Mobilizing Faculty into the Future: Using Online Technology as Teaching Tools

6. The photo that received the most “likes” each week would then be published in the local newspaper (The Black
Hills Pioneer), the BHSU web site, and BHSUmedia.com
Methodology 3 – Practical Issues:
1. A problem that I encountered was that an Instagram account must originally be setup using a smartphone or tablet.
Once setup it can be accessed on any computer. I find it hard to believe, but not all students have smartphones;
therefore, a few had difficulties establishing an account on Instagram.
2. Not all students would participate
3. Even after discussing proper critique etiquette, many students would still post ineffective comments such as, “I
love this!”
4. I had one student whose photography was excellent, yet he has a somewhat overbearing personality. Unfortunately,
he never received many “likes” on his images, even though I sometimes felt that his were the most successful. I
cannot help but wonder if some students were voting on personality as well as the photograph itself
Methodology 4 – Effectiveness:
I found that having the class use social media to expand upon the critiquing process was an epic failure. They simply
did not utilize it to critique each other’s work. When asked why the primary reasons were:
1. They felt no reason to reiterate what had already been discussed in the classroom critique
2. It is easier to talk about a photograph than to write about it
Methodology 5 – Disadvantages:
I do not believe that the choice of media resource was the issue. I had attempted the same project the previous semester
using Facebook and had similar results.
Additional Information:
While using social media to expand upon the critique process was a failure, I was pleasantly surprised that the use of
social media did appear to have a profound impact upon the students and the class as a whole. By allowing the students
to vote (like) on the photographs that they felt were the most successful each week, it appeared to encourage
them to create images to the very best of their abilities. This was, without a doubt, the most competitive class that
I have ever taught. The individual students strove to outdo their fellow students weekly in order to have their photograph
considered as the most successful of the week and to have it published. Healthy competition is a driving force,
as was witnessed with this project.
While the research failed for my original intended purpose, I feel that overall it was success. Through the research
I discovered a tool that appears to motivate the students to try and do better each week. As artists, recognition by
your peers is essential to self-confidence and self-esteem. The social media platform appeared to help foster those
aspects.
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