Increasing Student Learning Through Multimedia Projects

by Michael Simkins, Karen Cole, Fern Tavalin and Barbara Means

Chapter 1. What Is Project-Based Multimedia Learning?

Entering Mrs. Baxter's classroom, you first notice that every child is completely engrossed. Second, you
notice the cacophony of voices, rising and falling in intense, animated discussions among small groups of
3rd graders.
You look for the teacher—she isn't conveniently located at the front of the room. Finally, you see her
down among a group of students. You wait for her to notice you as she shows the group how to use the
index of a book to find information about shelter for a tribe of Native Americans.
As you wait, your eyes move from group to group. At the computers, three boys are typing some text they
have composed for their presentations. A group of girls paints a colorful scene of a Native American
village to be scanned into the presentation software later. Another group of boys uses a Venn diagram to
show foods in their own diet, foods in “their” tribe's diet, and foods they have in common. You want to ask
them about their work but can't bear to break their concentration.
Mrs. Baxter notices you and starts toward you, but each group of students she passes stops her to
proudly show off their work or ask her to check something. She finally reaches you and starts to explain
the various activities the children are working on to prepare their multimedia presentations—content
research, art, language arts, math, and technology activities she has designed for the project. You talk for
almost 10 minutes before you notice the most amazing thing of all—the children are all still working, still
engrossed, still animated and focused.

***
Project-based learning is an old and respected educational method. The use of multimedia is a dynamic
new form of communication. The merging of project-based learning and multimedia represents a powerful
teaching strategy that we call “project-based multimedia learning.” This book provides background
information and guidelines for developing and implementing your own units based on this strategy.

Defining Project-Based Multimedia Learning

It's best to start with some definitions. By project-based learning, we mean a teaching method in which
students acquire new knowledge and skills in the course of designing, planning, and producing some
product or performance. By multimedia, we mean the integration of media objects such as text, graphics,
video, animation, and sound to represent and convey information. Thus, our definition is:
Project-based multimedia learning is a method of teaching in which students acquire new knowledge and
skills in the course of designing, planning, and producing a multimedia product.
Your students' multimedia products will be technology-based presentations, such as a computerized slide
show, a Web site, or a video. These presentations will include evidence that your students have mastered
key concepts and processes you need to teach and will be a source of great pride for them and for you.

Dimensions of Project-Based Multimedia Learning

Project-based multimedia learning has seven key dimensions: core curriculum, real-world connection,
extended time frame, student decision making, collaboration, assessment, and multimedia. Like air, fire,
water, and earth, it's possible to have one of these dimensions present without the rest. A strong unit,
however, includes them all. Here is a brief explanation of each.
Core curriculum. At the foundation of any unit of this type is a clear set of learning goals drawn from
whatever curriculum or set of standards is in use. We use the term core to emphasize that project-based
multimedia learning should address the basic knowledge and skills all students are expected to acquire,
and should not simply be an enrichment or extra-credit activity for a special few. Often, these projects
lend themselves well to multidisciplinary or cross-curricular approaches.
Real-world connection. Like the Velveteen Rabbit in Margery Williams's famous story, project-based
multimedia learning strives to be real. It seeks to connect students' work in school with the wider world in
which students live. You may design this feature into a project by means of the content chosen, the types
of activities, the types of products, or in other ways. What is critical is that the students—not only the
teacher—perceive what is real about the project.

“Real life!” Now, that is the key! I spent years waiting for “real life” to begin, not realizing that my childhood
was real life. Children, even young ones, can make a meaningful contribution to the world while they are
learning.
—Technology learning coordinator

