Sycamore Field Experience
Sycamore First Visit: Critique Activity
TEAM: Liz Miller & Sarah Fenton
Discussion Topics
Sequencing:
Critique Activity: Essential Elements
Critique Activity: Strengths & Opportunities
Interactions with Students:
Activity Outcomes? (for Student or Teacher)
TEAM: Liz Miller & Sarah Fenton
Discussion Topics
- Social Media
- Selfie vs. Fine art
- Photography as an extension of memory
Sequencing:
- Have students pick their favorite photo project.
- Take about 5 minutes to write down thoughts about this photo (Help students engage with work before discussing with peers)
- Dialogue about students work
- Go around and have students share their favorite projects, why they chose that photo and what the intent/narrative is behind the photo.
- Last thoughts
- Short written reflection
- Ask students to write out a short reflections about:
- Any thoughts or Ideas that stuck out to them the most
- Anything that was beneficial to them from the critique or discussion.
Critique Activity: Essential Elements
- Ask students to choose their favorite completed photo from thus far in the semester
- Give students 5 minutes at the beginning of the activity to engage critically with their chosen work. This will give students an opportunity to develop their own thoughts/writing on a personal level before engaging with their peers.
- Students will then share their thoughts with the group stating why they chose their particular photo, what is being communicated in their photo, what their inspiration was, techniques, etc.
- After allowing each student to share, provide opportunity for peers to comment on each other’s photographs.
- Discussion of narrative/identity in photographs to follow
Critique Activity: Strengths & Opportunities
- Reflection & sharing critique activity will first provide students with an opportunity to engage one-on-one with their work personally and critically.
- Secondly, activity will provide students with an opportunity to articulate some or all of their thoughts developed in their reflection.
- Thirdly, students will have an opportunity to comment on each other’s photographs based on the information shared by the artist, as well as personal interpretations among group members.
- The strength of the critique will be in providing a variety of platforms for reflection/discussion/critique in allowing students to engage with art works personally, as a group, in written form, and verbally.
Interactions with Students:
- The main interaction between instructors and students will be through prompting and facilitation. It is the hope that Sarah and Liz will help create a foundation for the students but that ultimately they will make their discoveries and meaningful reflections/critiques through their interactions/ discussion/ comments/ critique with their classmates.
Activity Outcomes? (for Student or Teacher)
- Outcomes for students will be arrived at through written reflection and group discussion.
- Sarah and Liz will evaluate the success of student learning by comparing the first and final written reflections of the students.
- Students who have arrived at desired outcomes will demonstrate learning by making references to discussion points and by using key phrases in their writing that reveal signs of critical thinking and growth in relation to their art work and experience with peers.
- Phrases that demonstrate critical thinking might include but are not limited to: as a result of, in connection to, I agree/disagree, because of, I wonder, what if, etc.
After our Critique and Dialogue the first week teaching at Sycamore, we asked the students to write down
what stuck out to them at the end of our time, here are a few of their reflections and responses:
what stuck out to them at the end of our time, here are a few of their reflections and responses:
Sycamore Final Visit: Critique Activity
TEAM: Liz Miller & Sarah Fenton
Possible Topics of discussion (Extended from first week) :
- Social Media
- Selfie vs. Fine art
- Photography as an extension of memory
- Photography as Human action
Sequencing:
- Hang up Pictures with blank Paper underneath
- Have students comment on one another’s pieces- written- not verbal
- Dialogue about everyone’s comments
- Go around and have students talk about their comments and responses to comments made about their own projects.
- Last thoughts
- Short written reflection
- Ask students to write out a short reflections about:
- Ideas that stuck out to them the most
- Comments they appreciated or vice versa
- What was beneficial to them from the critique or discussion.
- Turn in.
Critique Activity: Essential Elements
- Students comment in written form about one another’s projects. (Hanging up projects with blank paper underneath for students to write their thoughts and observations down)
Critique Activity: Strengths & Opportunities
- By starting the discussion time with a short time to write down comments on one another’s pieces, students are allowed time to reflect on their peer’s work as well as their own before any dialogue occurs.
Interactions with Students:
- The intention is that Liz and Sarah will provide a platform for students to feel comfortable sharing their thoughts and comments about one another’s work.
- If students attend who were absent last week, we hope to encourage their peers to help enlighten them about the previous week’s discussion.
- Last week, students were asked to be thinking about why they participate in photography and what it means to them. Assessment of this could be spoken reflection or some sort of follow up through asking the students if they had any thoughts of reflections throughout the week.
Activity Outcomes? (for Student or Teacher)"
- Outcomes will be assessed through a short written reflection at the end of discussion.
Below is one student's final reflection from week two's dialogue: