Drew’s Final Project: “Flip and Tell”

For my final capstone project as a dimensionator, I have created an educational board game titled “Flip and Tell”. In this board game students will learn about the communication concept of self-disclosure and how to apply it to realistic scenarios that

they face on a daily basis. Students will share how they would handle themselves in various scenarios and be judged for the answers by their peers. The hope is that students learn about self-disclosure and its alternatives as well as the moral implications that are associated with their actions.

According to a PowerPoint provided by the communication studies faculty at Fullerton College, self-disclosure is used to help control and maintain relationships that we hold with others. It does this by providing the speaker with the opportunity to share information about themselves in order to further their relationship with others. Though self-disclosure is completely necessary in furthering our relationships between one another, there are moments in which we hesitate to express our true feelings. In these cases there are a variety of different options that one can use as an alternative to open self-disclosure.

The four alternatives that I touch upon in my game are silence, lying, equivocating (making vague statements), and hinting. Each of these various alternatives can be used to avoid awkward situations, but do have some moral implications that one must consider. For example, getting caught in lie may cause more harm to your relationship with a person than simply stating your mind. It’s a constant balancing act in which we all do and this is why I feel it is a concept that would lend itself quite well to a board game.

For this project, I wanted to create a game that brought the aspects of board games that I love, to the classroom. Personally, I feel that games are at their most fun a whenever they cause the players to bond with one another, so in creating my game “Flip and Tell” I wanted to create not just an educational game but a bonding experience for students. With that in mind, I decided to structure my game as more of a card based game that utilizes 3D elements, rather than a more traditional “move to X to win” style of game. From my experiences card based games, when done correctly, feel much more intimate than their counter parts. Your focus is turned to the other players, rather than a bright and colorful game board and pieces. However, I did want to think of a creative way I could incorporate 3D visualizations into the game so I decided to create a custom die and play tokens. These objects were solely created by using the LeoWorld software, and were quite fun to make.

The die I created was customized to have an “M” or“F2F” on each of the faces, representing how the means in which the players would respond in the given scenario. If player rolls an “M” they would then need to base their reaction as if the scenario was happening through a mediated means of communication. When player rolls a “F2F” they then act as if the scenario is happening while face to face with whoever is listed on the card. However, while writing my scenarios I found that certain scenarios seemed to naturally only occur in specific circumstances. So to counter this, I made a few cards with the means of the communication predetermined. If I were to do this again I would make the scenario listed on my cards less specific, and hopefully that would fix this problem.

I am extremely proud of how my tokens turned ended up. I went through three different

styles of tokens before coming up with the final design used in my game. The first two sets of tokens were way too small and too plain for my liking, so I dramatically altered the design in my third trail set. While I loved the overall look of the tokens in my third trial set, but their design made them difficult to 3d print. So, I mixed together all three of my prototype tokens to create the final set used within my game. These five tokens act as the 3D centerpieces for my game, by providing players with an interesting and tangible object to help memorize self-disclosure and its alternatives. Despite the difficulties I faced in creating these object, I’m overall very proud with how they turned out.

Along with the 3D aspects of my game I also created PDFS filled with my various scenario cards, instructions, and scorecards for the game. Since my game relies heavily on the scenario cards, they were the aspect of my game that I put the most effort into creating. In total I created 56 scenario cards to be used in the game. These cards range in topics from the silly, to the serious covering all of the various scenarios that students face. Though I do feel that I should have simply stuck with a single theme in the cards, that way there is a sense of continuity between them. All though it was a challenge creating all of these cards, they were honestly a blast to make and I’m happy with the final product.

It is amazing to me that in just four months time, I have changed from a simple college student who knew nothing about 3D technology to a true dimensinator creating objects in 3D spaces. My hope is that my game will act as an example in how this type of technology can be used in academia. All of the components of the game can be downloaded from our project’s Google Drive Here.

Marcella's Final Project "Accommodation"

The game “Accommodation” makes the communication theory of accommodation into an educational, immersive, action-packed card game. The accommodation theory basically states that communicators may tweak the meanings of words to fit into what they are trying to communicate depending on the context or sentence. Ronald Langacker wrote about this concept in his Foundations of Cognitive Grammar. One way to explain this theory is to give an example. Think of the word run. When you think of the word run there are many broad things that you could be thinking of. You may be thinking of yourself running or someone else running. Now apply the word run to the word dog. You have to accommodate the word run to the word dog by changing the way you think of the word run. You now have to apply the idea of running to a four legged animal. Another instance of accommodation may occur when you add an adverb to the equation such as the word slowly. You then have to accommodate the words run and dog to slowly. The game “Accommodation” will help students in a classroom setting to learn the accommodation theory in a fun way that requires practicing the skill of accommodation in order to allow students to become more aware of this phenomenon.

