Alastair McElhoney
Curriculum Vitae
78 Sneinton Boulevard
Sneinton
Nottingham
NG2 4FE
07912483025
alastair_mcelhoney@hotmail.com
alimacjournal.blogspot.com
Full Clean Driving Licence of 6 Years
Personal Profile
Alastair McElhoney has experience within the media environment. He has worked as a self-employed cameraperson, director, researcher and producer. He has excellent communication skills and understands the importance of communication and teamwork. He also works as an installation artist, performer and mentor.
He is also involved with artist exhibitors. Curating an exhibition earlier this year at Broadway Media Centre, Nottingham.
Education
2004 – 2008
School of Art, The Nottingham Trent University
BA Multimedia
Expected Degree Class: 2:1
1993 – 2003
Northallerton College
2 A Levels – AVCE Information Communication Technology (B,C)
1 AS Level – Media Studies (B)
11 GCSE’s – Including a B in Mathematics, English Language and English Literature.
Professional Experience
2006 – 2007: Dealmaker Studios – Primary Camera Operator, Team Leader and Lead Editor
2008: Curator of Eclectic Arts Exhibition, Broadway Media Centre.
2008: Design and collation of print materials for Multimedia Most Wanted Degree Show Catalogue.
Documentaries
2005 – “Coping With Alcoholism”. 90 Second Short.
2006 – “Deal of No Deal”. 4 Minute Short
Short Films
2006 – “We are Now LOCAL” – 4 Minute Short
2007 – “Holding Pattern” – 4 Minute Short
2007 – “Back to Binary” – 90 Second Short (Animation)
Advertising and Corporate Identity
2007/2008 – “Godfrey Pearson Limited”
Wed Video Advertisements
Radio Advertisements
Corporate Identity. Including:
Logo
Correspondence
Colour Scheme
Font Set
Technical Ability
A complete understanding of the following:
Final Cut Pro 6 HD
DVD Studio Pro 4
Soundtrack Pro 2
Adobe CS Suite Including Photoshop, InDesign and Illustrator
Microsoft Office Package
Hi Definition and DV Camera
Lighting
Sound Recording
Chroma Key Green Screen
Other Interests
Mountain Climbing, Walking, Swimming, Scuba Diving, Cooking – Healthy and Oriental Foods. Reading, Film and Television.
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
Artefact 6 - Evaluation
In the previous artefact I began testing the effectiveness of the different forms and mediums used within teaching and education. For my final artefact I decided to produce a similar style PowerPoint presentation that did the following; teach the student about a selection of topic’s, question the student and then give feedback to them as they are answering the questions. They were then asked to answer some questions concerning the effectiveness of the different methods of learning delivered.
I used video, still imagery, written text, web links and extra links to slide’s containing hints to help aid the student in answering the questions. Also I attempted to produce a marking system within the PowerPoint slides but was unable to find or develop a macro that would support this function.
With all these different methods of learning combined with feedback given to the student as they answer questions I was able to use all aspects of my practical research to further attempt to answer the question at hand.
The test subjects all agreed during a group discussion that, combining not only the video and written methods but also using the other mentioned methods above, was beneficial to completing the task at hand. It was also said that the use of feedback during the session was really helpful. I produced slides so if the user was incorrect in answering the question, it would tell them so but also offering encouragement through giving the student another try at answering correctly or the option in some case’s for a hint.
I find that this final artefact has helped me tremendously in bringing all of my written, read and practical based research together. I believe now that I am fully able to produce and present my conclusions.
I used video, still imagery, written text, web links and extra links to slide’s containing hints to help aid the student in answering the questions. Also I attempted to produce a marking system within the PowerPoint slides but was unable to find or develop a macro that would support this function.
With all these different methods of learning combined with feedback given to the student as they answer questions I was able to use all aspects of my practical research to further attempt to answer the question at hand.
The test subjects all agreed during a group discussion that, combining not only the video and written methods but also using the other mentioned methods above, was beneficial to completing the task at hand. It was also said that the use of feedback during the session was really helpful. I produced slides so if the user was incorrect in answering the question, it would tell them so but also offering encouragement through giving the student another try at answering correctly or the option in some case’s for a hint.
I find that this final artefact has helped me tremendously in bringing all of my written, read and practical based research together. I believe now that I am fully able to produce and present my conclusions.
