INTERNATIONAL MARKETING VIDEOCONFERENCING PROJECT TEMPLATE
Project Title
¡Compre americano! ~ Teenage Advertising Language
Contact Person/s
Class/Grade levels Timeline
Purpose
Lauren King, Spanish Christopher Lawlor, Business, Lynne Burke, Library/Media CRANSTON WEST HIGH SCHOOL, 80 Metropolitan Avenue, Cranston, RI 02920 (USA), Tel.: 401.785.8049 http://cpsed.net/chsw/index.htm Spanish 4 and Business Management (grades 11 or 12) Spring Semester: 1/29/03-5/23/03 (There is a 2-week recess, one in Feb. and one in April.) Traditionally, our role as a teacher has been, to a large extent, delivering content. Most of the time, reality has been organized into paragraphs, pages, chapters, books. With “Compre americano”, of course, the questions are many and the project is being written as it unfolds. The data produced by students varies and is enriched from week to week, making the process of interpretation and analysis itself the focus of the class. We believe that cultural literacy can not be reduced to the idea of a product or list of items, but must be seen as an ongoing dynamic process of negotiating meaning and understanding differences of perspective. Furthermore, cultural literacy needs to be grounded in an understanding of embedded cultural concepts, customs, beliefs, attitudes, and ways of interacting and looking at the world.
Lauren King, lking@cpsed.net, Cranston West High School
Project Overview
Goals
A Web-based, cross-cultural, curricular initiative, “Compre americano” is designed to develop Business and Spanish language students' understanding of foreign cultural attitudes, concepts, beliefs, and ways of interacting and looking at the business world. Our focus will be on the pedagogy of electronic media (Inspiration software, syncronous communication via email and listserv, videotaping) with particular emphasis on the ways in which the Web can be used to reveal those invisible aspects of a foreign culture, thereby giving a voice to the elusive silent language in advertising. This will empower students to construct their own approach to cross-cultural literacy. We examine these new areas of cultural knowledge which the Web now renders accessible and attempt to redefine the meaning of “world language teaching" in the new world of networked communication. We hope to conduct two (2) videoconferences with the Spanish school. Also, videoconferencing will be conducted with North Providence High School (Patricia King’s Business class) who are working on a similar market research project. The purpose will be to share ideas, community business resources and practice videoconferencing. To provide authenticity [real talk, attitudes, opinions] about teen culture in both America and Spain; To be acquainted with teens abroad; To enhance one’s marketability with a cutting edge understanding of the international business world; To be open and understand a cross cultural viewpoint of another community; To have student to student accountability; To prepare oneself for future editing and presentation skills; To market an American product that Spanish teens will use.
Lauren King, lking@cpsed.net, Cranston West High School
Standards
World Language (9-12) The language student will learn~ St. 1: Communication- Demonstrate skills for communicating in an international pluralistic business environment, via email, class conferences, Socratic Seminars and videoconferencing. St. 2: Cultures- Gain knowledge and understanding of the relationship between language and culture by exploring the business world of another culture and the external events and forces which affect business; Recognize the social, religious, and political influences of both cultures. St. 3: Connections- Further one’s knowledge of the area of international business through teamwork and demonstrating the ability to work with others in a diverse and global environment; acquire information and perspectives that are available only through the Spanish culture; Reinforce knowledge about the role of Spain in the world of international relations, the UN and in the global economy. St. 4: Comparisons- Develop insight into the different patterns of communication among Spanish teens and American teens; compare and contrast teen culture and issues in America and in Spain. St. 5: Communities- Translate, speak and interpret Spanish in a pluralistic society; demonstrate leadership skills by working with others; learn how to prioritize work to fulfill responsibilities, meet deadlines, and to utilize negotiation skills. Other Standards addressed: National Business Education ISTE (Technology) Applied Learning Information Literacy
Lauren King, lking@cpsed.net, Cranston West High School
Tasks
The Forums to discuss research
All throughout the project, students work both on their own, outside the classroom, and as a group in class. Outside the classroom, they fill out questionnaires, ask and answer specific questions on the forum, email their teen partners abroad, read their counterparts' comments, select and analyze answers, record their analyses on their Learning Log. Students will be able to dialogue in forums called, “Socratic Seminars”, enabling them to speak in the target language about their analyses and interweave both the facts and cultural pieces of the project. During the research days in the media center, student directors summarize the discoveries made that day in class and post them on the videoconferencing listserv. Class discussions are a very important part of the process. They allow students to share (in the target language) their observations with each other, to confront their findings with those of the other students in the class. This sharing of information also allows students to discover things they had not noticed individually, for the simple reason that they had not analyzed every single situation. Classroom interaction therefore allows them to discover emerging patterns across several reactions or even across all journals and to find links between cultural reactions. Students are thus positioned to collaboratively create a broader picture of the target culture teen community. Class discussions (always in the target language) also allow contradictions to emerge, and these contradictions motivate students to work toward solutions. The process of discovery will begin when students analyze materials on their own. It will continue when they share their observations during class discussions, and extend yet again through the forums in which the Business and Spanish students share their perspectives with each other. We have found that these forums are particularly apt at taking students a step further in their quest for a deeper understanding. We will teach students to use the “Big Six Skills Approach to Information Problem Solving”. Through real world
Lauren King, lking@cpsed.net, Cranston West High School
Assessment
Evaluation/Student Reflection Resources
Testimonial
questioning, students will: ask for clarification and query each other (and the Spanish teens) about the specific meanings of Spanish words and synthesize their market research, discovering how to market a product to their Spanish partners. (authenticity) Self-, peer- and teacher assessment A “Collaboration Rubric” will be used weekly for both self- and peer-assessments. A “Presentation Rubric” will be used to evaluate student presentations at the videoconference. Learning logs (journals) will be maintained on a weekly basis in order that students record questions, reflections and can begin the synthesis stage of information problem solving. Pre-reading, and essay writing will be the focus for each conference. Journal reflections (learning logs); Weekly summaries posted to the listserv; Questions posted to the listserv. Bryant College, ITDN (International Trade Data Network Database), Search Engines (google, yahoo, askjeeves, northernlight), business journals (Business Week, Wall Street Journal), Books on the country, Spain, and web sites, The Spanish Stock Exchange, business professionals in the field; Spanish teens at a high school in Madrid, Spain, local advertising consultants from Rhode Island businesses, Business teen peers from North Providence High School (Mrs. Patricia King’s class) Not being able to videoconference with Spain had a huge impact on the students. Why is videoconferencing a valued part of the exchange? Students never experienced a live interactive email exchange with the Spanish subjects abroad. Furthermore, we did not consult local bilingual business professionals (interviews) who may have been able to shed light on our product’s impact in the Spanish culture. View the website from last year’s in-house presentation of CHILLZ lemonade
Lauren King, lking@cpsed.net, Cranston West High School
Lauren King, lking@cpsed.net, Cranston West High School