Outcomes

After completing this assignment, you will be able to:

• identify good and bad multimedia products
• synthesize journal articles
• apply multimedia principles and learning theories in evaluating multimedia products.

Overview

Throughout this course, students will identify three multimedia products and compose a critique paper for each of them. This assignment is designed to sharpen your critical thinking in evaluating multimedia products.

Instructions

For each critique paper, you need to complete the following tasks:

1. Select a multimedia product based upon the following selection criteria:
   • Choice is but not limited to: Internet (YouTube video, animations on website, Flash, HTML5, etc), CD-ROM, APPs, etc.
   • The multimedia product must include audio, text, and graphics elements.
   • Your multimedia product must be educational and related to your teaching/training disciplines.
   • At least one of the three products follows the multimedia principles and learning theories well and at least one of them violates some multimedia principles and learning theories. In other words, at least one “good” multimedia product and at least one “bad” multimedia product.
2. After you choose you multimedia product, you start to review and analyze the product based upon the multimedia principles and learning theories introduced in this class. If it is a “bad” product, describe why it is bad in terms of multimedia principles and learning theories. If it is a good product, you can analyze and describe how good this product is.
   NOTE: Whenever a multimedia principle or a learning theory is mentioned in your paper, you NEED to include the source by citing it correctly with APA style.
3. Academic writing style is required. Please refer to Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Paper: Academic Writing Style for details.
4. Avoid using first person point of view in your paper: Academic writing is formal in tone and meant to be objective, using cited sources to support an argument or position. This assumes the focus is not the author, but rather the writing. In that regard, please avoid using first person point of view in your paper (PDF, 50KB).
5. If you have existing URL to show your product, make sure to include URL in your paper. If you can’t provide URL to your product, make sure to provide print-screens in your critique paper so that your instructor can better understand your analysis.
6. Compose your paper in MS Word and save it as DOC/DOCX file.  The total word count of your critique paper should be between 1,200 and 1,500 words in length.
7. Post your paper (DOC/DOCX file) onto a Weebly page and label the page appropriately.
8. Papers examples: The following pages contain some good examples demonstrating what your critique papers should look like. Take a look at them before composing your own.
   • http://coastalinfantino.weebly.com/dk-jr-math.html
   • http://neilnelsonedtech.weebly.com/critique-papers.html
   • http://tmelvinb.weebly.com/critique-papers.html

Submitting and Posting

To submit your work, upload your DOC/DOCX file onto the corresponding link under Submissions inside Moodle before 11:59 p.m. U.S. EST/EDT on the 1st day of the following modules:

• Critique Paper #1: Module 6
• Critique Paper #2: Module 10
• Critique Paper #3: Module 14

Grading

Grades on your work will be based on the following five criteria (2 pts each). Read them carefully to get a sense of the instructor’s specific expectations.

1. Overview of the product, explain the purpose of the product, its audience, grade level, which format (web-based, Flash, YouTube, animation, CD-ROM, video, audio, HTML5, etc). If you have an URL, provide the URL. If you can’t provide the access of your product to your instructor, do print-screens to illustrate your analysis.
2. List all multimedia principles and learning theories applied in this product (illustrated with print-screens or URL links); list any multimedia principles and learning theories that are being violated (illustrated with print-screens or URL links).
3. If you are asked to re-design this product, what would you change and why?
4. Provide a summary of your overall impression and analysis of the product.
5. Good organization of the summary paper, correct spelling, clarity of writing, and APA style compliance.

Common Mistakes

The following are some common mistakes made by students. In your paper, please void any of these mistakes.

1. The length of this paper is less than 1,200. The required length of this paper is between 1,200 and 1,500 words.
2. The major proposition of the paper introduces the product. The main purpose of this paper is to “critique” a multimedia product. A significant proportion of your paper should be devoted to the evaluation and analysis of the production, not the introduction or description of it.
3. Doesn’t refer to any multimedia learning theories/principles. In order to academically critique a multimedia product, you need to familiarize yourself with multimedia learning theories so that you can compose your critique paper professionally and cite source correctly. Use your annotated bibliographies to refresh your memory of those theories.
4. The writing is informal in tone and subjective. Please avoid using first person point of view in your paper. Academic writing is formal in tone and meant to be objective, using cited sources to support an argument or position. This assumes the focus is not the author, but rather the writing. In that regard, please refer to http://blogs.ubc.ca/writingcentre/files/2013/01/Tutor-project-Avoid-First-Person-POV.pdf.
5. In-text citation format is incorrect. For correct format, please refer to: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/in_text_citations_author_authors.html