Course Profile   Media Arts, Grade 10, Open, Public

 

Course Overview

 

Course Profiles are professional development materials designed to help teachers implement the new Grade 10 secondary school curriculum. These materials were created by writing partnerships of school boards and subject associations. The development of these resources was funded by the Ontario Ministry of Education. This document reflects the views of the developers and not necessarily those of the Ministry. Permission is given to reproduce these materials for any purpose except profit. Teachers are also encouraged to amend, revise, edit, cut, paste, and otherwise adapt this material for educational purposes.

 

Any references in this document to particular commercial resources, learning materials, equipment, or technology reflect only the opinions of the writers of this sample Course Profile, and do not reflect any official endorsement by the Ministry of Education or by the Partnership of School Boards that supported the production of the document.

 

© Queen’s Printer for Ontario, 2000

 

Acknowledgments

Public District School Board Writing Teams – Media Arts

 

Lead Board

Upper Canada District School Board

 

Management Team

Eleanor Newman

Dorothy Stewart

Dona Cruickshank

 

 

Course Overview

Media Arts, Grade 10, Open

Identifying Information

Grade:  10

Course Type:  Open

Course Code:  ASM2O

Credit Value:  1

Course Developers

Katherine Yamashita, Project Leader, Toronto District School Board

Liz Duncan, Near North District School Board

Peter Hendrickson, Toronto District School Board

Lynnie Johnston, Toronto District School Board

Susan Morrison, Toronto District School Board

Development Date:  January 2000

Revision Date:  January 1999

Description/Rationale

“Media arts education focusses on the practical skills and theoretical knowledge needed to communicate ideas, feelings, and beliefs to specific audiences, and even interact with them. This course affords a context for reflecting and creating, as well as for interpreting and discussing the cultural, historical, and social contexts of current and emerging media art processes. Active participation and study in this course will allow for imaginative self-expression and will foster self-development while preparing students with skills and knowledge for lifelong learning and participation in the wider community.”

The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 9 and 10,The Arts, 1999.

 

The Grade 10 Course Profile is intended to serve as a practical and solid foundation for the Media Arts. In it, students are introduced to the technical, historical, and theoretical aspects of those arts associated with the media; photography, video and film; computer-generated arts, and the new hybridized varieties found in combinations of the above. The course is geared towards thoughtful and creative production, with an emphasis at this beginners' level on the acquisition of knowledge and skills needed to permit and encourage further study at the more exploratory and innovative levels. The units are organized in a sequential way, beginning with an introduction to photography, the earliest of the media. Next is a hybrid unit on narrative, which focusses on storytelling through image, text, and sound. A unit on the moving image follows, where students learn about the history, language, and techniques of movie making. The fourth unit consists of the conception, creation and production of an interactive environment by the students working together using a variety of different media. The final unit involves a culminating project-based on a transformation or reworking of a previous piece done in the course, which is to be documented digitally.

Activities in this course profile have been developed so that substitution can be made when technological assets are limited by budget realities. However, certain aspects of the course are stipulated in the expectations and must therefore be considered necessary and fixed: the digital portfolio and at least one other activity should involve digital technology; at least two activities should involve the use of traditional media (e.g., photography, video).

Unit Titles (Time + Sequence)

Unit Organization

Unit 1:  The Still Image

Time:  20 hours

Strand(s):  Creation, Theory, Analysis

Description

This unit explores the intention, function, and meaning of still images. Students will examine personal, commercial and art photographs to analyse how ideas are constructed and communicated through images. Concepts of photographic truth and the purpose of making photographs will be explored. The practical component will culminate in the creation of an art photograph that is an expressive self-portrait.

Unit 2:  Narrative: Text, Image and Sound

Time:  20 hours

Strand(s):  Creation, Theory, Analysis

Description

Visual expression is expanded into the exploration of narrative in this unit. Students will use a series of still images generated by either traditional or emergent media and then will add text and/or sound to these images to create a narrative media art work. The form that the narrative takes, linear or non-linear, will affect the final form in which the student chooses to present this work. They may choose book form or computer presentation, gallery installation or slide show, or a new variation.

