Honestly, I did not have high hopes for the digital stories from 505 for this semester. Students had seemed somewhat reluctant to share their ideas for their stories in class, and both Evrim and I had received few inquiries about the stories while they were in progress. I had the sense that perhaps this group of students had not embraced the digital story assignment as fully as classes in the past. And was I surprised (and Evrim too)!
Each of the digital stories was both personal and informative. We discovered new and interesting things about our colleagues----from torn Achilles heels to adventures in Alaska. We also discovered that we have several students in class who are gifted photographers. From tearing up over Stefan's piece on Iraq to enjoying the humor in Chris's story of his Achilles heel, I was quite enthralled with each of the stories. As I mentioned in class, I had planned to grade the stories (I was even equipped with my rubric!) as I watched them, but I found the stories so compelling that grading them the first time through was impossible. I know I will enjoy watching them again, however! It is clear that digital story telling is a powerful tool for creating learner centered (and knowledge centered and assessment centered and community centered!) classroom environments.
The evening also included a review of Flickr by Ezzie and she mentioned some features (the map piece and the groups piece) that were new to me and looked very useful.
We also spent a little time on "big ideas" from each of the three readings and suggestions for reviewing and tying the readings together.
All in all, it was a memorable evening.
