teaching tips

Marie S. Patierno

GradeBook Tips

My name is Marie S. Patierno. I am originally from New York and now living in Milford, PA (a small town on the NY, NJ, & PA borders). I love all things natural and try to express that sense of wonder in my work. I hold a Master of Science degree in Communication Arts. I also have a BA in Psychology and an AAS in Visual Arts. I am a full-time instructor for the Art Institute of Pittsburgh - Online Division where I teach Digital Image Manipulation.

The following are some tips that thought I'd share with you and hope that you may find useful! These notes are based on my personal experiences. They include some of the things that I do and what I have learned teaching online at Art Institute of Pittsburgh - Online Division.

Many of the students are very much the newbies. They are new to the online world and may have very little experience with the software and hardware - so they are really starting from scratch. You will see this inexperience reflected in many of the exercises.

Voni stresses that the quality of the work should always be priority and this should in turn be stressed to the class. But effort and redos are also encouraged. Voni is really a student advocate on this point. Here is a direct quote from Voni, “Anytime a student feels that they would like to reengage and you feel that they have the ability to catch up you should reach out and support this effort. The only time I'd recommend NOT doing so is when you absolutely believe that they have no chance of doing so.” So if you find that a student is not producing a quality piece, struggling with written work, or not participating well, then give them suggestions for improvement and the opportunity to make up the work (I usually give 24 hours).

Make specific comments in the classroom and be very specific on what the student should redo/improve upon. For example, if a student needs improvement on a Discussion Question assignment, ask for more detail on a point, probe with another question, or restate the question if they didn't answer it properly. If you ask a student to redo an art project, then make positive suggestions for improvement or ask that they "make the following changes." It is important to do this in the classroom because posting positive constructive feedback in the assignment threads is visible to all and can aid other students in their works (the grade book is private and students may not check the grade book right away).

Point students to a sample for guidance. For example, See Sally's post, she did a really good job on this assignment.

Set specific and achievable deadlines for redos. (I like to be very specific on deadlines for redos and usually give 24 hours on a redo. I will also post an encouraging note to the class about redos along with the deadline - but you can post it to an individual student as well). For example, please redo/make changes and submit by 11:59 MST, Monday, October 15, 2007. This gives them a solid timeframe and deadline to meet.

Pop off an email to remind the student of a redo (just click the email link next to the student name in the thread).

Quality of participation is also stressed over quantity. Every class is different, In my classes, I require a minimum of 2 critiques/responses per assignment from each student, not including my own. This seems to be a nice balance, but there are some teachers who ask for more (min of 3 or 4 or more). Just be sure to be very clear to your students how many posts are expected and stress quality (that their comments be meaningful, not just "good job"). In my class, if a students replies meaningfully to 2 students - I will give 4pts for participation. If the student responds meaningfully to 1 student - I will give 2 pts. If student responds to more than 2 but are not meaningful (or semi-meaningful) - I will give 1-3 pts depending on the combination of quality/quantity of the posts. If the student does not participate at all - I will give 0 pts for participation.

Base grades on the quality of the work the student submits (I also base grades on effort and improvement shown). If the student reposts (does a redo) or participates late then you may regrade accordingly. If a student does not participate or redo an assignment then you have no alternative but to grade them on the original submission.

Develop general or assignment specific comments in the comment area of the grade book. Doing so helps to alleviate any uncertainty and aids the student in gauging how well/poorly they are doing. (I also like to post a copy of the rubric inside the comment area).

Always enter a numeric grade (partial or full credit) in all fields in the Grade Book and add any comments on what the student has done and needs to do to improve. The numeric grade is needed for calculations, for the student to gauge themselves, and for admin/advisors. If an assignment is pending - you may enter 0 in the Numeric Grade field and Pending, Incomplete, Did Not Submit, or Withdrawing in the Comment box. Do this for any student who appears in the grade book. (Enter a grade even if a student has notified you that they are dropping and do so as long as the student appears on your roster). You don't need to add the letter grade for Assignment grades. (Letter grades are used for the Final Grade and entered at the end of the session).