Unit 3:  The Moving Image

Time:  26 hours

Strand(s):  Creation, Theory, Analysis

Description

This unit uses time-based visual media as its focus. Students will use some aspects of all of the elements of media art. Short dramatic, documentary, experimental, and animated short films are some of the examples that may be screened and analysed. After a short introduction to the basic language of film/video production, students will produce a videotaped exercise which demonstrates their comprehension of these terms.

They will then create a storyboard of their own idea for a short production that will take the form of a short animation, a narrative short, an experimental film, a documentary, or an original music video. Students will then work in groups to produce a short video or digital movie. Assessment will be ongoing in this unit with a culminating evaluation of the final critique and production.

Unit 4:  The Interactive Environment

Time:  22 hours

Strand(s):  Creation, Theory, Analysis

Description

While reinforcing concepts, theory, and skills learned in previous units, the principle of interactivity is introduced in this unit. Students will explore this through the creation of an environment, which is designed to invite some level of audience interaction. This environment could be created digitally, as in an interactive web page, or an interactive multi-media work or a 3-D rendered environment, or a traditional media arts tool can be used and possibly be combined with traditional art media to create an interactive environmental installation. It could also take the form of a media installation with a combination of many traditional and/or digital and new emergent media tools. Elements of sound parameters, performance and the principle of interactivity will be a focus of teacher instruction.

In this unit students are challenged to use a variety of appropriate traditional and emergent technologies to create an environment for all the senses.

Unit 5:  Transformations

Time:  22 hours

Strand(s):  Creation, Theory, Analysis

Description

This culminating unit requires students to consolidate acquired knowledge and skills by transforming one of their own artworks from any previous unit into a new creative form, using some aspect of digital or emergent technology. Emphasis will be placed on the use of the stages of creative process. It is in this activity that students consolidate their previous learning and are challenged force the boundaries of their creative vision. The teacher acts as facilitator in this transformation process.

Students will document this transformation and include it in a digital portfolio that contains preparatory and finished work from the course.

Planning Notes

General time frame

This course must be 110 hours as stated by the Ministry of Education.

The time spent on each unit and activity are recommended only and actual time spent should consider the following:

·       the amount of equipment or number of computer workstations for the class;

·       the teacher’s choice of medium (e.g., darkroom photography can be far more time consuming than digital photography);

·       the experience and interest of the students and the teacher.

Choice of Media

Since the resources and equipment available to teach Media Arts will differ in each school, this course profile focusses on content, not on specific media arts tools. Wherever possible, options in the selection of media tools are given. It is suggested, however, that the media, as in the content progression in this course profile, should move from simple to complex, building on the elements and principles of Media Arts.

The Media Arts Journal

In this course profile, all students are required to keep a Media Arts Journal. This journal may contain written information, research, illustrations, sketches, and photographs. All units contain Media Arts Journal assignments that directly support the activity being done. This journal should also be used to document the planning and development of class assignments and activities

Note:  Media Arts Journal Assignments are designed to reinforce class work. Work should be done as homework and in general it is expected that one week be given for the work to be done.

Safety

Because of the large equipment base required to teach media arts and the nature of the equipment, it is important to develop systems that insure the safety of students when using this equipment. The safe and careful handling of this equipment must also be stressed. Systems must also be developed to keep track of equipment and arrange for its equitable use. Decisions must be made about equipment sign-out policies and about the use and storage of equipment students may wish to bring from home.

FOIPOP

Release form and liabilities – Teachers should be aware of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FOIPOP Act) and arrange for release forms to be signed if students are being videotaped. They should also familiarize their students with this Act.

Final Considerations

Media Arts is a way of working and a medium for making creative artwork for both applied and purely aesthetic purposes. It is important that teachers of Media Arts realize that expectations for this course can be achieved through a variety of media choices and that the expertise and background of the teacher should be considered as well as available facilities in planning the content of this course.