Two to Four players can play “Accommodation” and all of the participants will be involved in accommodating words. The game is made up of three 3D printed objects and 2D printed playing cards. The 3D printed objects as well as .PDFs of the instructions and cards for this game are available for free download at the bottom of this blog post. The three 3D printed objects include a box that has labeled sections for the three decks of cards and a section for the 3D printed tokens that serve as a point system for the game. The only other 3D printed object is the lid to the box. The lid has three slots that hold the cards that are being used during game play. The lid also has a peg that will hold it up during game play so that the accommodator can see the cards he or she is accommodating. The 2D printed instructions and cards are the other pieces needed to play the game as well as a piece of paper and a pencil to draw with. There are one hundred and fifty cards available to print. Fifty noun cards, fifty verb cards, and fifty adverb cards. The only other thing you will need to accommodate successfully during this game is your imagination!


The way the game is played is as follows. A quick round of “Rock, Paper, Scissors” will determine who will be the first player to accommodate. The player who wins “Rock, Paper, Scissors” will become the first accommodator and draw one card from each of the card decks. First he or she will draw a noun card and place it in the appropriately labelled slot on the lid of the game. He or she will do the same thing with the verb and adverb cards. For example’s sake pretend that the accommodator draws the words chicken, dance, and happily. The accommodator will then accommodate the three words into either a single action or a single drawing that the rest of the players will attempt to guess. The action or drawing cannot include words or talking, kind of like charades or Pictionary. The goal of the accommodator is to act or draw well enough that the other players can guess the three words that he or she is accommodating. The goal of the other players is to guess the three words. Whichever player guesses the words correctly gets a token. The accommodator gets a token as well. If no one guesses correctly before five guesses then no one gets a token. The first person to gain ten tokens wins the game.

This game teaches the players about the theory of accommodation by allowing the accommodator to accommodate words to each other in real time. What better way to learn than by doing? The players who are guessing are also being exposed to accommodation because they have to think about and guess what words the accommodator is accommodating.

To download the pieces, cards, and instructions for this and any of the 3Dimensionator's games click HERE.

Our Video!

Lexi's Final Assignment - "Power Play"

Our final comprehensive concept assignment involved creating an educational board game that teaches a communication concept. I chose to base my board game activity upon Marshall Scott Poole’s concept of Adaptive Structuration. This idea describes the way people adhere to expectations, make decisions, and handle power within small group communication. A structure within the group is created through the rules and resources and as they change, the system of communication may change as members adapt. Integrating these guidelines into my game design was important to help regulate the player’s behaviors throughout the game. The ultimate goal is for expectations to form in order for group members to anticipate each other’s behaviors over time and be able to adapt to have successful interactions resulting in “social integration”.

Poole’s idea states that there are five types of power a decision maker may hold. These include reward power, coercive power, referent power, legitimate power, and expert power.

• Reward Power: when the decision maker can give rewards to the subordinates for complying.
• Coercive Power: involves punishing subordinates for non-compliance.
• Referent Power: occurs when compliance is gained or subordinates desire the person in power to like them.
• Legitimate Power: when the power is given to that person and others accept that position over them.
• Expert Power: when the person knows the most about the issue at hand. 

These power positions are symptoms of the rules within the situation or emerge naturally due to one’s ability or right to make decisions. I decided to represent this aspect of the theory in my game by using a die. Each side stands for a different type of power, determines how the roller will move, and the sixth side represents the following aspect.

My Printed Game Pieces

Another element of this concept is the idea of discursive consciousness and practical consciousness. Poole identifies discursive consciousness occurring when group members are able to share their thoughts with each other and practical consciousness as a phenomenon when certain thoughts or actions can not be expressed. After much deliberation, it seemed most useful to incorporate consciousness as an interactive part of the game. Consciousness cards (drawn when a “C” is rolled on the dice) describe different scenarios that or challenges that the players must either discuss or work through in order to learn what consciousness is all about. For example, one card asks the player whose turn it is to act out a phrase on the card. If they are successful in getting another player to guess correctly without using words, they have achieved discursive consciousness and can move forward on the board, but if they fail, practical consciousness has occurred and they may be penalized. 