There is a grading scale in the classroom (look in the left hand navigation panel and click on Grading then scroll down the page). And a grading rubric for each assignment (under the assignment instructions). There is also the User Activity section (in the Gradebook) that tracks the amount of time spent in each area of the classroom. The User Activity tool does not calculate number of posts (in other words it does not calculate attendance and participation - so if a student logs in and spends 12 hours in the classroom and does not post - it is not recorded as attendance/participation).

What also helps me is to convert the points to a percentage. For example on an 8pt assignment:
8 of 8 pts = 100%
7 of 8 pts = 87%
6 of 8 pts = 75%
5 of 8 pts = 62%
4 of 8 pts = 50%

So you can see how valuable every point is. Deducting 1 or 2 points can significantly bring down a grade. Look at the assignment and effort made - and consider if it deserves an A, B, C, D, or F? If you reverse your thinking and give a percentage or letter grade and then convert it to points, it can sometimes make things a little easier.

I hope you find these tips useful in your classes. Have a great session!
- Marie

New photoshop Video Tutorial

basicshapesswf.html

Creating, colorizing, and transforming simple raster shapes in Photoshop. For those students struggling with the tints, tones, and shades exercise, or any of the intro assignments in Color Theory and Design - this walks them through some basic tools.

13 minutes, progressive load swf.

- Jeff P

announcements

Following is the CAREER WEEK INFORMATION to share with your students.

Event Dates: October 15th-18th, 2007

(To post the announcement in your classroom, click the "<>" button on the bottom left corner of the New Announcement window to accept HTML code. Copy and paste the code as is into the window. Do not add or subtract anything from the code.)

<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8"><title>Career Week Info</title>

<style type="text/css">
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.style2 {
font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;
font-weight: bold;
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.style3 {font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif}
.style4 {font-size: 24px}
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</style>
<table align="center" border="0" width="800">
<tbody><tr>
<td align="center" height="380" valign="top" width="800"><img src="http://dustycrocker.com/header.jpg" height="381" width="800"></td>

</tr>
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<td><div align="center">
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%">
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<td bgcolor="#ffff99"><table border="0" cellpadding="10" cellspacing="0" width="100%">
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<td align="left" valign="top" width="220"><div align="center"><img src="http://dustycrocker.com/bill.jpg" height="256" width="200"></div></td>

<td align="left" valign="top"><p class="style2">Bill Gaylean, Former Creative Director, Pierce Deditus and Gaylean</p>

<p class="style3">Creative Director, Senior Art Director, and Design Guru with over 35 years of agency and freelance experience, Bill Gaylean currently shares his wisdom with students at both Southern Methodist University and Texas Christian University in Dallas/Fort Worth as an Adjunct Professor. His years of service to agencies such as Tracy Locke, Darcy McManus and Macius as well as his own firms gives him a special insight into what it takes to get and keep a top job at a top ad agency or design firm.</p>

<p class="style2">Monday, October 15th, 8 pm to 10 pm EST</p>
<p class="style2">Toll Free: 866-745-8833, Access Code: 574050</p></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="left" valign="top"><div align="center"><img src="http://dustycrocker.com/ken.jpg" height="295" width="200"></div></td>

<td align="left" valign="top"><p class="style2">Ken Hanson, Executive Creative Director, Hanson Dodge Creative</p>

<p class="style3">Ken’s 25 years of interactive and graphic design experience and countless industry awards have earned him a reputation as one of the nation’s leading marketing communication designers. More than a gifted artist, Ken is also a superb strategist and marketing practitioner with a passion for building brand equity and loyalty for clients. He founded the studio in 1980 and continues to oversee creative direction for both interactive and print projects. Ken founded the Wisconsin chapter of the American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA).</p>

<p class="style2">Tuesday, October 16th, 8 pm to 10 pm EST</p>
<p class="style2">Toll Free: 866-745-8833, Access Code: 574050</p></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="left" valign="top"><div align="center"><img src="http://dustycrocker.com/rob.jpg" height="259" width="200"></div></td>

<td align="left" valign="top"><p class="style2">Rob Jackson, Creative Director, Extra Credit Projects</p>
<p class="style3">Rob Jackson is the principal/Creative Director of Extra Credit Projects, an advertising, design and promotion collaborative based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Before opening his doors in early 2006, he was a Creative Director at Jager Group, one of the leading agencies in the Midwest, where he spearheaded a variety of successful unconventional campaigns. He also spent over a year in Italy studying art and design while serving as an Illustrator for the U.S. Navy Sixth Fleet. His advertising and design work has been showcased in Archive, Brandweek, PrintCritic, Graphic Design USA and Print Regional Design Annuals. Awards include numerous Obies, National Addys, Graphis, Tellys and Cannes Lions, just to name a few.</p>