Artefact 5 - Effectivness Questions
Effectiveness Questions
Please Circle One Answer From Each Question
1. How effective did you find the written text towards teaching you about the Beijing Games?
(1 – Not Very effective, 5 - Very Effective)
1 2 3 4 5
RESULTS
0 0 1 3 1
2. How effective did you find the images and written description combined towards teaching you about the Beijing Games?
(1 – Not Very effective, 5 - Very Effective)
1 2 3 4 5
RESULTS
0 0 2 1 2
3. How effective did you find the Video link towards teaching you about the Beijing Games?
(1 – Not Very effective, 5 - Very Effective)
1 2 3 4 5
RESULTS
0 0 0 3 2
4. How effective did you find the Audio link towards teaching you about the Beijing Games?
(1 – Not Very effective, 5 - Very Effective)
1 2 3 4 5
RESULTS
0 2 2 1 0
5. How effective did you find the web link provided towards teaching you about the Beijing Games?
(1 – Not Very effective, 5 - Very Effective)
1 2 3 4 5
RESULTS
0 1 1 1 2
6. If you had the choice of two methods of learning to use what would they be?
Please Circle Two From The List Below
Video on Subject 3
Audio on Subject 1
Written Document on Subject 4
Verbal Instruction 1
Web Based Learning 1
7. Was the PowerPoint lesson and written questions enjoyable/useful/any good?
Yes 5 No 0
8. Would the whole process be better if it was all in one package? Ie: Teach, Questions, Feedback etc
Yes 5 No 0
9. For harder questions including both open and closed questions would it be helpful if the PowerPoint lesson contained “Hint” links that would navigate to either other slides in the presentation or external pages either on the web or on the computer?
Yes 5 No 0
Please Circle One Answer From Each Question
1. How effective did you find the written text towards teaching you about the Beijing Games?
(1 – Not Very effective, 5 - Very Effective)
1 2 3 4 5
RESULTS
0 0 1 3 1
2. How effective did you find the images and written description combined towards teaching you about the Beijing Games?
(1 – Not Very effective, 5 - Very Effective)
1 2 3 4 5
RESULTS
0 0 2 1 2
3. How effective did you find the Video link towards teaching you about the Beijing Games?
(1 – Not Very effective, 5 - Very Effective)
1 2 3 4 5
RESULTS
0 0 0 3 2
4. How effective did you find the Audio link towards teaching you about the Beijing Games?
(1 – Not Very effective, 5 - Very Effective)
1 2 3 4 5
RESULTS
0 2 2 1 0
5. How effective did you find the web link provided towards teaching you about the Beijing Games?
(1 – Not Very effective, 5 - Very Effective)
1 2 3 4 5
RESULTS
0 1 1 1 2
6. If you had the choice of two methods of learning to use what would they be?
Please Circle Two From The List Below
Video on Subject 3
Audio on Subject 1
Written Document on Subject 4
Verbal Instruction 1
Web Based Learning 1
7. Was the PowerPoint lesson and written questions enjoyable/useful/any good?
Yes 5 No 0
8. Would the whole process be better if it was all in one package? Ie: Teach, Questions, Feedback etc
Yes 5 No 0
9. For harder questions including both open and closed questions would it be helpful if the PowerPoint lesson contained “Hint” links that would navigate to either other slides in the presentation or external pages either on the web or on the computer?
Yes 5 No 0
Artefact 5 - Evaluation
After producing a series of artefacts that were based on different methods of instruction such as the form’s that they were delivered and the mediums they were delivered on I wanted to move onto the effectiveness of these different methods.
I produced a series of PowerPoint slides that taught the users about the Olympics being held in China through different mediums such as video, text, audio, still images and web links.
Once they had digested the information I had given them, I asked them to answer some questions about the topic they had just learnt about. This method of testing was in the form of a written test containing closed multiple-choice questions. I then marked the papers to see how well they had digested the information I had given them.
I decided that I also needed to produce a questionnaire for the users to answer concerning the effectiveness of the methods and the information that they were given.
The results I gained from this were that the written and video instruction together was most effective. Written documents alongside the newer methods of teaching such as video clips and online presence helped tremendously towards teaching and learning. It was also decided that any visual forms of learning such as the images and video that were used were more effective as it put associations in their minds, which essentially allowed them to remember the information they were being given (ie: the V shaped supports on the velodrome symbolising victory).
As mentioned in previous artefacts the results were very wide spread as some of the test subjects believed that it all depended on how you best learn and take in information. All the participants agreed that the option of having a written document alongside other forms of learning had its uses but the other mediums were preferred as that was what they were now used to.
I am now going to produce a similar artefact except this time it would contain items such as feedback, hint pages and a PowerPoint test instead of the printed test paper.
I produced a series of PowerPoint slides that taught the users about the Olympics being held in China through different mediums such as video, text, audio, still images and web links.
Once they had digested the information I had given them, I asked them to answer some questions about the topic they had just learnt about. This method of testing was in the form of a written test containing closed multiple-choice questions. I then marked the papers to see how well they had digested the information I had given them.
I decided that I also needed to produce a questionnaire for the users to answer concerning the effectiveness of the methods and the information that they were given.