After thinking about the different elements of the theory I began to design the downloadable game board as a stepped pyramid with three levels (A, B,C) leading up to the top level, which is labeled with an S.I (Social Integration). Around each level are holes for pegs to fit in and at each corner of the first three levels, there is a number (1-4). Every player will have a representative playing piece that fits into the pegs and will start the game on a numbered corner. Once they have gone around the level once and returned back to their starting number, the player can move up to the next level. My Instructions, go into more detail about all the logistics of playing the game, but in order to win all the players must reach the top of the pyramid. No one individual wins; it must be a group effort.

The merit of this activity is to show how using the different types of power can help or hurt group communication. By making the goal of the game for everyone to succeed, the players have to know that working towards everyone achieving social integration is how successful group communication takes place. 



There were a few challenges I faced throughout this assignment. I chose a complex concept, which is definitely the point, however I struggled in the beginning about how I was going to incorporate the different parts of Adaptive Structuration. If this class has taught me anything though, it is that the more complicated the idea, the more rewarding it feels when you experience the moment(s) of inspiration that help you simplify the concept in order to share your ideas with others. With this project, I am particularly proud of the way I was able to create a game that, while complicated, has every element of the theory involved in some way that allows for the player to remember it as well as possibly apply it in the future.

All of our educational games, made possible through the use of 3D technology, will help teachers and students grasp complex communications concepts in a more exciting and immersive way.

Below is a link to where each element of my game and the instructions are available for free download. I also included the link to our group's promotional video for all the games we created. 

Google Drive Folder of Game Elements

Promotional Video

Lexi's Instructions for Power Play

For this final comprehensive assignment, I created a game called “Power Play”. This game is designed to help teach the concept of Adaptive Structuration. This idea discusses how small group communication works and how individuals can behave and change in order to be successful in their effort and ultimately achieve "Social Integration". Adaptive Structuration addresses the use of power people display and utilize during small group communication. 
The powers are: 

• Reward power (the ability to give praise or material rewards, to remove negative aspects of interactions)
• Coercive power (the ability to punish for non-compliance)
• Referent power (the ability to obtain compliance perhaps through having a closer bond or being likable)
• Legitimate power (abilities associated with a position within the group, could be given by a certain name such as manager or supervisor)
• Expert power (the ability to influence others because of expertise)

This theory describes how "discursive consciousness" is the ability of individuals within the group to communication their thoughts, feeling and ideas. When that is not possible and something can not be expressed, it is referred to as "practical consciousness".  

The downloadable game pieces I designed include:

• A four-stepped pyramid game board with small holes that act like a peg board for the playing pieces. 
• Four playing pieces for each player
• Two Dice, one with numbers on them, one with the powers and consciousness options on them. 
• PDF of the consciousness cards. 

Instructions for "Power Play":

Set Up 

• Put the game board in the center of all the players
• Place the pile of consciousness cards face down somewhere near the playing board. 
• Each player chooses a playing piece and a corner (numbered 1-4) to begin the game at. The game requires at least two but can have no more than four players. 

Game play 

• The player that has chosen to begin on the number 1 corner will role first. 
• For a player to be able to place their piece on the first peg of the first Level A on their numbered corner, they must role either a 6 or an Expert (E). If they do not role this, on their first role, the next player can role to see if they can start. 
• Once a player is able to put their playing piece on the pyramid they will role both die each turn to determine their movements. 
• The numbered die determines how many spaces a player can move around the level the are one. Once a player has done a circle and returned to their number, they can move up to the next level. 
• The Power die determine how the player can move:
• R = Referent Power: The roller moves FORWARD the number of spaces indicated by the number die and then chooses someone on the SAME level as them to move FORWARD that many spaces as well. 
• L = Legitimate Power: The roller moves FORWARD the number of spaces indicated by the number die and then chooses another player on the level BELOW them to move BACK the number of spaces on the die. If they are still on the first level, they do not have to choose anyone to move back. 
• E = Expert Power: Everyone moves FORWARD the number of space on the number die.
• + = Reward Power: The roller chooses any other player to move FORWARD the number of spaces on the number die. 
• - = Coercive Power: The roller chooses any other player to move BACK the number of spaces on the number die. 
• C = Consciousness Card: player chooses a consciousness card, read it to determine their move. Place the used card in a separate discard pile or at the bottom of the pile. 
• When one player reaches the top, it is still possible from them to have to move back spaces if another player dictates it.
• In order for the game to be over, every player must reach the top level of the pyramid labeled "S.I." which represents the achievement of Social Integration. 
• The strategy includes assessing where each player lies on the board and how each move affects the entire group's ability to reach the top. 