This particular document, in the units provided (only two of five), focusses on still and moving photographic media. Other units in this course profile are planned that expand this imaging knowledge base with the introduction of sound, performance, and the use of other media in the production of an interactive environment. This is only one way to approach the teaching of this course.

Another teacher may focus the course on the recording of dramatic performance, the creation of soundtracks and musical composition for performance, and the digital designing of sets and props through the use of robotics.

In conclusion, Media Arts as a course provides a new and dynamic vehicle for teachers and their students to use traditional and emerging technologies to create expressively as artists.

Teaching/Learning Strategies

The following teaching/learning strategies are used in this course profile:

Assessment and Evaluation

The following assessment/evaluation techniques are used in this course profile.

Evaluation Weighting

Within the 70% of evaluation during the course the following is evaluated. (This information is given for only the two units written during this phase of Course Profile writing.)

Unit 1

What is a photograph? – presentation and write-up

Photographic production – preparatory media work

Photographic Self-Portrait – media art work

Presentation in critique and the production of a media artist statement

Unit 3

Production – the thaumatrope – media art work

Personal History of Film Watching – report

Production – camera work

Storyboard – preparatory media work

Movie Production – media art work

Presentation in critique and the production of a media artist statement

The weighting of the above items for evaluation should be determined by the teacher as some activities will take longer and be more involved depending on the media selected for the activity. The weighting should reflect the time and focus spent on a particular activity and support a reasonable balance between the three strands of knowledge of Media Arts: Creation, Theory, and Analysis.

Within the 30% of the final mark for this course, the following is evaluated.

Transformations                 20%

Digital Portfolio                 10%

Accommodations

The following generic accommodations are suggested in this profile. More specific accommodations are found in the unit activities.

General

·       clear expectations of quality

·       classroom placement to maximize student focus

·       close monitoring by the teacher

·       oral and written instructions

·       review and repetition

·       concepts presented in a variety of formats, e.g., visually, concretely, verbally

·       “chunking” of tasks into smaller subtasks

·       checklists

·       graphic organizers

·       homework/notebook/journal monitoring

·       examples of what is expected

Listening and Speaking

·       additional time

·       encouragement to participate orally

·       the use of a translator

·       listening cues or prompts

·       teacher modeling of appropriate responses

Reading

·       oral reading to student

·       vocabulary pre-teaching and checking for comprehension

·       peer tutor/helper to help identify and highlight essential information

·       underlined or highlighted key points

·       reading guide

·       taped notebooks

·       large typeface

Writing

·       computer (when appropriate)

·       tape-recorded or videotaped classes

·       peer tutor/helper

·       handouts

·       additional time

·       note-taker

·       alternatives to written assignments (e.g., video, audio recording, graph, mind map, oral presentation)

·       essay writing outlines

Behavioural

·       highly structured environment

·       monitor to stay on task

·       appropriate behaviour modelled

·       clear, reasonable expectations

·       appropriate consequences

·       time-outs

·       conflict resolution strategies

·       appropriate alternate behaviours

Resources

Please note that although World Wide Web resources are included in this list of resources, web addresses are constantly changing. E-mail addresses provided may not be useful in future, however, the names of associations and sites are constant and can be found by using a search engine for the World Wide Web. When possible, formal names, addresses and conventional addresses have also been included. It should also be noted that web site contents are constantly being changed. It is therefore essential that the teacher preview any site before sharing its contents with students.

General Resources

Anderson, Neil. Media Works. Toronto: Oxford University Press, 1989. ISBN 0-19-540730-X

Duncan, Barry, et al. Mass Media and Popular Culture, Version 2. Toronto: Harcourt Brace Canada. ISBN 0-7747-0170-6

Negroponte, Nicholas. Being Digital. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1995. ISBN 067943919

Spalter, Anne Morgan. The Computer in the Visual Arts. New York: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, 1998. ISBN 0201386003

Tapscott, Don. Growing Up Digital. New York: McGraw Hill, 1998. ISBN 0-07-063361-4

Photography and Imaging

Web sites and organizations are listed by title so that a search engine can be used to find the most recent url or any given site.