The results I gained from this were that the written and video instruction together was most effective. Written documents alongside the newer methods of teaching such as video clips and online presence helped tremendously towards teaching and learning. It was also decided that any visual forms of learning such as the images and video that were used were more effective as it put associations in their minds, which essentially allowed them to remember the information they were being given (ie: the V shaped supports on the velodrome symbolising victory).
As mentioned in previous artefacts the results were very wide spread as some of the test subjects believed that it all depended on how you best learn and take in information. All the participants agreed that the option of having a written document alongside other forms of learning had its uses but the other mediums were preferred as that was what they were now used to.
I am now going to produce a similar artefact except this time it would contain items such as feedback, hint pages and a PowerPoint test instead of the printed test paper.
Artefact 4 - Evaluation
My main concerns after gathering my results from the third artefact was that the mediums used were restricting the users learning. The videos were not of the highest quality and sometimes could not be fully recognised this I believe was because of the formats that they were in. I think that if they were better quality that the learning experience would be better and the medium would be more successful as a learning tool.
So I decided to use the same mediums again but alter the tutorials so instead of using video tutorials, I would just use still images with a voice over. Through this I would be able to include higher quality images and with the added voice over. The mediums I believe would then become suitable for learning.
I produced the tutorial then asked a group of 4 people all with different levels of knowledge concerning video editing to look at not only this new tutorial but also all the tutorials and mediums I had used previously.
There was mixed debate on what was believed to be the best medium used for instruction and also the best format (.avi, .mp4, .pda etc….). But we all decided that the video tutorials via the Internet were really useful as were the pod casts I produced. In all cases all of the mediums or formats were useful and successful when accompanied with a written guide sheet.
In the previous artefact evaluation I mentioned that the advanced users were more technologically aware and because of this it aided in their learning when learning via the smaller mediums. After the discussion and use of all the different mediums and formats the subjects believed that it didn’t matter how aware the user was of the technology they were using. It was more to do with the quality of the tutorials and mediums used for teaching.
The following 2 artefacts now are going to specifically look at the effectiveness of the artefacts.
So I decided to use the same mediums again but alter the tutorials so instead of using video tutorials, I would just use still images with a voice over. Through this I would be able to include higher quality images and with the added voice over. The mediums I believe would then become suitable for learning.
I produced the tutorial then asked a group of 4 people all with different levels of knowledge concerning video editing to look at not only this new tutorial but also all the tutorials and mediums I had used previously.
There was mixed debate on what was believed to be the best medium used for instruction and also the best format (.avi, .mp4, .pda etc….). But we all decided that the video tutorials via the Internet were really useful as were the pod casts I produced. In all cases all of the mediums or formats were useful and successful when accompanied with a written guide sheet.
In the previous artefact evaluation I mentioned that the advanced users were more technologically aware and because of this it aided in their learning when learning via the smaller mediums. After the discussion and use of all the different mediums and formats the subjects believed that it didn’t matter how aware the user was of the technology they were using. It was more to do with the quality of the tutorials and mediums used for teaching.
The following 2 artefacts now are going to specifically look at the effectiveness of the artefacts.
Artefact 3 - Evaluation
For my third artefact I produce video tutorials that would be accessed and used through other known mediums. I had already used video tutorials in an educational setting that were used via a desktop computer. I wanted to produce tutorials for more advanced users that they could use via a handheld device such as an iPod or PDA.
I produced the previous tutorials with a view for them to instruct at the beginner level. These tutorials will be instructing users who have had previous experience with regards to video editing therefore instead of using iMovie I used Final Cut Pro. However I also converted the tutorials from the previous artefact into the formats described below. They were then used on 3 of the 12 previous ‘students’ to see what their opinions were regarding the smaller mediums.
The tutorial for use with Final Cut Pro was produced and I then converted into MP4, AVI and PDA formats. The MP4 version was for use through a classic iPod, the AVI version was loaded onto YouTube for use via the iTouch and the PDA version was loaded onto a HP iPAQ.
Much like the previous artefact I asked 3 people each individually to pick an envelope each containing a different medium. I asked them then to take their chosen medium away then come back 1 hour later to complete the task where I would be able to monitor their progress and ask them questions afterwards.
I asked a further 3 people to do the same except this time I asked them to do the task there and then. I did this for both beginner and advanced levels of knowledge.
With regards to the beginner’s using both sets of mediums they believed that the original methods (Verbal, Written, Video and Audio) were easier to use and more efficient than the mediums used for this artefact. These were also similar conclusions taken from the advanced user’s feedback. However the people who had more knowledge of video editing were also in a sense more technologically aware than the people who had no previous experience of editing and their opinion was that these new mediums were almost just as effective. The only difference was the resolution and size of the video produced minor annoyances.
