I spent a long time going over professional editorials with students. Looking at about 20 different current editorial cartoons, the class interpreted the overall message of each. In each editorial, students discussed the analogy of what the pictures actually represented. This scaffolding activity did two things. It demonstrated how a simple image can represent a complex idea. This was a level of higher order thinking that I wanted students to practice. It also gave students an overview of world events, which increased their understanding and hopefully whet their appetite to learn more about events in the news. This background building helped greatly when the students began creating their own editorial cartoons. As displayed on the Student Work Samples page, students did a great job translating complex issues into easily understood images. I was impressed that very few students went for the obvious idea of simply trying to illustrate the idea as in a photograph. The majority of students thought of something to represent their opinion and created their cartoon from there. All editorial cartoons that were submitted on time were sent to NewsCurrents to be included in the student editorial cartoon contest. Selected cartoons will be selected on April 11. As a class we have marked the date and are anxiously looking forward to the announcement.

         I gave students a four-paragraph template for writing their editorial. As in many of the projects I assign, I tell them that this is not the only way of accomplishing the result. It is like learning any new skill. First, learn the fundamentals and then when the basics are mastered, the learner can be more creative. Again, I was impressed with some of the quality of the writing and how well students both established and supported their opinions. I didn’t want students to do a full-fledged research paper (they do that in Language Arts). I did, however, want students to realize that showing factual information to support their opinion goes a long way in persuading others.

         In regard to students’ video editorials, one of my goals was to have students realize they could present their same message in differing formats. After watching a video editorial by Ben Stein, the class discussed the advantages/disadvantages of both media. Students obviously saw the engagement factor of video, especially with the addition of images. They also could see a convenience factor with the written format since readers could go at their own pace and conveniently carry the medium with them. A couple students made the connection that the convenience factor was less important now since many people had smart phones that could access video most places that a person would take a newspaper or magazine, such as on the metro.

        Another goal was for students to gain skills in camera operation, on-camera speaking, video downloading, digital video editing software, choosing and inserting images, and inserting music. These software skills are not only useful in real professions; they are also helpful as students go on to work on other academic projects. I have observed my previous students take leadership roles when assigned projects in other classes that require audio, video, or desktop publishing design skills. Finally, the uses of these software skills afford students the ability to construct their learning. They use the technology to foster and present their thinking.