Drew Waechter's Self-Disclosure game instructions

For the last two weeks, I have been conceptualizing an educational board game around the communication concept of Self-Disclosure. Inspired by my own favorite party games  I decided to create a card based game in which students reveal all and  discuss how they would react in many scandalous real life scenarios.

Recommended players:
4-6 players or groups

Required materials:
1 scenario deck
4-6 sets of action tokens(1 lying, hinting, equivocating, silence, and open self-disclosure token per set)
1 communication die
4-6 disposable score cards

Setting up the game:
1. Each player/group selects one set of action tokens (this includes one lying, hinting, equivocating, silence, and open self-disclosure token) and sets them on their laps, out of view from other players. Players/groups will then each grab one disposable score card and set them in front of themselves.

2. Players/groups then select a player/group to act as the first judge(s).

3.The judge(S) then shuffles the scenario deck and sets it face down in front of them.

Playing the game:
1. To start the round, the judge draws a scenario card from the top the of the scenario deck and reads the scenario out load for the rest of the players. (DO NOT READ OUT THE MORAL IMPLICATIONS PENALTIES AT THE BOTTOM OF THE CARD)

2. The judge then rolls the communication dice and reads the result of their roll to the rest of the group. (M=mediated conversation, F2F=Face to Face conversation)

3. The Judge then secretly selects a token that represents how they feel they would act in the given scenario and means of communication, and places the token face down onto the table.

4. Once the judge has made their selection, the other groups/players will be given a short amount of time to select their token and set it face down on the table.

5. Once each player/ group selects a token for play, starting at the player/group to the left of the judge and continuing clockwise, each player/group will reveal their token to the group.

6. After all of the other players/groups reveal their tokens, the judge then reveals their token and the scoring begins.

7. Players/Groups that match tokens with the judge will score 1 point. The judge will earn 1 point for each match that they have with others. Players who do not match the judge will then have to pay the moral implications punishment listed on the scenario card for the choice they had made. If there are no matches during the round then all players/groups, including the judge, must pay the moral implication penalty.

8. Once the scores have be tallied, the judge then places the scenario card on the bottom of the deck and passes the deck and die to the player/group on their left and the next player then takes their turn.

9. The round then continues until each player/group has had the opportunity to act as the judge.

10. After 5 rounds of play, player/groups will tally up their final score and the player / group with the highest score is deemed the winner.

Accommodation Game Rules

The game that I have designed is called “Accommodation”. The goal of the game is to teach players about the concept called accommodation. Accommodation basically discusses the way that words are changed slightly to accommodate to the sentence or context that they are used in. The game “Accommodation” will allow players to experience accommodation in a fun, interactive way.

The game pieces that will be available for free download include:

150 cards

•  50 verb cards
•  50 noun cards
•  50 adverb cards

50 Tokens 

The box with storage areas for the cards and the tokens 

The lid with areas to place the cards that are being played 

A small rod to hold the lid up for game play ease

These are the instructions to the game “Accommodation”:

Set Up

• Set the lid of the box up so that the player whose turn it is to accommodate can see it, but the rest of the group cannot
• The box with the three decks of cards and the tokens in it should be in a central area so that players can grab their tokens when they earn them and the player accommodating can draw cards to play

Game play

• This game is best played with four or more players
• To decide who will be the first player to accommodate, there will be a quick “Rock, Paper, Scissors” round.
• The player who wins “Rock, Paper, Scissors” will be the first player to accommodate.
• The accommodator will draw one noun card, one verb card, one adverb card, and place them in the appropriately labeled slots on the lid so that he or she can see the cards.
• The accommodator will then accommodate the words into either an action that he or she can act out for the group of other players or a drawing that he or she can draw out for the group of other players. The goal of the acting or drawing is for another player to guess the three words correctly. 
• The group of guessing players has a total of five guesses before they must stop guessing.
•  If a player guesses correctly before the five guesses are up, he or she gets a token. The accommodator gets a token as well.
• If no player guesses correctly before the five guesses are up, no one gets a token.
• The first player to gain ten tokens wins the game!