I produced the previous tutorials with a view for them to instruct at the beginner level. These tutorials will be instructing users who have had previous experience with regards to video editing therefore instead of using iMovie I used Final Cut Pro. However I also converted the tutorials from the previous artefact into the formats described below. They were then used on 3 of the 12 previous ‘students’ to see what their opinions were regarding the smaller mediums.
The tutorial for use with Final Cut Pro was produced and I then converted into MP4, AVI and PDA formats. The MP4 version was for use through a classic iPod, the AVI version was loaded onto YouTube for use via the iTouch and the PDA version was loaded onto a HP iPAQ.
Much like the previous artefact I asked 3 people each individually to pick an envelope each containing a different medium. I asked them then to take their chosen medium away then come back 1 hour later to complete the task where I would be able to monitor their progress and ask them questions afterwards.
I asked a further 3 people to do the same except this time I asked them to do the task there and then. I did this for both beginner and advanced levels of knowledge.
With regards to the beginner’s using both sets of mediums they believed that the original methods (Verbal, Written, Video and Audio) were easier to use and more efficient than the mediums used for this artefact. These were also similar conclusions taken from the advanced user’s feedback. However the people who had more knowledge of video editing were also in a sense more technologically aware than the people who had no previous experience of editing and their opinion was that these new mediums were almost just as effective. The only difference was the resolution and size of the video produced minor annoyances.
Artefact 2 - Evaluation
This artefact was very helpful in getting much ground covered when it came to answering the question at hand. The practical element of the artefact allowed me to use different mediums to complete the same task.
I asked 12 people to aid me in this experiment. I wanted each of them to complete a task taught via different mediums, each resulting in the same finished product.
The task was to take 4 video clips and edit them together with transitions and titles concluding with the export of the finished film.
The different methods of instruction were as follows:
• Verbal Instruction – I instructed the test subjects verbally how to complete the task. I was also there to aid them in the completion of the task if at any point they required my help.
• Written Instruction – I gave the test subjects a step by step written document outlining everything that the test subject needed to do. I also included some screen shots.
• Video Tutorial – I produced a video tutorial with no audio instruction. This visually showed the test subject how to complete the task. They had the option of replaying the video clips if at any point they were moving to fast.
• Audio Instruction – I produced a series of audio clips, which allowed the user to have similar instruction as the verbal instruction but this time with no visual aid or help.
I asked 4 people each individually to pick an envelope each containing a different medium. I asked them to take the form of instruction away with them and come back 2 days later to complete the task where I would be able to monitor their progress and ask them questions afterwards.
I asked a further 4 people to do the same except this time I asked them to do the task there and then.
The remaining 4 people were asked to complete the task twice but using 2 different mediums to aid them in the completion of the task.
After my test subjects had completed the task the results I gathered were concerning the time taken to complete the task at hand and also the users comments which were concerning the difficulty levels, their interaction with each other such as discussions had outlining what they believed to be the better medium, any problems that occurred and the individuals preferred method.
The results were very wide spread as some of the test subjects believed that it all depended on how you best learn and take in information. Which was great as this a big part of my question. All the participants agreed that the written document had it’s uses but the other mediums were preferred as that was what they were now used to.
I asked 12 people to aid me in this experiment. I wanted each of them to complete a task taught via different mediums, each resulting in the same finished product.
The task was to take 4 video clips and edit them together with transitions and titles concluding with the export of the finished film.
The different methods of instruction were as follows:
• Verbal Instruction – I instructed the test subjects verbally how to complete the task. I was also there to aid them in the completion of the task if at any point they required my help.
• Written Instruction – I gave the test subjects a step by step written document outlining everything that the test subject needed to do. I also included some screen shots.
• Video Tutorial – I produced a video tutorial with no audio instruction. This visually showed the test subject how to complete the task. They had the option of replaying the video clips if at any point they were moving to fast.
• Audio Instruction – I produced a series of audio clips, which allowed the user to have similar instruction as the verbal instruction but this time with no visual aid or help.
I asked 4 people each individually to pick an envelope each containing a different medium. I asked them to take the form of instruction away with them and come back 2 days later to complete the task where I would be able to monitor their progress and ask them questions afterwards.
I asked a further 4 people to do the same except this time I asked them to do the task there and then.
The remaining 4 people were asked to complete the task twice but using 2 different mediums to aid them in the completion of the task.
After my test subjects had completed the task the results I gathered were concerning the time taken to complete the task at hand and also the users comments which were concerning the difficulty levels, their interaction with each other such as discussions had outlining what they believed to be the better medium, any problems that occurred and the individuals preferred method.
The results were very wide spread as some of the test subjects believed that it all depended on how you best learn and take in information. Which was great as this a big part of my question. All the participants agreed that the written document had it’s uses but the other mediums were preferred as that was what they were now used to.
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