Extended time frame. A good project is not a one-shot lesson; it extends over a significant period of
time. The actual length of a project may vary with the age of the students and the nature of the project. It
may be days, weeks, or months. What's important is that students experience a succession of challenges
that culminates in a substantial final product from which they can derive pride and a clear sense of
accomplishment.
Student decision making. In project-based multimedia learning, students have a say. Teachers look
carefully at what decisions have to be made and divide them into “teacher's” and “students'” based on a
clear rationale. For example, a teacher might limit students to a single authoring program to minimize
complications that might arise were students allowed to use any software they chose. And yet she can
also give students considerable leeway in determining what substantive content would be included in their
 projects. Though the teacher is clearly in charge, she tries to enlarge the area for students to make
decisions about the form and content of their final products, as well as the process for producing them.
Collaboration. We define collaboration as working together jointly to accomplish a common intellectual
purpose in a manner superior to what might have been accomplished working alone. Students may work
in pairs or in teams of as many as five or six. Whole-class collaborations are also possible. The goal is for
each student involved to make a separate contribution to the final work and for the whole to be greater
than the sum of the parts. Collaborative projects not only involve many features of typical cooperative
learning strategies but also transcend them in this focus on synergy and the production of a jointly
authored multimedia product.
Assessment. Regardless of the teaching method used, data must be gathered on what students have
learned. When using project-based multimedia learning, teachers face additional assessment challenges
because multimedia products by themselves do not represent a full picture of student learning. Students
are gaining content information, becoming better team members, solving problems, and making choices
about what new information to show in their presentations. We consider assessment to have three
different roles in the project-based multimedia context:
 Activities for developing expectations;
 Activities for improving the media products; and
 Activities for compiling and disseminating evidence of learning.

Multimedia. In multimedia projects, students do not learn simply by “using” multimedia produced by
others; they learn by creating it themselves. The development of such programs as HyperStudio, Kid Pix,
and Netscape Composer has made it possible for students of all ages to become the authors of
multimedia content. As students design and research their projects, instead of gathering only written
notes, they also gather—and create—pictures, video clips, recordings, and other media objects that will
later serve as the raw material for their final product.

I did a project a couple of years ago where students drew on index cards that were later filmed. Although the
students were still excited to be creating animation, those who were not as good at art started losing interest
toward the end. With the use of computers, even an animated stick figure looks pretty good, and students are
given the opportunity of cutting and pasting. The use of computers lowers many of the barriers that limited some
students' ability to creatively express themselves... Boys, girls, high achievers, and low achievers seemed equally
motivated to create a quality product.
—Middle school teacher

An Example
 A teacher we know teaches 7th graders social studies. Her students, as part of their studies of medieval
history, created a multimedia presentation about the Black Plague. She teamed with a teacher in the
science department for the unit. In science, students created animations that simulated how the plague
virus attacks the body. In social studies, they created computer-based presentations looking at the plague
from various perspectives that included 14th century farmers and 21st century scientists. Their
presentations used primary historical sources, as well as literature and current events. The presentation
compared the plague to the AIDS epidemic of today.
The Black Plague project was exemplary in terms of the seven dimensions mentioned earlier. It
addressed state and district standards in social studies, science, and technology. The real-world
connection to the AIDS epidemic made the project relevant for students. The project extended over many
weeks, and students were allowed to choose perspectives and make decisions about the design and
interface for their presentations. Students collaborated in small groups to research and implement each
perspective in the presentation. Assessment was ongoing and multifaceted. Students' presentations
included a variety of media: text, original artwork, scanned images, and animations.

Why Use Project-Based Multimedia Learning?

Teaching methods abound—some sound, some not so sound. If you have been teaching for many years,
you've no doubt seen several new ways of teaching come into vogue. Some have taken hold; many have
faded away; a few have become infamous. In their book Models of Teaching, Bruce Joyce and Marsha
Weil with Emily Calhoun (2000) describe no fewer than 20 ways to teach. Like different health remedies,
all these teaching methods clamor for your attention, and each urges you to include it in your teacher's
medicine cabinet. With so many options, why should you choose project-based multimedia learning?
The answer lies in the concept of “value added.” Project-based multimedia learning can add value to your
teaching. In economics, value is added to a product when it is somehow made better or more useful to
the consumer. Although we don't use the term much in everyday life, we are surrounded by examples.
Our cereal has vitamins that are not part of the basic grains. The bottle of “one step” shampoo in the
shower includes a conditioner. On vacation, we stay at a motel that offers complimentary drinks at happy
hour and a free breakfast in the morning. You already have strategies for teaching your curriculum, so
what “value” do you add when you implement project-based multimedia learning? In their book, Teaching
the New Basic Skills, Richard Murnane and Frank Levy (1996) describe three skill sets students need to
be competitive for today's jobs:
 Hard skills (math, reading, and problem-solving skills mastered at a much higher level than
previously expected of high school graduates);
 Soft skills (for example, the ability to work in a group and to make effective oral and written
presentations); and
 The ability to use a personal computer to carry out routine tasks (for example, word processing,
data management, and creating multimedia presentations).
 In its 1991 report, the Secretary of Labor's Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills (popularly known
as “SCANS”) noted that to find meaningful work, high school graduates need to master a combination
of foundation skills and competencies. Besides typical basic skills, foundation skills include thinking skills,
such as reasoning, making decisions, thinking creatively, and solving problems, as well as personal
qualities such as responsibility and self-management. Required competencies include:
 Identifying, organizing, planning, and allocating time, money, materials, and workers.
 Negotiating, exercising leadership, working with diversity, teaching others new skills, serving
clients and customers, and participating as a team member.
 Selecting technology, applying technology to a task, and maintaining and troubleshooting
technology.
These are exactly the sorts of skills students learn when engaged in project-based
multimedia learning.

