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| Dr. Brian Mendonca recording an e-module. |
Last weekend I was steeped in literary texts preparing academic e-content for undergraduate students. The initiative was called for since - with the June reopening of college deferred due to COVID - 30% of course content needed to be uploaded before any instruction could take place. This would be called blended learning.
Teachers were asked to prepare power-point presentations to help students to get the drift of the text. The task seemed daunting since I had agreed to do 4 modules at first - but they swelled to 7. The brief was to prepare 10 minutes of content which would be recorded for the benefit of students offering that paper.
How many slides would you need for 10 minutes? I chanced it with an average of 14 for each module. After Day 1 (There were 2 days of recording) there was greater emphasis on a slide ratio of 16:9 for the PPT. 16:9 is landscape mode and actually clips off a few lines in the default 4:3 slide ratio. To opt for 16:9 in the PPT mode go to DESIGN - PAGE SET-UP - ON SCREEN SHOW, scroll down and select 16:9.
Owing to copyright issues I did not use any images. It was black and white all the way, as that is easier for the viewer to read. I stayed with the primary source and tried not to crowd my slides. The general path I followed was Context -- Text -- Subtext.
In actual recording I realized that the PPT is only the proverbial fig leaf. You usually ad lib as you go along. Looking at the slide can be self-defeating since you are racing against time. Happily, by the time you are on camera you are familiar with the content. I focussed on making the students feel comfortable with the topic of the module.
On Day 1 I chose the Indian look with a long-sleeved blue cotton kurta from Mangalore. On Day 2 I opened with a cotton kurta from FabIndia. For the afternoon session I reserved a blood-red long-sleeved shirt considering I was doing Romeo and Juliet. Since these modules are to be hosted on a YouTube platform I wanted the appeal to be pan-Indian.
Over two days I presented the following modules:
Day 1 - Introduction to Literature (Morning/Afternoon)
Module 1: Elegy, Ode, Ballad (Studio 1)
Module 2: 'On my first son' by Ben Jonson (Studio 2)
Module 3: 'Solitary Reaper' by William Wordsworth (Studio 2)
Day 2: Travel Writing (Morning)
Module 1: Ibn Battuta, 'The Court of Muhammad bin Tughlaq (Studio 3)
Module 2: Che Guevara, Motorcycle Diaries: Notes on a Latin American Journey (Studio 3)
Day 2: Literature and Cinema (Evening)
Module 1: Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet (Studio 4)
Module 2: Franco Zeffirelli Romeo and Juliet (Studio 4)
Working in various studios gave me the experience of different recording situations. Some of the technical crew went out of their way to make you feel comfortable; others stuck to the plot. In the first studio I used the WACOM tablet. WACOM is a Japanese computer accessory with a digital pen. This was my first experience with this technology and I clean forgot to use the pen to highlight the words on the slides on the PPT to sync it with my explanation.
In Studio 2 I had to look straight ahead of me where my PPT slides were projected on a screen. It also had a lot of ambient noise. Studio 3 was the biggest (in pic) and I felt intimidated with so many people in the room. Studio 4 had good energy. In a marked departure from the others, here the camera crew started the recording and disappeared, leaving only the camera and me for the tete-a-tete.
Presenting the e-modules confronted me with how little I know on the respective modules. There was a vast amount of literature that one could benefit from. At the end of the day I did it, and was glad for the opportunity. The experience has broadened my horizon of learning. I am more self-assured in my teaching practice.
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Pix of Brian Mendonca doing a recording at a studio at Goa University campus, Goa on 4th August 2020.
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