Photo Educator’s Forum
http://idirect.com/~photoedu/

Photostart.com
http://www.photostart.com
An excellent photo resource site for photo educators

Museums and Galleries

APERTURE Foundation

Foundation for the Visual Arts and Photography

20 East 23rd Street

New York, NY 10010

Phone: 212-505-5555

Fax: 212-979-7759

e-mail :http://www.aperture.org

Canadian Museum of Contemporary Photography
http://national.gallery.ca/cmcp.html

Eastman House
http://www.eastman.org/

International Center of Photography
http://www.icp.org/

Museum of Modern Art
http://www.moma.org/docs.cfm/collection/photography

Private Galleries

Stephen Bulger Gallery, 700 Queen Street West Toronto

Jane Corkin Gallery, 179 John Street, Ste 302, Toronto

Tatar/Alexander Gallery, 173 King Street East, Toronto

Artist Run Galleries

Gallery 44
Centre of Contemporary Photography
401 Richmond Street West,
Suite 120
Toronto, Ontario
M5W 3A8
416-979-3941
http://www.interlog.com/~g44

Toronto Photographer’s Workshop, 80 Spadina Avenue, Toronto

Education and Resources and Training

Gallery 44, Toronto 401 Richmond Street, Ste. 120, Toronto

Toronto Image Works, 80 Spadina Avenue, Ste. 207, Toronto

Photographers

Books

Barrett, Terry. Criticizing Photographs: An Introduction to Understanding Images. Mayfield Publishing Company. ISBN 1559345268

Clarke, Graham. The Photograph (Oxford History of Art). New York: Oxford University Press, 1997. ISBN 0-19-284200-5

Dayton, Linnea. The Photoshop 5.0/5.5 Wow! Book. Peachpit Press, 1999. ISBN 0201353717

Hedgecoe, John. The Photographer’s Handbook, 3^rd. ed. New York: Knopf, 1998. ISBN 0-679-74204-2

Horenstein, Henry. Black and White Photography. New York: Bulfinch Press, 1997. ISBN 0316373141

Horenstein, Henry. Beyond Basic Photography. New York: Bulfinch Press, 1997. ISBN 0316373125

Newhall, Beaumont. From Adams to Steiglitz, Pioneers of Modern Photography. New York: Aperture, 1990. ISBN 0893813737

O’Brien, Michael F. and Norman Sibley. The Photographic Eye. Worchester, Mass.: Davis Publications, Inc., 1995. ISBN 0-87192-283-5

Upton and Upton. Photography. New York: Addison-Wesley Publishing Co., 1997. ISBN 0321011082

CD-ROMs

Adobe Photoshop Tutorial. CD-ROM.

Film and Video Resources (analog and digital technology)

Film History

Bordwell , David and Kristen Thompson, ed. Film History: An Introduction. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1994. ISBN 0070064490

Bordwell, David. Narration in the Fiction Film Madison. Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin Press, 1985. ISBN 0299101703

Cook, D. A History of Narrative Film. New York: Norton, 1981.

Nowell-Smith, Geoffrey. The Oxford History of World Cinema: The Definitive History of Cinema Worldwide. New York: Oxford University, 1997.

Theory/Criticism

Bordwell, David and Kristen Thompson. Film Art: An Introduction. New York: The McGraw-Hill Companies, 1997. (5^th edition) ISBN 0070066345

Nelmes, Jill, ed. An Introduction to Film Studies. London: New York: Routledge, 1999. (2^nd edition) ISBN 0415173108

Language and Technical information

Konigsberg, I. The Complete Film Dictionary. New York: New American Library, 1987.
ISBN 0453005640

Moshansky, Tim. A Guide to Film Production Terms. Vancouver: First Wave Publishing, 1996.
ISBN 0968070205
a small book with terms and job descriptions

Film/Video Production

Ken Dancyger. The World of Film and Video Production: Aesthetics and Practice. Fort Worth, London: Harcourt Brace College Publishers, 1999. ISBN 0155028618

Parkinson, David. The Young Oxford Book of the Movies. Oxford University Press, 1995.
ISBN 0195212444
genre, facts, films, photos, Hollywood, life/evolution of a film etc

Ken Dancyger. The Technique of Film and Video Editing: Theory and Practice. Focal press, 1997. (second edition) ISBN 0240802551
This has an excellent glossary of terms for both film and video shooting/editing that could be referenced in Activity 2.

