In the Communication Technology class Animation Unit, students recently undertook a project centered around the 12 Principles of Animation. The objective was to create animation that effectively showcased their understanding of these principles. The students demonstrated their creative skills and knowledge in basic 2D Animation. The project was an opportunity for students to put what they had learned into practice and explore the captivating realm of animation. All animations are then put into one collage which can be watched here in our school’s official YouTube page!
Mini Movie Trailer
At the beginning of this course, Communications Technology(TGJ4O), the class had an option of making a sequel to the previous class’s mini movie. First they decided which roles would be necessary, such as director, script writer, cinematographer, actors. Then they started brainstorming the movie’s name, “Invasion of the W.a.f.f.l.e Clones: Let there be Brunch!”, making a rough storyline, script, and characters. Once the script writer finished the script, the class created the props with 3D printers, and planned out the locations for filming.
When the class started filming, they ran into problems like re-doing and re-scheduling scenes when necessary. During the editing stage, they edited all the scenes together, with music and sound effects. They also marketed the film by designing both physical and digital posters. The premiere for the film is scheduled for June 27th, 2022 at the YMCA graduation ceremony for this school year.
Please enjoy the Trailer for now!
Mini Movie Filming Begins
The Communication Technology class is creating a mini movie, Invasion of the W.A.F.F.L.E Clones: Let There Be Brunch!
It is a sequel of the mini movie, Invasion of the Waffle Clones, that was produced by the previous class of Communication Technology 5 years ago. Students are split into different rotating roles such as Director, Screenwriter, Prop Master, Cinematographer, Editor and Music Supervisors and they have been using various communication technologies such as Chroma Keys, 3D Modeling, Music Composer, Video Editors, etc. in the process of making the movie.
Today we have started filming one of the many scenes, and the class is excited to premiere their final movie on graduation day!
Technological Overload
With the COVID-19 pandemic, we find ourselves in an unprecedented time and more reliant on technology than ever before. If it wasn’t clear before just how far we have come along from a technological standpoint, there is no question that we are all on the same page now. Our society has shifted dramatically over the past year and technology has now become a coping mechanism.
In our Information and Communication Technology in Business class, we were examining the legal, social and ethical issues of technology, privacy and security. In order to unpack some of these issues, we watched Netflix’s The Social Dilemma documentary film.
Below is a list of quotes from the film selected by students thought to be the most interesting or powerful:
“If you’re not paying for the product, then you are the product.”
“There are only two industries that call their customers “users”: illegal drugs and software.”
“Nothing vast enters the life of mortals without a curse.”
“It’s the gradual, slight, imperceptible change in your own behaviour and perception that is the product.”
“We’re training and conditioning a whole new generation of people that when we are uncomfortable or loney or uncertain or afraid, we have a digital pacifier for ourselves. That is kind of atrophying our own ability to deal with that.”
“The way to think about it is as 2.5 billion Truman Shows. Each person has their own reality with their own facts. Over time you have the false sense that everyone agrees with you because everyone in your news feed sounds just like you. Once you’re in that state, it turns out you’re easily manipulated.”
The purpose of this film is not to scare people into thinking technology is bad for us and should be avoided. Instead, the point is to inform and educate people that technology can be addictive and manipulative. Even when there are genuinely good intentions behind a design, there are oftentimes adverse and unintended consequences. For example, when Facebook created the “like” button, it was meant to spread positivity and love. However, when you look at it today, you can see teens getting depressed because they don’t have enough likes or a political polarization which has fuelled endless hate comments.
The Social Dilemma shows us that social media is intentionally designed to be addictive and manipulative through subjective algorithms that determine what you see and the psychology of persuasion that is built into AI technology today. In essence, technology is now created and designed to use you and having that knowledge doesn’t necessarily make your need to fulfill your cravings less susceptible. This serves an important reminder to teens and adults alike that technology is extremely powerful and it ultimately comes down to us how we choose to use it.
Digital Aristotle: A Reflection of Virtual Learning
It’s somewhat hard to believe that a year in lockdown has already gone by. To say it has been an interesting year would be an understatement. After all is said and done, and this human experience is in the rearview mirror, there is a lot that will be looked back upon and analyzed. One of the major realms that will undoubtedly receive a lot of attention will be education, particularly virtual learning.
Virtual learning is by no means a new idea or phenomenon. Virtual schools have existed for years now, but such schools were created for educational reasons and designed for specific situations. The pandemic, however, has thrown the vast majority, if not all of the world’s education systems into some form of virtual learning. Those who choose to attend virtual schools do so (for the most part) of their own volition. Over the last year, everyone has been thrust into virtual learning whether they wanted to or not, whether they thrive in such a situation or languish.
There is a notion in education as to whether or not the growth and implementation of technology will one day lead to a future where students can learn solely from an artificial educator. The current education system is built on top of a framework that was designed to educate students to have the skills and knowledge to be effective and efficient factory workers. In the early days of education, students would sit in desks and listen to a teacher at the front of a classroom. The teacher was a source of information that they would disseminate to their students, a sage on the stage. Fast forward to today, and the only difference in many of today’s classrooms is the colour of the board at the front of the room.
Education has gone through many “revolutions” where this, that, or the other thing was going to radically change how students learned. From radio to television and tablets, no one invention or innovation has really changed education in a fundamental way. The internet, however, offers one place that holds more information than anyone can ever hope to consume, and essentially renders the idea of a person at the front of a classroom who knows a lot of information obsolete. So who needs teachers? Are they commodities who will one day be completely replaced by screens and algorithms?
In my estimation, the past year of learning mostly online – which has had teachers using a lot of digital resources such as videos, podcasts, and the like – has shown us that replacing a classroom teacher with digital content is not a scenario that leads to optimal learning environments. Granted, our small school full of dedicated and passionate teachers has been able to make the best of the world’s current situation; it is likely that many students have found virtual learning less than ideal. Although having one-on-one guidance for each student would be the ideal scenario, even if you could fabricate a digital Aristotle to tutor every student based on his or her individual needs, it could never replace a real – in the flesh – educator. As technology continues to advance, the sage on the stage needs to transform into the guide on the side, helping students navigate the world wide web of information overflow and teach them how to learn and not necessarily what to learn.