I try to have the students think of the project as a real job. They fill out job applications, undergo interviews, and
have real products to be completed within a time structure.
—Technology learning coordinator

Teachers who have implemented project-based multimedia learning over time cite other benefits. It is a
powerful motivator and engages students who might otherwise tune out. Students engaged in the creation
of multimedia projects spend more time on task, even to the point of devoting recess, lunch, and after-
school time to the work. The work they do tends to be more complex. Sharing their final products with
peers, parents, and others affords students an intense sense of pride and accomplishment that rarely
accompanies the completion of a term paper or set of textbook exercises.

Adding Project-Based Multimedia Learning to Your Teaching

Repertoire
Being a teacher is a bit like being a personal trainer. In general, a trainer knows that all clients need a
balanced workout. They need to develop muscular strength, flexibility, and aerobic fitness. They also
need to adhere to a sound, balanced diet. At the same time, each client will have specific needs or
conditions that require accommodation. The workout you design for your client with asthma will be
different from the one you create for your client with arthritis.
Likewise, effective teachers employ various teaching methods to achieve a balanced instructional
program that is also personalized and reflects the needs and interests of individual students. You know
that your students need a balanced diet of academic content and process skills—and workouts that
include learning, practicing, analyzing, reflecting, and assessing. You also know that students vary in their
comfort with these activities and the amount of support they need.
 The amazing transformation I witnessed in my students came with the publishing of the first student work on the
Web. The transformation had to do with the concept of audience. Realizing that their work was posted for the
world to see, the students suddenly became more careful about their research, documentation, and the mechanics
of their writing. The most reluctant proofreaders became voracious proofreaders and insistent editors. I no longer
had to correct their work—they took an active interest in making sure that what was published was accurate and
well written.
—Technology learning coordinator

Project-based multimedia learning is one instructional strategy that you can use in a school year that may
also include non-technical projects, lecture and note-taking, rote practice, writing, and artistic or creative
work. During this part of the year, students may be spending less time on rote practice and the breadth of
material they cover may be smaller. What they will be doing instead includes:
 Honing their planning and organizational skills;
 Learning to present information in compelling ways;
 Synthesizing and analyzing complex content and data;
 Practicing research and technical skills; and
 Learning how academic subject matter applies to the real world.

We worked on the project on and off for much of the year. At the beginning, I would let the students work on the
project one day every week or so. When that day came, students would pump their arms and say, “Yes!” The
students were so into the project that the class just basically ran itself. I would wander the room getting group
updates and be available to help with individual group problems. Students were always asking for more time on
the computers, even 10 minutes here and there. Sometimes students would hang around for hours after school;
when their parents came to pick them up they would have a hard time getting the students to leave.
—Middle school teacher

Further, the motivational character keeps students engaged, giving you the freedom to support individual
students—far better than when every moment of instruction depends on you alone.
Considering giving project-based multimedia learning a try? The next chapters provide specific strategies
—all classroom tested—for making your project a success. We have consolidated the experience of
scores of teachers and teacher leaders who have used project-based multimedia learning. They have
contributed their stories and suggestions so that you can avoid the pitfalls they experienced and more
quickly enjoy the rewards.
Copyright © 2002 by Association for