Peter Hitchcock. Videography: The Guide to Making Videos. Toronto: Peter Hitchcock Productions, 1994. ISBN096962610X
a how to book with workshop ideas, exercises, etc.

Web Sites

The Reel Screen Network

Screen Actors Guild

New Zealand Film Commission

Australian Short Films and Actors

Making Film

Iceland Film and TV Net

Screen Network Australia

The Canadian Film Centre Online

Buckey’s Film History, Preservation, Conservation and Resource Page

Film and Video Clip Sites

Alternating Entertainment Network

Always Independent Films

Atom Films

Bijou Café

The Bit Screen

Movie Flix

Interactive Media Art Resources

Director Demystified

Macromedia Director

General Visual Art Books and Resources

Web Sites

ARTLEX: Visual Arts Dictionary
http://www.artlex.com
This is an extensive lexicon of visual arts and media arts terms.

Lexicon’s for Photography can be found by searching under photographic terms. One such site is
http://www.hyperzine.com
which includes a good glossary of traditional photographic, digital imaging, film, and video terms.

Books

Gombrich, E.H. Story of Art. London: Phaidon Press, 1995. ISBN 0785793429

Janson, H.W. History of Art. New York: Harry N Abrams, 1999. ISBN 0810934450

Strickland, Carol. The Annotated Mona Lisa. Kansas City: Andrews and McMeel, 1992.
ISBN 0-8362-8005-9

OSS Policy Applications

Choices into Action, Guidance and Career Education Program Policy for Ontario Elementary and Secondary Schools, 1999.

This policy will be relevant to some of the suggested career investigation activities and opportunities for job shadowing and co-op that may be used in this profile.

Program Planning and Assessment, 1999

Course Evaluation

At the end of the course, teachers should give strong consideration to assessing the success of the course in relation to clear criteria. Student responses should be solicited and structured in a reflective context.

Review criteria might include:

·       fairness and thoroughness of assessment and evaluation strategies;

·       ongoing assessment of student learning, cross-referenced with the Overall and Specific Expectations;

·       congruence with student expectations;

·       difficulty of teaching/learning strategies;

·       nature of the class;

·       time given to each unit or activity;

·       informal student feedback;

·       student enthusiasm;

·       length of units and balance of time spent.

Coded Expectations, Media Arts Expectations, ASM2O

Theory

Overall Expectations

THV.01

– explain the elements and principles of media arts as they apply to their own work and the work of others;

THV.02

– explain the historical foundations of media arts;

THV.03

– demonstrate an understanding of conventions as they apply to the practice of media arts production.

Specific Expectations

Concepts and Terminology

TH1.01

– identify and describe the use of elements and principles of media arts in selected works and productions;

TH1.02

– identify and describe elements and principles borrowed from traditional art disciplines as found in media art;

TH1.03

– recognize and use vocabulary specific to media art.

History

TH2.01

– identify and describe the foundations of media art by viewing/experiencing selected media artworks and/or productions;

TH2.02

– identify and describe the effect of technologies on the evolution of media arts from 1950 to 1980 (e.g., microcomputer on photo-imaging and animation, development of synthesized sound or music, video camera on cinematography);

TH2.03

– identify and describe the influences and contributions of various art forms to media artworks and productions.

Conventions

TH3.01

– demonstrate an understanding of the importance of safety (e.g., electronic connections) and routine (e.g., punctuality, preparation for class) in the studio;

TH3.02

– identify and describe procedures for respecting and maintaining common property, equipment, space, and materials;

TH3.03

– demonstrate an understanding of ecological and environmental considerations in the development and production of media art;

TH3.04

– demonstrate an awareness of legal implications in the production and distribution of media artworks (e.g., acknowledge the sources of all non-original material, implications of personal privacy, and freedom-of-information laws).