<p class="style2">Wednesday, October 17th, 8 pm to 10 pm EST</p>
<p class="style2">Toll Free: 866-745-8833, Access Code: 574050</p></td>
</tr>
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<td align="left" valign="top"><div align="center"><img src="http://dustycrocker.com/shel.jpg" height="295" width="200"></div></td>

<td align="left" valign="top"><p class="style2">Shel Perkins, Designer, Consultant, Author</p>
<p class="style3">Shel Perkins is a graphic designer, management consultant, and educator with twenty years of experience in managing the operations of leading design firms in the U.S. and the U.K. He writes the Professional Practice column for STEP magazine, the Design Business newsletter for AIGA, and the Design Firm Management column for Graphics.com. Shel teaches courses in professional practices at the California College of the Arts, the Academy of Art in San Francisco, and the University of California. He has served on the national board of the Association of Professional Design Firms and has been honored as an AIGA Fellow. His book Talent Is Not Enough: Business Secrets For Designers was recently co-published by New Riders and the AIGA Design Press.</p>

<p class="style2">Thursday, October 18th, 6 pm to 8 pm EST</p>
<p class="style2">Toll Free: 866-745-8833, Access Code: 584357</p></td>
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<td class="style3"><p class="style3"><span class="style4"><strong>Career Week WebEx Login Instructions</strong>:</span></p>

<p>1. Go to <strong>https://edmc.webex.com/</strong> <br>
2. Click "Join". <strong>*You do not need to Log in.</strong> <br>
3. You can do a <u>search for:</u> “AiO Graphic Design Career Week Presentation Series”. <br>
4. This should bring up our Workshop. Click on “<strong><u>Join now</u></strong>”. Note: “<strong><u>Join now</u></strong>” will be available right before the Workshop time (approx 10 minutes prior to the presentation start time). Before this time, the link will read <strong><u>Not Started</u></strong>.<br>

3. Enter your name and email address.&nbsp; <strong><u>** Please be sure to enter your full name.</u></strong> <br>

4. The WebEx session does not require a password.<br>
5. Follow the instructions that appear on your screen.</p>
<p><strong>WebEx Etiquette:</strong><br>
Please <strong><u>mute your phone</u></strong> at all times unless speaking.&nbsp; *6 to mute and *7 to unmute.</p>

<p>If you need to answer an incoming call or put your phone on hold, please hang up and call back in. The <strong>Mute</strong> function <strong><u>will not work during a hold</u></strong> and everyone will be able to hear you on your other line. You may call back in at any time.</p>

<p><strong><em>Don’t close your Browser</em></strong> as you may not be able to get back in to the WebEx presentation. </p>

<p>Mac Users: WebEx presentations are best-viewed using Firefox</p>
<p>PC Users: WebEx presentations are best-viewed using Microsoft Internet Explorer v5.5/6.0, Safari 1.0, or Firefox</p>

<p><strong>The number of spaces for each presentation is limited.</strong> The WebEx access to each session will be closed ten minutes into the presentation. It is highly recommended to come in slightly early to secure your space. If you are unable to login to the WebEx presentation along with the teleconference call do attempt to attend another presentation later during the week. And have fun!!!!!</p></td>

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</tbody></table>

 

(To post the announcement in your classroom, click the "<>" button on the bottom left corner of the New Announcement window to accept HTML code. Copy and paste the code as is into the window.

Do not add or subtract anything from the code.)

Organized by

Dusty Crocker & Jennifer Price

Profiles

Merrily Hall - Faculty, Graphic Design

First, let’s get the name thing out of the way – my mother has a weird sense of humor and decided I was going to be a ‘happy’ baby – a personality disorder I have tried all my life to disaffirm.

Born in London, moved to the U.S. when I was still blonde and thought all was right with the world, moved back to the U.K, moved back to the U.S…. Went to school in Massachusetts, yadda, yadda, yadda. Moved to the U.K., went to school, yadda, yadda, yadda.  Spent summers in odd places like Bermuda, Norman’s Cay, the Netherlands and Cape Cod. You see the pattern here, right?

