Multimedia Literacy Experience: Reflection On Collaboration, Assessment, And Personal Growth

Collaboration and its impact on the creative process

Collaboration helped in bringing in fresh ideas that added value to my multimedia work. In the process of creation, the essence of other’s contribution cannot be belittled. The reason behind it is associated with its essentiality and value addition to the media or content (Clark & Mayer, 2016). The coming together of different minds that are rich in diverse ideas is of much value to any process. In relation to my process of making the content, the collaboration came to add the much-needed value to my multimedia (Ljubojevic, Vaskovic, Stankovic, & Vaskovic, 2014). Making mistakes and errors in some processes is inevitable. It is during this phase or process that the contribution of other persons comes in handy to help in brainstorming into new ideas and plans. The collaboration affected my process of creation by fostering the act of others bringing in new ideas which left me wiser and knowledgeable than before.

Collaboration also helped me in perfecting the creation. The bringing together of different ideas was essential as it promoted an avenue where I could gather new ideas as well as get to notice the areas that needed a different touch (Clark & Mayer, 2016). It is imperative to note that the inclusion of different contributive parties in any creation or project promotes a challenging environment (Mayer, 2002). A positively challenging environment is essential for the creation of any content because it makes sure that one is in the best position to come up with the best creation. The collaboration brought forth that much-needed challenge that motivated me to come up with the best creation.

The feedback from all parties that I was collaborating with came with advantages and disadvantages. The two significant advantages were the perfection of the final learning object and the assessment of my skills as far as the creation of multimedia learning object is concerned (Mayer, 2002). One of the feedbacks that I received was about the areas that needed a more elegant touch so that the multimedia learning object could attain its perfection. In respect to this feedback, it was easy for me to identify flaws as well as areas that needed a more delicate and better touch.

The second feedback that I received was about the kind of the multimedia learning object that I had created. In any process of creation, assessment is paramount because it helps one to rate the creativity skills. After the feedback, it became easier for me to rate my work and to know how far I have come and the effort that I need to add to make sure that I perfect my work. An assessment also helps one to understand his or her speed of learning (Leutner, 2014). When the assessment proves to provide a higher rating, one is confident that his or her ability to quickly grab knowledge is high.

Advantages and disadvantages of feedback received

The disadvantage was that at some point I felt inferior. Sometimes the feedback might not be drafted in a complimentary way (Plass, Heidig, Hayward, Homer, & Um, 2014). In this respect, one is left doubting his or her skills. At the same time, some of the people who provided the feedback were more skilled thus making me feel like a person who did not have much or enough to offer.

The LO was tested in two different ways. The first way was assessed by looking into the understanding of the process of creating the multimedia. It is imperative to note that in any given field, there is a need for the professionals or the learning professionals to be equipped with the knowledge of strategizing and coming up with completed work (Clark & Mayer, 2016). The best strategy to use in sometimes is the strategy of presenting work to the professionals and letting the professionals demonstrate if they can identify the steps and processes that were used to come up with the complete work. In this case, this became one of the aimed learning objectives.

The second LO was field tested from the perspective of the content as opposed to the perspective of the material creation design. The multimedia was not only a piece of work, but it was a piece of work that was furnished with details which were sending a specific point to the targeted audience (Park, Flowerday, & Brünken, 2015). The LO was tested through the expectation that the learning professionals would analyze the content and grasp the meaning that the creator of the content was trying to send to the intended audience. The learning objective would not only help the learners to know more about multimedia as a vessel of sending a specific message to specific people, but it would also help the learners to know the best way to grasp the intended message from any piece of a multimedia project.

I expected the students to understand two crucial points in the multimedia. The first crucial part was associated with the making of the multimedia. I expected them to analyze the multimedia and understand the process and steps that were used to come up with the completed work. The second point I wanted them to understand was the effectiveness of the content that was used in the multimedia. In any piece of multimedia, there is the vessel and the content, and my aim was for them to understand both the vessel and the content (Johnson, Ozogul, & Reisslein, 2015). However, the learners demonstrated that they focused more on the content rather than the creation of the vessel as well. It was easier for the learners to identify the content and to analyze its effectiveness and messages behind it than to grasp knowledge on how the multimedia was created from the first stage to the last stage.

Rationale for instructional effectiveness of Multimedia-based Learning Objects

Based on the data that I collected, I would not change the LO as much, but I would engage the learners in a broader way. I would make sure that the learning objectives are outlined with the aim of giving the learners a rough idea of the perspectives they should be taking (Clark & Mayer, 2016). It is imperative to note that the main aim is not to hide information from the students and expect them to find it but to expose the students to as much knowledge as possible. Therefore, outlining the LO in a more detailed manner would be the best decision to make in this case.