Creation

Overall Expectations

CRV.01

– use the concepts of media art in their own work;

CRV.02

– demonstrate skills in manipulating traditional art tools related to media art (e.g., camera, video camera, photocopier, tape recorder);

CRV.03

– demonstrate skills in manipulating new and emergent digital technologies used in creating media art (e.g., digital camera, scanner, digital recorder, computer);

CRV.04

– use the stages of the creative process to communicate their ideas individually and in groups (e.g., exploration, experimentation, production, evaluation);

CRV.05

– use concepts and procedures from other art forms in creating media artworks.

Specific Expectations

Use of Concepts

CR1.01

– use elements and principles specific to media art in their own work;

CR1.02

– use a variety of processes to demonstrate a specific element or principle of media art (e.g., light, colour, sound);

CR1.03

– transform an existing artwork by modifying an element or principle (e.g., point of view, movement) through a media art technique.

Production Skills

CR2.01

– use a variety of the techniques and materials of traditional art forms related to media art;

CR2.02

– communicate an idea through a traditional art form related to media art;

CR2.03

– use appropriately the tools and equipment of traditional art forms related to media art;

CR2.04

– use appropriately a variety of the techniques and materials of new and emergent technologies;

CR2.05

– communicate an idea through the integrated use of digital techniques and materials;

CR2.06

– create a digital portfolio of experiments and completed works using new and emergent technologies.

Creative Process

CR3.01

– research existing media artworks and productions to inspire new works (e.g., create a journal of existing works and productions);

CR3.02

– experiment in traditional and digital media art techniques to create media artworks (e.g., create a file of sketches and ideas);

CR3.03

– solve creative problems in production teams by following all stages of the creative process.

Connections

CR4.01

– use similarities between the arts to explore and experiment in the creation of media artworks;

CR4.02

– identify and apply a specific idea, concept, or theme common to other art forms (e.g., narration, colour) to a media artwork.

Analysis

Overall Expectations

ANV.01

– use the stages of critical analysis to examine and discuss the aesthetic and compositional components of current and historical media artworks;

ANV.02

– identify the impact of media artworks and productions on themselves and their community;

ANV.03

– identify the function of media art in society;

ANV.04

– identify connections between media arts and possible future education and careers.

Specific Expectations

Critical Analysis

AN1.01

– use the stages of critical analysis (e.g., initial reaction, identification, analysis, interpretation, evaluation) to study their own media artworks or productions;

AN1.02

– use the stages of critical analysis to critique early forms of artwork (e.g., photographic manipulation in the 1950s);

AN1.03

– use correctly an appropriate vocabulary (e.g., framing, digital photography, imaging ) to discuss media art in group settings.

Self and Community

AN2.01

– identify and explain, orally and in writing, how various examples of media art have had an effect on their lives;

AN2.02

– identify and interact with artists within their community or region;

AN2.03

– exhibit or perform effectively media art-works or productions in individual and group settings for a variety of audiences (e.g., peers, community, teacher).

Function of Media Art

AN3.01

– identify, decode, and explain, orally and in writing, the codes and conventions (e.g., stereotypes, icons, structures) in various examples of media art;

AN3.02

– identify and explain, orally and in writing, how media artworks affect perceptions of identity (e.g., ethnic group, regional/ provincial/national identity, religious affiliation, philosophical identity);

AN3.03

– identify and explain the socio-economic impact of the media industry.

Career

AN4.01

– demonstrate group skills as leaders, participants, and/or evaluators;

AN4.02

– evaluate personal strengths and needs (e.g., time management, flexibility, tenacity, co-operation, multiple intelligences) at various points in the course and work towards improvement in identified areas;

AN4.03

– identify and categorize careers linked to their interests and connected with media arts.

 

 

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