THING 2: Evaluating Sources

"Untutored courage is useless in the face of educated bullets."
- George S. Patton -








As you can well imagine, the question of sources is incredibly important to those of us who teach English. I know, I know: it is important to everyone, but allow me a moment ( a screen?) of latitude here.

Imagine a bit of patriotic music playing here...

We all know that the responsibility of teaching research skills falls squarely onto the shoulders --onto the steely, battle-tested ranks -- of the English Department. Year after year we rally, willing to meet this foe head-on, and each year we gain some intellectual territory, but they are small and tenuous victories.

Reseach is a foe large and notorious, but even worse, our soliders are untried. Rather than relying on the strength and skill of tested warriors, we send rookies, newbies, and greenies onto the field of battle.

Pick your favorite general, be it Patton or Petraeus, and imagine him schooling these youngesters, laying out the mission, the purpose, the plan, the strategies and techniques. Blueprints, maps, satellite images, lectures, and speeches all come together in preparation. But we all know that planning only goes so far and that with action comes truth. Though they may seem readied, the rookies are blissfully unaware of the dangers presented by the electronic age: with Google only a keystroke away, students fall victim to the landmines and barbed wire of cheap information.

Marching orders stipulate, "Head for the Library Resource Page!" but their green ears fail to hear: they are anxious to get started, more likely to "get this thing over with", and with this zeal they rush headlong into Google's vast expanse and the enemies' embrace.

We see them sprint across the Internet, assured by the seemingly smooth path prepared by their website assessment training, but they don't know the pitfalls of the terrain. They grab whatever they find - toxic gas impairs their vision - and they bound back across the library ready to present their spoils: "1-2-3 Help Essays" or "Mr. Felder's Sixth Period Blog," and then -- BOOM!

A flurry of papers, the detritus of shame: they find themselves bamboozled by the easy captive of less-than-credible sources... If only they had followed the commander's orders and headed for the Library Resources Page...

Okay, all silliness aside, I do like the web assessment tools, particularly the two linked below, and I think that they are great teaching tools. With direct instruction, class practice, and individual application, I can see those criteria becoming a natural and intuitive part of research.

Until that day comes, my strategy involves constant vigilance: I watch over my little soldiers and make what they consider unreasonable demands: all of their sources must come either from the Library Resources Page or another library's database. Period.

I'm not sure why they want to google instead of using the library's resources. Maybe it presents a friendlier face. Maybe it seems "easier." The truth remains, though, that there are too many superficial and uninspired sources available, and until the kids develop the critical eye for evaluation sources, this commander orders them to head for the library!


http://www.lib.umd.edu/guides/webcheck.html

http://21cif.com/tools/evaluate/

THING 4, SAMPLE G: The Final Product

OK- this "finished" product comes with more qualifications and disclaimers than one typically hears at the end of a pharmaceutical advertisement!

Finished, in this context, means "all that I am going to do" rather than complete. I have spent so many hours trying to get the clips, audio, transitions and timing right that my rear-end is becoming one with the chair and waffle weave patterns permanently cross my thighs. (Gotta love that image, huh?)

I could sit here for another 36 hours, but I don't think that the precision of my project would improve. There are, though, some things that have yet to be done:

1. A Title Screen

2. A Music Track - I have the music, Coldplay's "Things I don't Understand" and Johnny Nash's "I Can See Clearly Now" downloaded and ready to use, but I am having trouble adjusting the volume of two competing tracks. So, until I can get some expert help with the audio levels, I am going to leave the music unplayed. (That sounds like a sad folk song, doesn't it?)

3. The Works Cited Page for images. I have saved all of the image weblinks in my favorites, so it is just a matter of getting it done. Yuck. I think I'll take the Scarlet O'Hara approach and worry about that tomorrow.

4. What else is missing? With the video, I mean. I know that the blog posts are not complete, but that shouldn't (won't) take too much time. I hope.

I know that the videos are growing tiresome, so I understand if you don't want to watch it again. There are a few surprises, though...

THING 4, SAMPLE F: Enough for one day

OK: I rerecorded the whole audio track and revised a bit... What do you think?

THING 4, SAMPLE E: Suddenly, I understand Victor Frankenstein's words

From Chapter IV of the 1818 version of Frankenstein:

IT was on a dreary night of November, that I beheld the accomplishment of my toils. With an anxiety that almost amounted to agony, I collected the instruments of life around me, that I might infuse a spark of being into the lifeless thing that lay at my feet. It was already one in the morning; the rain pattered dismally against the panes, and my candle was nearly burnt out, when, by the glimmer of the half-extinguished light, I saw the dull yellow eye of the creature open; it breathed hard, and a convulsive motion agitated its limbs.

How can I describe my emotions at this catastrophe, or how delineate the wretch whom with such infinite pains and care I had endeavoured to form? His limbs were in proportion, and I had selected his features as beautiful. Beautiful! -- Great God! His yellow skin scarcely covered the work of muscles and arteries beneath; his hair was of a lustrous black, and flowing; his teeth of a pearly whiteness; but these luxuriances only formed a more horrid contrast with his watery eyes, that seemed almost of the same colour as the dun white sockets in which they were set, his shrivelled complexion, and straight black lips.

Although I never really felt any compassion for Doctor Frankenstein, after creating my own monstrosity I am filled with a newfound empathy. Click to see my work...

The latest version...

THING 4, SAMPLE D: How do you like me now?

Well, there are still a few tasks remaining and a few questions unanswered:
1. The matter of an opening screen, a closing screen, and a works cited page for my images.
2. Finding a way to add another layer of music/audio. I'd like Coldplay's "Things I Don't Understand" to play in the background during the duration of the movie, but I'm not sure this is possible.
3. The boredom factor: maybe it is just me, but I feel like the whole thing is rather flat and lifeless. I always thought myself (prided myself?) fairly animated, but maybe that quality doesn't translate very well. Anyway, I sound like an average, boring English teacher with an average, tedious assignment. My kids are going to love this, right?

Maybe I'm just tired and this is the voice of fatigue, so I'll just post my now incredibly long movie and shuffle off to bed! Night, night!

THING 4, SAMPLE C: Back to work - July 7th

There is nothing like post-vacation exhaustion to encourage a day spent staring at a computer screen. I'm not sure my movie is getting any better. More complex, certainly, but not any further toward completion... The timing is off, and if anyone can offer any suggestions about how to align the pictures and the narration with greater accuracy, I'd really appreciate it. Oh, you can stop watching after the film clip: it is just gobbledy-goop from there on...

THING 4, SAMPLE B: Born on the 2nd of July...

Here is the latest incarnation of my video: I've added additional pictures but removed the music and transitions. I know that some of the pictures, especially the screen shots of the park and Cliff notes are both too small to read and out of focus. Up the learning curve I continue to tread.
Well, it is 5:49 a.m., and I feel the window of opportunity beginning to narrow. Better quit while I'm ahead and get ready for the weekend ahead. Independence Day - that's fitting somehow...