From Teaching Open Source
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[edit] Participating Through Video
[edit] Abstract
Participation in open source is not limited to students of computing. At Allegheny College, our goal is to introduce students at the start of their college careers to the benefits of contributing to open communities. Our goal is on provide students from outside computing—for example, students from Communication Arts (video production, theatre), Literature, History, Political Science, and Psychology—the opportunity to communicate about the participants, process, and products of open communities through traditional (written) as well as new media tools.
[edit] Background
At Allegheny, we have introduced students to open source through three projects to date:
[edit] Fedora 13 Contributions
During the spring semester of 2010, we introduced 40 students to the Fedora Design and Marketing teams. Students contributed documentation, interviews, and art to a variety of projects surrounding the Fedora project in the weeks leading up to release 13.
[edit] The Cardboarduino
As part of Technology and Activism, we introduced students to the craft of open hardware through the Cardboarduino, an open design for a small, cardboard-based computer related to the popular Arduino platform.
[edit] Plumbing the Freeduino
In CMPSC220: Programming Languages we introduced 12 students to open hardware through the [Freeduino http://www.rockalypse.org/courses/cmpsc220sp10/labs/lava-lamp/] (an open Arduino variant) and Plumbing, a library of open software for writing parallel programs on the Arduino. Two students went on to build on this experience: during the summer of 2010, Anthony Smith ’12 went on to take part in building and programming the Flying Gator, a robotic aircraft capable of autonomous flight (blog, repository), and Molly Mattis ’12 has been funded by the CREU to continue exploring parallel programming using these open source tools for rescue robotics (blog, repository).
In many of these cases, we have relied extensively on video, typically for capturing content for teaching. For example, we produced video to support students on both their Cardboarduino project as well as their Freeduino project. While we have encouraged students to produce video in the past, the lack of easy access to equipment has often hampered our efforts.
[edit] Proposal
We would like to integrate the production of video, both live and screencast, more fully into our curricular efforts over the coming years. Specifically, this coming year we see four significant uses of video-based communications:
[edit] FS101: Creativity and Leadership
In this freshman seminar, we would like to have students conducting and publishing interviews regarding open software and open communities.
[edit] CMPSC303: Human Centered Design
In this upper-division course centered on interface design and usability, students will conduct usability sessions on open software, capturing their efforts in video and sharing highlights of their usability sessions with the community.
[edit] CMPSC112: Intro. to Computer Science II
Students in this course will be exploring data structures while working with the Motorola Droid, an Android-based mobile platform. To reinforce concepts, students will communicate their learning through the production of short instructional videos surrounding key concepts, building on earlier experiments in this vein.
These three courses serve as exemplars; it is my intention that integration with open source and open communities will remain a theme throughout courses offered for the foreseeable future.
[edit] Community Participation
Human Centered Design provides a clear model (the call, course website) for how community interaction can take place with a classroom through the use of video production tools.
[edit] Dissemination
The purpose of the equipment is to provide students with high-fidelity tools for communicating and collaborating with FLOSS communities. In addition to the output the students generate, we will work to promote their efforts through existing channels (e.g. the Teaching Open Source Planet, opensource.com), as well more traditional venues on and off campus. Where appropriate, we will seek to disseminate our techniques and best practices in open educational fora as well.
[edit] Budget
We are seeking support for a high definition video camera, lighting kit, and redundant storage space for generated video.
| ID | Item | Quantity | Each | Total | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAM | Sony HDR-CX110 | 1 | $400 | $400 | Substituting better camera, see #Status updates |
| SD | 32GB SD Card | 1 | $90 | $90 | Purchased, shipping. |
| LIGHT | CowboyStudio Lighting Kit | 1 | $175 | $175 | Purchased, shipping. |
| MIC | Wireless Microphone (2x) | 1 | $165 | $165 | Purchased, shipping. |
| HD | WD 1TB External HD | 2 | $80 | $160 | Purchased, shipping. |
| TOTAL | $990 |
If funds were available, we would extend this proposal to include a high quality camcorder (Sony NEX-VG10 or similar, $2000) and/or a dedicated workstation for image processing (Dell Optiplex or similar, \$1000). The former because we are concerned about incoming image quality; the latter because our students have limited access to adequate machines for purposes of video editing. With these substitutions, the total proposal comes to roughly $3000.
[edit] Status updates
- Granted, $3000. See Budget#POSSE_alumni_grants. Mel Chua 15:02, 2 September 2010 (UTC)
- Purchased all equipment except camera and workstation, should arrive at your provided shipping address within 10 business days. Mel Chua 15:16, 2 September 2010 (UTC)
- Cost: $575.39
- Spent so far: $575.39
- Original budget: $3000.00
- Remaining: $2424.61
- Funds are available, so I will substitute the higher-quality camcorder for the Sony HDR and purchase a workstation of your choice; I'll email you to work out details, Matt, but the basic idea is that you have the remaining funds ($2424.61) to purchase those two items. Mel Chua 15:16, 2 September 2010 (UTC)
- The remaining $2424.61 has been spent. This grant is hereby depleted. :) Matt, can you enumerate the final items purchased, just so we have records of the equipment you've gotten in case someone wants to make a similar kit later? Thanks! Mel Chua 16:14, 10 September 2010 (UTC)