CSCA with the Dimensionators: Drew's Experience

Last week our group had the opportunity to share our G.I.F.T with various communication studies professors at the Central States Communication Association conference. This year’s conference was held in Minneapolis, MN and was themed around elevating communication studies. This was my first conference and I honestly I was a bit nervous about attending. However, once we got to the conference my anxiety was gone I was able to thoroughly enjoy the whole experience. It was an exciting and interesting four days; filled with panels, presentations, networking, and a bit of bar crawling fun. While I’d love to share my entire experience, I’ve decided to highlight my favorite moments of the convention.

As previously mentioned a major portion of our trip  was attending various panels. Over the four days, I viewed 5 panels each of which was very interesting and insightful. However, there was one panel in particular that really peaked my interest and provided me with some great insight for my next 3D project. 

On Saturday I viewed a panel on how to teach and reach students with the use of the video-sharing site YouTube. In this panel 3 panelists shared their experiences of using this site in the classroom. Overall, I felt that the panel was very well organized and each presenter provided wonderful insight. What I found to be the most interesting was that all three presenters found that user generated content can be a very powerful tool in education. It allows students to use their creativity to convey a message or a meaning, rather than simply regurgitating information. This made me think of our own project. All three of us are creating our own individual models, and in the process of creating these models we’ve gotten more of an understanding on various communication concepts. It was interesting to me to see that another group utilized user generated content and I hope that this trend in teaching will continue to grow.

Along with the panels we attended, we were also able to attend a G.I.F.T session. During this session we listened to professors and graduate students share the activities they are using to better teaching. During this session there were 3 various presenters that really stood out to me and their ideas I hope to pass on to the instructors in my department.

The first G.I.F.T that I was rather impressed with was a classroom activity proposed by Stevie Stewart a Graduate Student from Ball State University. This graduate student has been incorporating the use of the social media site Twitter into his curriculum, by having students tweet about various televised speakers. His goal is to have students critiquing the public speaking abilities of others and in return reflect on their own skills. For this proposed assignment, he gives his students a list of questions and a class specific hashtag and then has his students answer the questions through tweets. Since Twitter has a character limit of only 140 charters per tweet, it provides the students with an interesting challenge of fully explaining their answers in a short and concise manner. Personally, I feel that is a great way to utilize a technology that student’s are comfortable and skilled with, and breathes in a new life to stale classroom procedures. It is also important that as communication scholars and professionals that we understand how this current generation of students is communicating with one another.

The second G.I.F.T that I found to be very intriguing was an activity proposed by Debbie Chasteen, of William Jewell College called “Alternatives to Self-Disclosure”. This activity was used in an interpersonal Communication course and was used to demonstrate the various means in which we avoid open self-disclosure in various unsettling situations. In her activity Chasteen divides her class into various teams of 2-5 students and each team is then given a scenario in which they will have to act out for the class. For this scenario the students are then tasked to brainstorm how they would respond in these situations. Students then categorize their responses as either examples of silence, equivocating, hinting, or lying. Once their responses are categorized they then are asked to write down the ethical implications of their actions and then give a performance of their responses to the class. Personally, this seemed like a very interactive and fun assignment. I find that I learn a lot more whenever I have opportunity to hear how my own peers handle themselves in various situations. It provides with a fair amount of insight into a situation and allows students to make better choices whenever I’m trying to communicate with others.

The final G.I.F.T I found to very interesting was a class assignment developed by Rose Helens-Hart a Doctoral Candidate of the University of Kansas. In her classroom activity Rose Helens-Hart utilizes an old Hawaiian tradition of “Talking Story” to introduce students into public speaking. As someone who isn’t the most confident public speaker, I genuinely feel that this activity is a great way to ease students into speaking in front of a crowd. Students are broken up into smaller groups and are given time to prepare and present a “story” of their lives to their peers. This story can be about anything, but must be centered around a central theme which the instructor provides to the class. After each student presents their story to their group members, the class then votes to find the best storytellers of the group. Students are then asked to critique these storytellers and learn how they can better their own speaking skills. What I love about this assignment is that it is a great ice breaker for students to get to know one another. I feel that it is a bit more involved than the standard improvised introductory speech that most classrooms push upon their students.

