stevenpiziks (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
stevenpiziks) wrote2009-01-09 08:20 pm
stevenpiziks) wrote2009-01-09 08:20 pm
Entry tags:
Good Teaching
I recently revamped a whole lot of material in media literacy. I put together a wonderful new unit on shopping and consumerism: how stores get people to buy, the shortcuts packagers and advertisers use to tell customers what the product is for (dark colors = rich flavors; light colors = low calorie; water = cleansing/refreshing, etc.), how people shop, etc. The whole thing required enormous amounts of research, and I was able to pull it off because R----, my intern teacher, has my two English 9 classes. (Contrary to popular belief, I don't nap or play video games or eat bonbons during my "off" time; I do all the research and revamping I've been dying to do but don't usually have time for.)
As a whole, the unit went extremely well. The class responded to the material with interest, and there was quite a lot of, "Oh yeah--totally true!" when I pointed out various aspects of human nature when it comes to shopping. One fact I came across, for example, is that women tend to demand bargains more than men do, something the formal dress industry depends on. If a high school female brings Mom along to shop for a prom dress, she'll end up with something less expensive. If she wants an expensive dress, she needs to bring Dad, who's more likely to be willing to pay a higher price (because being able to pay lots reaffirms his manliness and/or because he doesn't want to spend time bargain-hunting). I asked the seniors females in the class if this was true. Nods all around.
"Completely," they said. "Same is true when you're shopping for school clothes. Bring Dad, not Mom."
Which also informed the males in the room about their own subconscious buying habits.
For another activity, we watched a video I'd just acquired about the aforementioned shortcuts. The next day, I had them go through magazines. Each student had to find an ad that used one of the shortcuts, mount it on construction paper, and write the prinicple across the bottom. However, I realized fairly quickly that I had allotted way too much time for this, so I added to it. I set up a document camera that could project a paper image like an overhead can project a transparency, then had the students come up by rows, show each picture, and explain which principle the ad used. Then they hung their findings on the walls around the room, creating a classroom-sized collage.
The whole thing went really well. The students learned the shortcuts well enough to find them in ads, were able to see them in their native environment instead of just in a lecture or video, and see exposed to the ones their classmates found.
The other activities in the unit went equally well, and I created all of them from scratch. The advantage of several years' experience. :) The unit's a definite keeper.
As a whole, the unit went extremely well. The class responded to the material with interest, and there was quite a lot of, "Oh yeah--totally true!" when I pointed out various aspects of human nature when it comes to shopping. One fact I came across, for example, is that women tend to demand bargains more than men do, something the formal dress industry depends on. If a high school female brings Mom along to shop for a prom dress, she'll end up with something less expensive. If she wants an expensive dress, she needs to bring Dad, who's more likely to be willing to pay a higher price (because being able to pay lots reaffirms his manliness and/or because he doesn't want to spend time bargain-hunting). I asked the seniors females in the class if this was true. Nods all around.
"Completely," they said. "Same is true when you're shopping for school clothes. Bring Dad, not Mom."
Which also informed the males in the room about their own subconscious buying habits.
For another activity, we watched a video I'd just acquired about the aforementioned shortcuts. The next day, I had them go through magazines. Each student had to find an ad that used one of the shortcuts, mount it on construction paper, and write the prinicple across the bottom. However, I realized fairly quickly that I had allotted way too much time for this, so I added to it. I set up a document camera that could project a paper image like an overhead can project a transparency, then had the students come up by rows, show each picture, and explain which principle the ad used. Then they hung their findings on the walls around the room, creating a classroom-sized collage.
The whole thing went really well. The students learned the shortcuts well enough to find them in ads, were able to see them in their native environment instead of just in a lecture or video, and see exposed to the ones their classmates found.
The other activities in the unit went equally well, and I created all of them from scratch. The advantage of several years' experience. :) The unit's a definite keeper.