content we throw at them. But the systems as it stands, to me, is overly restrictive on what the teachers can do because of the titles of these sections. For example, at least in my experience, teaching whilst the students are using the materials is a good thing...because we can lecture to them about how computers work, what the parts look like, and their uses all we want, but at least from what I observed, the students still had a very hard time identifying parts in the second hour, which is specifically reserved for "exploration". For me, what we educate the students on should constantly be reinforced by exploration. The way ITA appears to me, education and exploration are one in the same, I think. Does it all have to go away? Probably not. However, I think right now there are just too many impositions on the teachers with these titles, especially given the fact that there is so much to cover in the small periods of time.

LAST Q: I'd like to get your overall "snapshot" opinions and ideas about the Units you were a part of, the students, and the way things work around here at the ITA labs.

I think the staff and students do a remarkable job trying as best they can to do what they can to make the overall experience with ITA an enjoyable one. At the end of the sessions, I felt a real sense of accomplishment, which I hope the students share. I think that one thing that may be more helpful, in regards to the two week sessions, is to have the same teachers there the entire time. That way, those teachers are intimately familiar with how the students are interacting with the material, and the general pace of the unit so should anything not work out, they can augment the plans accordingly. I believe o make any definitive and thorough assessment, I would have to observe and teach in a few more classes.

Thanks for reading what may perhaps be the most boring blog post of your adult life. I promise the next ones may be a little more zany.

Blitz Proj. Zaniness

Today was the day that we did a blitz. Blitzing, meaning we were going to put together a short commercial (parody), write, shoot, edit, and complete a project in a little under three hours. I'm familiar with the concept from working on the 48 hour film project and WiscKino, but never before had I seen shorts made in three hours.

If anything, it was just good to see the students coming together and making a film project. I was curious to see whether or not the students would actually be able to pull it off. Not because I did not think they were capable of it, but because the task is extremely difficult for professionals, let alone students with little experience doing a task such as this one.

However, I was pleasantly surprised to see a lot of the students really get into the project. Not all of the students were overly excited to jump in, but a lot of this could do with the fact that the weather was not great, this was first thing in the morning, and such a demanding format as a blitz could turn off students who are either afraid or not used to failure, because unfortunately in such a high stakes concept, failure is actually rather common.

The group I worked with put together a parody video on Madison, tongue in cheek commenting on the construction and various holes in the Earth around campus as being a part of the "new and vibrant" city. Since I'm not very familiar with the students, it was hard to determine which students were more suitable for tasks (filming, writing, editing, etc.) than others. Although I feel that some of them were put into positions they were not comfortable with, they came together in the end to complete a project, which if they don't realize now, is an excellent skill to obtain, the ability to produce on time. Unfortunately, I'm not sure if they'll be willing to do a project like this in the future, although I did see some editing skills in the students that were impressive to say the least. It would be great to see some of these students at the WiscKino events, hopefully this experience will turn a few on to the idea.

Reflections - Computer Road Test

The road test is daunting, even for someone who is used to taking apart computers! I was not able to see the entire test, but from what I heard, the students must've had a very full thirty minutes. I believe it is a good idea to have the students put together their dream computer and present it in class. Even though some incorrectly identified some parts in some roles (optical drives for example), it gets the students thinking outside of the standardized text book, and into more of a space where they would feel more comfortable (I want to make a gaming rig, I want to use it for animation, etc.)

I'm still unsure of how much time the students get to physically manipulate the computer materials in preparation for their road test. I would imagine that the time would have to be great given the thoroughness of the test.

Additionally, it was good to get to know the students a little better, and to be able to answer some of the questions that they had. Even if their practical jokes need some work, they're a great group of students to work with.

It'll be nice to observe different sessions, but in particular during this lull between training weeks...it'll be good to train on many of the other things ITA teaches, and not just how to put together a computer.