In both my methods Music and Drama multimedia ICT is not only widely used but also an amazing toll that has transformed the subjects. Yes, for a long time multimedia, videos for example, have been a part of well education in general but never at the simple push of button e.g. youtube. Being able to search for pretty much anything is a remarkable progression especially in the way in which we use videos in the classroom.
A great experience I had in my music classroom this semester was using a video I found from the Cannes Film Festival. I was actually looking for a clip for my drama class and stumbled across the C.F.F website. After sifting through numerous clips, I came across "Oktapodi." A french computer-animated short film that originated as a Graduate Student Project from Gobelins L’Ecole de L’Image.
The short is about a pair of love struck octopuses who through a series of comical events are separated and find each other. Oktapodi was well received, winning a number of awards, as well as an Oscar nomination for Best Short Film (Animated) for the 81st Academy Awards.
Not only is it adorably funny but the underwater short film set in sunny Greece is entirely sound tracked with no dialogue - essentially it is a silent film. The really fantastic thing about it is the musical score which is perfect stimulus for introducing young students to words and concepts such as "Orchestra" and "Instrumentation" as the students are instantly engaged with the visual part of the clip.
When I played it for a year 7 music class they really were delighted (and it became a slightly contentious issue as all they ever asked to do every lesson was "Watch Oktapodi!!!") however I managed to use this to my advantage by using it as a bargaining chip ala Skinner (and much to his critics horror) if the students focused during the lesson.
The great thing about the video is it can be used across all year levels, for VCE as a way of identifying style and technique as well as stimulus for composition work. Or simply as a "time-taker-uperer" if you need to kill 5 minutes at the end of a lesson.
Check it out!
http://vimeo.com/6102250
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