Did the married bit, have 2 daughters, Kelly (26) and Jennifer (21). Had Kelly when I was around 7 years old so that accounts for their ages. Both gainfully employed (whew!) and hopefully saving up for their mother’s retirement.

Started my college experience in Commercial Art and moved on to many different majors – Accounting (what was I thinking?), Computer Science, Pre-med, Communication, Nursing, Psychology and Education (no, there is no ADD in my family….). My BA is in Psychology, minor in Communication. Did my Master’s in the U.K. (Bath Spa University) and received my MA in Design: Brand Development. I also hold post-grad certifications in Graphic Design, Technical Writing & Editing and Human Factors in Information Design. My next degree will be in photography….

I have worked in the field of graphic design for the past 20 years. I have my own design business and have also worked for large corporations such as Bell & Howell and EMC2 doing everything from technical illustration to AD. I am very much a print person and don’t do much web stuff (other than muttering that the shopping cart icon is hard to find).

I have been teaching for 5 years – started out at Clark University and here I am now at AiO. I currently live in Cave Creek, Arizona but plan on moving back to the ocean within a year or so – just not sure which ocean…..

-Merrily

 

My name is Catherine Case, and I live in Oshkosh, Wisconsin (yes… home of the OshKosh B’Gosh overalls, and within a stone’s throw of the Green Bay Packers). I have a daughter, Emily, who is twenty-one and recently graduated from college, a son Ben who is nineteen, a stepson Dane who is twenty, and a stepdaughter Kyra who is thirteen. My husband, Bob, is the Director of Museum & Resident Education at EAA (Experimental Aircraft Association).

I received my BFA from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh in Commercial Art, and proceeded on to receive my MA in Drawing. I then attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison (go Badgers) and received my MFA in Graphic Design/Illustration. I also exhibit my ever-evolving fine art nationally, and frequently juror exhibitions. I usually travel to the annual CAA conventions to assist in assessing the portfolios of recent MFA graduates and mentor those looking to make changes to their academic careers.

In all, I have written/taught over forty different courses online and onground, and most recently acted as the Chair of the Graphic Design Department at the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD), in Savannah, Georgia. The department consisted of twenty-three full-time professors, 150 graduate students and 450 undergraduate students. I taught, simultaneously (whew!).

I have been in the field of academia at the collegiate level for twelve years, and have almost thirty years of experience in the field of graphic design, including owning my own design firm (with all the trials and tribulations of real estate and employees).

In my “free” time, I teach yoga, play the piano, and run. I am a certified yoga instructor through the Himalayan Institute, took classical piano lessons for thirteen years and (used to) run marathons. I am currently learning to “get a life.” As an AAA personality, it is a slow process for me. The puppy sleeping at my feet while I work is a constant reminder to occasionally “chill.”

- Catherine

Reviews

iListen Voice Recognition Software, a Mac only voice recognition program macspeech.com

I have been testing this software for few days now. The results are mixed, however, it seems to be getting better the more I use it.

There is a fairly steep (frustrating) learning curve, teaching the program your voice, pasting in examples of your writing, and correcting mistakes as you go. But the bottom line is that I'm doing less typing. This software may not be for you if you can type 60 words a minute or more. however, there are many of us old timers that are not typists.

In addition to spoken critiques there are couple of interesting features. I can say the word "release" as a command macro and my entire request for a student release form will be entered into the email text box to send to the student. I do a command "see comments", usually in the gradebook, and the line "See my comments in the threads, and let me know if you have any questions (:" is written out for me.

I can also control my computer with an number of commands, opening applications and controlling web pages and documents with "page up, page down" and there is the potentially valuable command "double click". Instead of manually clicking on the numerous asterisks when I grade I can position my cursor over the asterisk and speak the command "double click", saving my wrists.

Another benefit - built in headphones for music when not using the program.

If you do get this software make sure you download the latest update.

I will keep you posted, give you a star rating in the next newsletter (:

- Jeff P

P.S. all the above was written using Ilisten. Pretty cool. But that reminds me, I need to get out more!

archived newsletters

2007

Summer II
Summer I
Spring II