projects

Topic Proposal

For this assignment, you will create a short slide deck to introduce yourself and propose the topic, issue, or problem you want to focus on for your projects this quarter. Choose something you are genuinely curious or passionate about. While this assignment is ungraded, your proposal serves as the roadmap for your upcoming assignments.

Note: You can change your topic later, but doing so will require re-doing the Padlet assignment and other completed work related to your initial choice. Put in the thought now to save time later.

Your slide deck should include a minimum of four slides addressing the following:

  • Slide 1: Meet the Researcher
    • Include a photo of yourself and a brief introductory greeting. Tell us a little bit about who you are as you begin this project.
  • Slide 2: The “What” and “Why”
    • The Topic: Clearly state the issue or problem you wish to focus on.
    • The Interest: Why are you interested in this topic? What draws you to this specific issue?
  • Slide 3: Audience and Purpose
    • Using the Elements of Rhetorical Situations resource as a guide, address:
      • Target Audience: Who are you trying to reach?
      • Communication Goal: What is your purpose? (e.g., to persuade, to inform, to call to action?)
  • Slide 4: The Project Road Map
    • This course involves two major assignments: an Image/Text project and a Video or Social Media project. Briefly describe your preliminary ideas for how this topic might work across these different projects.

You can use Google Slides, PowerPoint, Canva, Gamma, or any other slide deck/presentation program. Save the file as a PDF so that the formatting stays consistent.

Due: Friday 6/26. Upload your PDF to the Final Topic Proposals folder. Include your last name in the file name (e.g., “sorapure_proposal.pdf”).

Padlet Project

Use Padlet to organize and annotate the sources you will draw on throughout this course. Your Padlet should reflect your research process and serve as a living document that grows alongside your projects. The resources you gather should include the formats you’ll be working in. I encourage you to include a mix of sources: academic journals, news articles, relevant YouTube videos, podcasts, data visualizations, or even social media campaigns related to your topic.

Organization

  • Use Padlet’s categories and tags to group, sort, and arrange your sources in a way that makes sense for your topic.
  • Consider organizing by theme, medium, argument, or relevance to specific projects.

Annotation

  • For each source, include a direct link and a note that addresses one or more of these questions:
    • What is the core message of this source?
    • How does this source support your specific argument or project goals?
    • Which of the course projects will this source most likely appear in?

Due Dates

  • Sunday 7/5: Initial Padlet — at least 10 sources
  • Friday 7/31: Final Padlet — at least 30 sources

Image/Text Project + Author’s Note

Using a photoediting program (e.g., Photopea, Photoshop), create a high-quality edited image with text that communicates a message about your topic to a specific audience.

  • Apply at least two techniques from class (e.g., layer blending, filters, adjustments, collage).
  • You may use your own photos or images from a stock site (e.g., Unsplash, Pexels). All sources must be credited in the Author’s Note.

Text

  • Consider using a statistic or short quotation from one of your sources. Keep it brief–just one sentence or phrase.
  • Text should be integrated into the image, not added as a separate element.
  • You can only include one text element.

Image + Text

  • Image and text should not simply repeat each other. Rather, you should aim to create meaning through contrast, juxtaposition, incongruity, or other strategies discussed in class.

Author’s Note: Describe your audience and purpose and explain how the key choices you made are rhetorically effective, drawing on relevant course concepts and readings. If you used AI to help you create the image or write/edit the Author’s Note, please indicate which AI tool(s) you used and how you used them.

Due Dates

Video Project or Social Media Project + Author’s Note

In this project, you have a choice of either creating a longer (3-5 minute) video or a set of social media texts (Instagram posts–single image, carousel, Reels–or TikTok videos). In both cases, you should identify a target audience and a primary communication goal.

For the video, the objective is to create an engaging and thought-provoking video that effectively communicates your message to a specific audience. Your video should be snappy, engaging, and high quality. Consider scripting and storyboarding your video before moving on to production.

For the social media set, begin by developing a strong core message you want your texts to communicate. Research real social campaigns for inspiration. Build your narrative using persuasive language, rhetorical techniques, and a compelling hook to grab attention. There should be some visual continuity (colors, font, etc.) across the different items.

In addition to your video or social media set, please include an Author’s Note that orients us to your creative intentions and goals. In your note, reflect on the choices you made in your composition(s). Be sure to draw from and cite any relevant class or text concepts that informed your decisions. If you used AI to help you create the video or write/edit the Author’s Note, please indicate which AI tool(s) you used and how you used them.

Resources and ideas to help you get started:

  • Consider using free or affordable video editing software like iMovie, Adobe Premiere Rush, or DaVinci Resolve for editing and creating your Video.
  • Visit online platforms like Vimeo or YouTube for inspiration and to study effective video storytelling techniques.
  • Explore websites like Freesound.org for royalty-free music and sound effects, or use Suno.com to generate your own music.

Portfolio Website

In Wix (or another website platform of your choice), create a portfolio that presents the projects you created in this course, along with brief explanations of each project. These explanations should be adapted from your author’s notes, not taken word-for-word, since your author’s notes were written for a different target audience (me).

Provide an overview of the topic for these projects and your reasons for choosing this topic. Also indicate the software, programs, and other resources you used to create the project.

Choose between these two potential target audiences and goals for your website:

  1. future employers for whom your multimedia composing skills and/or knowledge of the topic will be relevant;
  2. a specific group of people interested in your topic.

Add at least one piece of new content that is appropriate for your target audience. For instance, for an audience of future employers you can include a link to your resume and/or any other relevant work that you’ve done in other courses or jobs. For an audience of people interested in the topic, you can include a welcome/introduction page and a list of additional resources for them to read.

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