Case Study: Introduction to Anthropology
ANTHR 102. Professor Margaret Werher, Colgate University
Please provide the course description as it appears in the catalog and the typical enrollment for the course.
This course provides an introduction to the discipline of anthropology and is intended to help students come to a better understanding of human cultures and societies through the analysis and comparison of specific cases. Students study diverse societies from a wide range of geographic areas and examine topics such as kinship and marriage, economic organization, religion, gender, and social change. Students learn about some of the major theories and theorists in anthropology and examine the way anthropologists collect and interpret data, particularly in the course of fieldwork. Enrollment is limited to first-year and sophomore students.
Typical enrollment: 30-35
What are the learning goals of the media assignment(s) in the course. If your course assignments contain both analysis and creative production components, describe the learning goals of each.
By presenting their research results in the format of an academic poster, the student will learn to:
- develop a creative, compelling main argument (analysis)
- gather and analyze evidence that supports or challenges one's main argument (analysis)
- use convincing evidence to rebut counter-arguments (analysis)
- convey the significance of one's findings for anthropologists and the general public
- use graphics (photos, graphs, maps) in a clear, persuasive way (visual literacy)
- portray another culture in a respectful and sensitive way (analysis and visual literacy)
- present written material in a clear, visually pleasing way (visual literacy)
- make use of the poster format to convey one's main point in a clear and persuasive manner (visual literacy)
- defend their argument verbally when presenting their poster to their peers (analysis)
- correctly use AAA citation style for in-text citations and works cited (analysis)
- correctly use captions to explain and attribute graphics (visual literacy)
- use correct grammar, punctuation and spelling (analysis)
What are the relationships of the media assignment(s) to the other aspects of the course?
The poster project is the culmination of a semester's worth of research on a topic. Prior iterations of the topic include:
- a 1-2 page research prospectus
- annotated bibliography of 5-8 sources on the topic
- 1-paragraph statement of main argument
- 5-6 page focus essay in which one lays out main argument and supporting evidence
- draft of poster text and graphics
- final poster in PDF format
- verbal presentation of poster findings to the rest of the class (1-2 minute presentation and 5 minutes for questions)
In addition to the above assignments, students are responsible for reading and discussing 100 pages of text per week as well as occasional short (1-2 page) writing assignments.
Describe your assignment design/structure.
As noted above, the poster assignment is broken into several steps:
- proposal: due first week of class
- annotated bibliography on topic: requires students to read and analyze various points of view on their topic
- one-paragraph statement of main argument: forces students to move from analysis to stating a clear point of view on their topic
- focus essay: gives students a space to flesh out their argument, deal with counter-arguments, and decide what steps are needed to complete their poster text
- draft of poster text and graphics: gives me a chance to intervene in poster production before it's turned into a PDF
- final poster: gets printed out and presented to class in a public presentation
- public presentation: students spend one week of class time presenting their findings to each other and to other library and ITS staff.
To what extent does your assignment design address issues of visual/aural literacy?
In terms of class time and grading, I focus more on the poster's content than its layout. However, I devote one class period to discussing "visual literacy," and 1/3 of their poster grade is based on the poster's visual appeal, so it is important.
To what extent does your assignment design address issues of information literacy?
The assignment includes an annotated bibliography, which requires students to find, evaluate and cite five different types of sources. I stress the critical evaluation of all sources, particularly non-scholarly ones such as popular news articles and websites.
To what extent does your assignment design address issues of technology skills?
To complete this assignment, students need:
- books
- electronic databases
- the Web
- reference librarians to help them find, evaluate, and cite sources
- IT staff to help them turn their research findings into a poster by assisting with both visual literacy and technology skills (powerpoint, PDFs, images)
- electronic calendar to help students keep track of meetings with ITS personnel
- computers with powerpoint and PDF capacity
- printer that can print 2'x3' posters
What are the resources necessary for your assignment (content/materials, institutional support, equipment)?
It's impossible to know in advance. This is one of the most severe limitations of the project, but the circumstances allow for it (i.e., the instructor is proficient in dozens of digital media software applications and is the faculty director of the facility that supports the course). Not an advisable undertaking for instructors with any reservations about their proficiency with the available technology.
Describe how you evaluated the project outcomes? Did you evaluate process? Outcomes? Both?
I used the following grading rubric to evaluate individual posters:
A GOOD POSTER DEMONSTRATES:
- Interesting, thought-provoking main argument
- Persuasive evidence to back up your argument
- Rebuttal of counter-arguments
- Persuasive evidence of the significance of your research
- Appropriate use of graphics (photos, graphs, maps): clear, culturally sensitive
- Good balance between graphics and text; a visually clear and pleasing format
- Format of text (font type and size; layout) is clear and visually pleasing
- Format of poster conveys your main point in a clear and persuasive manner
- Correct use of AAA citation style for in-text citations and works cited
- Correct use of captions
- Correct grammar, punctuation and spelling
Since I was curious about student reaction to the assignment, I asked them verbally how difficult, intellectually challenging, time-consuming and educational they found it. I also gave them a "pop quiz" to test their recall of material in each others' posters.
Estimate the time invested in the project by you, your students, and academic support staff.
I spent an additional 5-6 hours on the poster project beyond what I would normally spend on preparing and evaluating the class. However, grading the posters was much faster than grading traditional 12-15 page essays, so it was a net gain for me in terms of time. Students probably spent an equal amount of time on the posters as they would have on a traditional paper, but the time was much more spread out over the semester because of the way the tasks were broken down, and their tasks involved much more creative tasks than normally required in a paper.
In terms of ITS and reference librarians' time, I estimate that this project required at least 25 hours of extra time. Five hours were spent planning and evaluate the project. Two hours were spent in direct instruction to the class. At least 15 hours were spent in one-on-one meetings with students.
How many times have you taught this course/assignment? What would you do differently next time?
This was the second time I assigned a poster. The process went much smoother this time than last because I met more often with ITS and library staff before, during and afterwards, and because the students were required to meet individually with ITS/library staff to go over their poster design prior to turning it into a PDF. Another successful aspect of the project was breaking down the tasks into pieces that were due throughout the semester, thus spreading out the work load for students, staff and me. And as before, the ITS and library staff were very generous and flexible with their time to accommodate student needs.
What I would do differently next time are the following:
- make the grading rubric more specific and quantifiable
- focus more on the politics of "representation": the ethical and practical challenges of representing another culture in a visual format
- specify that the focus essay is the equivalent of a "rough draft" of the poster text
What is your level of expertise with respect to media technologies and scholarship?
I consider myself still a neophyte in terms of using and evaluating media-based assignments like posters. However, I'm "hooked" on media-based scholarship because of the energy, interest and learning it promotes among the students. They love it, and are willing to invest lots of time and energy into this form of learning, so I will continue to experiment with ways to add media to my curriculum.