As a multimedia creator, it is no doubt that this course has added to my knowledge to create better materials and content. The course resources have been there with me throughout the way to provide me with information that has been essential in making me a better and effective multimedia creator (Knörzer, Brünken, & Park, 2016). The guidance that I have received through collaboration from most of the networks that we have been collaborating with is immeasurable, and this is because it has been immense and it has helped me to identify my flaws and to assess my level of performance. I have been able to know what I can do best and what I need more skills. The feedbacks from the collaborating teams have been essential to my growth as a designer, and they have sharpened my teamwork skills (Clark & Mayer, 2016). I have grown from an amateur designer to a designer who does not shy away from asking for directions and making the work better.

My comfort level changed in this course. Surprisingly, the comfort levels declined. This was because I understood that there is no end to learning and instead of getting comfortable, one should continue pursuing the dream (Song, Kalet, & Plass, 2016). I realized that the process of learning is continuous regardless of the knowledge that one has. For example, when I was corrected on the things that I thought I had done right, I realized there is always a better way to do something no matter how good one has done it.

Multimedia production and collaboration with my PLNs have changed my learning experience. To enhance the understanding of this point, I will use an example on one of the happenings during the creation of the multimedia content. When I was receiving the feedbacks, I received feedback from all directions; from my seniors and juniors. It is at this point that I realized that learning is not only fostered through engagements with the professionals alone, the amateurs also have something to offer (Heidig, Müller, & Reichelt, 2015). My learning experience changed entirely because I came to understand that any person in any profession is a potential source of helpful information regardless of their ranks or levels of education.

When it comes to the learning objectives, I learned a lot, and it had an effect on my learning experience. I understood that the educator might have a lot of information that he or she needs the students to grasp from a piece of work. However, not all learners might have the intellectual strength to identify every objective that has been hidden in the work of an educator. It is therefore imperative for the educator to make sure that he or she has outlined the specific learning objectives to widen the viewpoint of the learners so that they can grasp every detail or lesson that they were supposed to (Herrlinger, Höffler, Opfermann, & Leutner, 2017). Sharing the learning objectives has a lot of effects on the learners as well as the learning atmosphere thus making it critical.

References:

Clark, R. C., & Mayer, R. E. (2016). E-learning and the science of instruction: Proven guidelines for consumers and designers of multimedia learning. John Wiley & Sons.

Heidig, S., Müller, J., & Reichelt, M. (2015). Emotional design in multimedia learning: Differentiation on relevant design features and their effects on emotions and learning. Computers in Human Behavior, 44, 81-95.

Herrlinger, S., Höffler, T. N., Opfermann, M., & Leutner, D. (2017). When do pictures help to learn from expository text? Multimedia and modality effects in primary schools. Research in Science Education, 47(3), 685-704.

Johnson, A. M., Ozogul, G., & Reisslein, M. (2015). Supporting multimedia learning with visual signalling and animated pedagogical agent: moderating effects of prior knowledge. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 31(2), 97-115.

Knörzer, L., Brünken, R., & Park, B. (2016). Facilitators or suppressors: Effects of experimentally induced emotions on multimedia learning. Learning and Instruction, 44, 97-107.

Leutner, D. (2014). Motivation and emotion as mediators in multimedia learning. Learning and Instruction, 29, 174-175.

Ljubojevic, M., Vaskovic, V., Stankovic, S., & Vaskovic, J. (2014). Using supplementary video in multimedia instruction as a teaching tool to increase efficiency of learning and quality of experience. The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 15(3).

Mayer, R. E. (2002). Multimedia learning. In Psychology of learning and motivation (Vol. 41, pp. 85-139). Academic Press.

Mayer, R. E. (2014). Incorporating motivation into multimedia learning. Learning and Instruction, 29, 171-173.

Park, B., Flowerday, T., & Brünken, R. (2015). Cognitive and affective effects of seductive details in multimedia learning. Computers in Human Behavior, 44, 267-278.

Plass, J. L., Heidig, S., Hayward, E. O., Homer, B. D., & Um, E. (2014). Emotional design in multimedia learning: Effects of shape and color on affect and learning. Learning and Instruction, 29, 128-140.

Song, H. S., Kalet, A. L., & Plass, J. L. (2016). Interplay of prior knowledge, self?regulation, and motivation in complex multimedia learning environments. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 32(1), 31-50.