Unit Title: Identity through culture
Global Context: Personal and Cultural Expressions
Key Concept: Communication is the exchange or transfer of signals, facts, ideas and symbols. It requires a sender, a message and an intended receiver. Communication involves the activity of conveying information or meaning. Effective communication requires a common 'language' (which may be written, spoken or non-verbal).
AK Strand: Culture is the characteristics and knowledge of a particular group of people, encompassing language, religion, cuisine, social habits, music and arts.
Culture encompasses religion, food, what we wear, how we wear it, our language, marriage, music, what we believe is right or wrong, how we sit at the table, how we greet visitors, how we behave with loved ones, and a million other things.
Here you are presented with a design situation, from which you identify a problem that needs to be solved. You will then analyze the need for a solution and conduct an inquiry into the nature of the problem.
Individuals and communities have a tendency to share aspects of their culture such as the clothing, food, housing, language, religion, traditional practices, among others. Many cultures are quickly fading away because of the changing times and many people nowadays are not aware of their cultures at all. Majority of the ways used to share/create awareness about cultures such as the word of mouth, posters, artefacts etc. are now obsolete and cannot be effective in the current times. However, sharing about culture can now be accomplished by introducing new or existing information technology solutions. Digital solutions can transform how we express ourselves or create awareness about different cultures.
Your task is to identify a member or members of the community who have an interest in creating awareness of their culture using an IT based solution (Video). The problem should be clearly explained and the client's current way of addressing the situation described.
Your challenge for this unit is to produce ePortfolio that follows the design cycle to develop an IT solution (video) which shares aspects of culture with others.
Begin the task with an introduction by highlighting the Global Context, Key Concept and relating it to the Unit Title.
You should explicitly state the client or the target audience and mention some brief background information about the client/target audience.
Explain the problem facing the client/target audience; discuss the problem in detail, the effects of the problem (on the client/target audience), how long (the problem) has persisted, and explain/demonstrate how the client is in a dire need for a solution. Make sure to give examples of challenges arising from the problem. -(the best way to explain the effects of a problem is by giving examples and quoting relevant statistics to support your assertions regarding the problem where possible).
Make sure you have explained in detail the reasons why the problem should be addressed while quoting relevant statistics or facts to support your argument.
To properly explain the client's/target audience problem/need, make sure you have captured the following questions in your description of the problem ( What is the nature (type/features) of the problem?, Who is it a problem for?, Where is the problem occurring?, What is the cause of the problem?, What effect is the problem having on the client/target audience?).
Explain/justify why an IT solution (video) is better placed to solve/address the problem (by discussing the current way the client/target audience uses to solve or address the same problem and weaknesses/failures/limitations of the current way of addressing the problem ).
Mention the benefits the client shall obtain if the above problem is solved (N/B You can also address this, in the design brief if the 1 page limit for strand 1 is not enough to do so).
Your strand 1 must have a minimum of 1 in-text citation (this is for the sources you consulted for your research).
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Construct a detailed research plan which identifies and prioritizes the primary and secondary research/resources needed to develop the solution to the problem. Show the what you need to research, how you will gather the info;(primary/secondary) and when the task will be completed (research question). Your research question should focus on the problem in question (client's or Target's audience problem) and the IT solution(video) that could address the problem.
Independently generate at least 8 detailed SMART and appropriate research questions, which are clearly prioritized ( Must be in a logical order) and identified as the specific type of primary (whether interview, questionnaire, observation etc.) and secondary sources (such as books, websites, surveys etc.) , to help develop the solution focused on client, time, resources, function, technical skills, aesthetics and others.
Follow the research plan to collect your detailed information from primary/secondary sources.
Click on the link below to see the template of a research plan.
Analyze at least 3 different published videos that have been created to solve a similar problem related to the client or target audience problem you are addressing. Analyze these videos by explaining their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities for improvements and threats (SWOT Analysis).
Describe the inspirations obtained from the analysis of each or all of the products analyzed using SWOT analysis and its usefullness to the product you intend to create to address the client's/target audience problem.
Then analyze at least two software that can be used to create the IT solution (Video) for example Openshot Video editor, IMovie, Windows Movie Maker, Animoto and others. Do this analysis by explaining the strengths and weaknesses of the two different software used to create a video.
State the chosen software for the creation of the IT solution (the video) from the various software you have analyzed and justify why that particular software was chosen.
Make sure to provide in text citations in APA format for the each of the existing products and each of the software analyzed.
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In this section you are expected to come up with a design brief that summarizes the analysis of your research and then links it to the client/target audience problem/need.
Start the design brief by summarizing in a brief your client's/target audience problem and the justification; the reason why your client or target audience problem should be addressed.
Then summarize the findings obtained from your primary and secondary research (strand 2 and strand 3), only include only the information obtained from your research that is relevant towards addressing your client's /target audience problem and describe how the information obtained is beneficial towards addressing your client's/target audience problem).
Summarize the findings from Strand 2: Research plan in a prose/paragraph format mentioning only relevant information that relates to the client's or target audience problem. (Hint: Summarize the answers to your research questions in a prose/paragraph form and describe how the information obtained is beneficial towards addressing your client's/target audience problem).
State the product (IT solution) that you shall create to address your client's/target audience problem.
Summarize what you learned from SWOT analysis done that will be helpful to you towards the creation of the chosen solution.
Conclude the design brief by:-
Explaining in a separate paragraph in detail the key features of the product (IT solution) that you will create to solve the client's/ target audience problem and
explain how those key features of the product you intend to create shall help solve/address the client's /target audience problem.
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Your work must have bibliography and in text citations. Failure to do so will earn you less marks and it might be considered as academic dishonesty because you have done quite a lot of research.
Put bibliography/references such as interviews, websites and others that you consulted for your work at the end (on its own page). Use APA citation style for your bibliography/references.
The references/sources must be placed on its own page in an alphabetical order.
Any work that is submitted without accompanying bibliography/reference and in text citations will be penalized much. The student who submits such work without any bibliography or reference section cannot get more than 6 regardless of the quality of work done.
Your work must have appendices after bibliography. Appendices can include copies or screenshots of the questionnaires/interview questions and responses or documents that you used to conduct your research/inquiry into the problem.
N/B: These documents act as an evidence that you really did the research and will guard you against an examiner awarding lower marks/grades for your work.
Click on the link below to see an example of Appendices for Criterion A.