Educasting from Ireland

All About Local

THE "MOST INTERESTING" SHOT of Cashel, Ireland, today is a wheat field (at left). That tells a local story.

When I see farmers' fields in County Tipperary, I often think about where the crops are headed. A field of oats suggests a special story. They have a lower summer heat requirement and greater tolerance of rain than other cereals, such as wheat, rye or barley, so are particularly important in areas with cool, wet summers, such as Ireland. I watch farmers plant oats in both the autumn and in the spring. And I enjoy the by-product at places like Inch House where oats grown out front of the house make black pudding in the kitchen. This is a common local story and it should be shared.

Creating an Immersive Experience

WE SPEND SEVERAL HOURS unpacking the concept of "immersive experiences" in the Media Writing module at LIT-Clonmel. It's part of a creative multimedia degree.

I like how Tom Hanks and Stephen Spielberg approach the topic so I try to find samples of their work to use in the third level curriculum. I've watched Band of Brothers several times because "immersion" runs through the characters of that award-winning mini series. I plan to show some of the behind-the-scenes discussions of how the actors got in character and how the directors ensured the success of the production by their strict focus on authenticity. The video below the break should effectively make the point.

First Day as a Tagcloud

THE FIRST DAY BACK (#firstday on Twitter) forms the basis for a speed drill in the Media Writing module of the creative multimedia programme at the Limerick Institute of Technology.

Wordle thinks #firstday means one thing (see the screen grab) and some students have a different take on the subject. We looked at 26 pages of tweets to formulate a short intro that a radio presenter could use to introduce the topic to listeners. And we put some Kelly Rowland Radio onto Audioboo to use in the background as students cranked out their speed writing.

 

 

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firstday

Remember 911

REMEMBERING 911 is a meme that folds into an exploration of narratives in the Media Writing module run by the Limerick Institute of Technology because it's unusual to find anyone who does not know where they were on the day.

The world changed on September 11, 2011, partially because of the actions documented in both the written report of the day. One part of the story is traced in a scrolling view of a 911 map and audio files at the New York Times Interactive. The original audio clips, some of which have been published previously, have been released in a multimedia report originally intended to be part of the Sept. 11 Commission’s 2004 report. I think the story of the day of 9/11 courses through the voices of 9/11 in the clip below.

911 Voices

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NYT Interactive -- "911 Tapes, September 7, 2011.

911 Commission -- The 911 Commission Report, ISBN 978-0393060416

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About Your Strand

MOST IRISH people driving past trees adorned with strands of clothing know what it represents. And it's also true that people can often summarise their colleagues or their favourite things just by a single throwaway line.

It's important to consider this line of questions: "When someone speaks about you to someone else, what do they say? How would they refer to you? What would be the brief way they sum you up?"

If your gadgets define you, then you might be stereotyped as an Apple or Android fanboy. If you consider yourself "True Red" in Ireland, people will probably think "Cork" or "Liverpool" or even "ManU."

Fair dealing

MUCH OF THE CONTENT produced for audio playback and downloadable at podcasting.ie is done by and for third level students. As such, it's worth exploring how selections from books, music and spoken content from other sources can be used in a justifiable manner. We turn to the Copyright Association of Ireland for information concerning fair dealing, education and archiving.

Long Tail Big Scenes

We catch up with Terry and Laurie Porter, Harley bikers from California, when they spend a podcast session in Mellifont Friary to discuss things like the SonyEricsson W810i Walkman phone, Americans in Europe, The Long Tail, why to carry a laptop on a Harley, making big scenes explode in Hollywood, jobs for multimedia degree students, weeknight barbeque tips and some podsafe music from Shiny Toy Guns, Randall Cousins and Steffen Coonan. It’s 45 minutes of conversation and musings in a 32.2 MB 96kbps MP3 file. Follow the rest in the shownotes. »

What is RSS

PAGING BACK three years, we ask the question, "What is RSS?" RSS, short for Really Simple Syndication, lets you receive instant information updates. With RSS webfeeds you are in control — you decide what you want to read and when you want to read it. A simple news reader makes this possible. You can make the readers work with your email clients or on your mobile phone. It's really easy to do.

Tony O'Malley Everywhere

WE VISIT BUTLER GALLERY routinely with busloads of third level students from Tipperary Institute and this month it's to see the journals of Tony O'Malley. His work is all over Ireland at the moment. Besides being on display in the Butler, a major retrospecitve hangs in the Irish Museum of Modern Art--his third exhibition there in just over a decade. HE hangs in Dublin's Graphic Studio Gallery until 12 November and Taylor Galleries hosts an exhibition of gouaches, works on paper and oil paintings from 11 November.

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Why we wiki

AT TIPPERARY INSTITUTE we help revise items in wikipedia and World66 because both of these editable communities offer a good experience with social software. Besides, both sites have developed a credible presence while proving the merit of collective publishing.