To everyone I met and to all who shared their experiences, I just want to say thank you. As I mentioned before this was my first conference and I am still surprised that I enjoyed it this much. It was exciting to see how the field of communications is changing and adapting, and meeting the individuals who are responsible for this change. I hope that our small project is able to bring inspiration to those who shared their work with us. On behalf of the other Dimensionators and myself I want to just thank you all for making this a wonderful and memorable experience.

Marcella's Elevate Experience

My first experience at the Central States Communication Association conference, Elevate, was certainly one to be remembered. I attended a G.I.F.T. (Great ideas for teaching) session, 4 panel sessions, and presented a G.I.F.T. with my classmates. I hope to return to another conference in the future as a presenter or just an attendant. This conference is a great way to network, learn, and change the way that you may think about different things.

Drew, Me, & Lexi

On Friday, the first day of the conference, we thought that it would be beneficial for us to attend a G.I.F.T. session because on Saturday we would be presenting our own G.I.F.T., and we thought it would be good to kind of know how the sessions go.  I was very pleasantly surprised by the way the session was set up.  It was a little bit different than I imagined, but it works well for the session.  Basically, in a G.I.F.T. session there are up to ten groups or individuals presenting G.I.F.T.s.  Each group is assigned a table that has six or seven chairs around it for session attenders to sit at, and the attenders have a list in their program of the different G.I.F.T.s that are available to attend at a given session.  The session that we attended was at 11:00 in the morning, and I had the opportunity to hear about five different G.I.F.T.s.  The G.I.F.T.s that I heard were called: Elevating Speech Evaluations through Twitter, Analyzing Target Audience, The Cups Game as Small Group Communication Activity, “Elevating” Students’ Understanding of Communicator Style: How Would Each Communication Style Manage Organizational Conflict?, and Talk Story: Developing Thematic Narratives.  One thing that I noticed at the G.I.F.T. session is that there were no other undergrads presenting G.I.F.T.s.  All of the presenters were grad students or professors.

After the G.I.F.T. session we took a break for lunch, then at 2:00 in the afternoon the three of us chose panels that interested us and attended them.  Drew and I ended up picking the same one: “All Immigrants are Artists”: The Artful Negotiations of Diverse Immigrant Experiences.  During this panel we heard five individuals speak about their experiences as immigrants or as children of immigrants.  The first speaker was Alberto Gonzalez from Bowling Green State University.  He spoke about his work at the non-profit organization called La Conexion.  This is a place that Latinas in Bowling Green, Ohio can go to feel connected to their culture as well as the community they live in.  Gonzalez discussed the issues that La Conexion is facing as it becomes more public and well known because of immigration laws.  Immigrants may come to La Conexion and not have the legal papers to be in the United States.  The second speaker was named Eddah Mutua.  Eddah is from Kenya, Africa.  She spoke about a non-profit that she is involved in called Prairie Garden.  Prairie Garden is a garden that refugee women from Africa work together on.  The garden is in St. Cloud, Minnesota which is also where Eddah teaches.  Prairie Garden allows the women refugees to speak their own languages, grow their own food, and interact with other immigrants.  Eddah described the Prairie Garden as a place where the women can be free to be themselves in their new country.  The third speaker on the panel was Ahmet Atay.  Ahmet Atay spoke about a film director from Italian and Turkey descent who is also queer.  He spoke about how this director is changing the film community with his films.  The fourth panelist was Sunny Lie.  Sunny Lie is a Chinese Indonesian, and she works closely with Chinese Indonesian students who are pursuing higher education in New York City.  She spoke about how even though they try to hang on to their culture and not assimilate to American culture, they show signs of assimilation. The last panelist to speak was David Hanley-Tejeda.  He spoke about being the son of an immigrant.  His mother was Mexican.  She also happened to have schizophrenia. He spoke about her struggles as an immigrant with a mental disorder.  He also shared that she committed suicide, and he shared a poem that he wrote about his experience being his mother’s son.  This panel was interesting and I enjoyed listening to the panelist’s stories.

The next day was our big day to present our G.I.F.T.! We woke up early, got ourselves ready, and went to the room that we were presenting in. We set up the table the way we wanted it to look for our presentation.  I am personally very pleased with the way our presentation went.  Considering we had an early morning eight o’clock session, we had quite a few people show up.  All of the people who sat at our table and listened to our presentation seemed very interested and engaged in what we had to say.  Everyone had questions which is a good thing.  After our G.I.F.T. presentation we each went to two other panels that day.

The first panel that I attended on Saturday was called Elevating from Problems to Solutions: Transformative Theory and Methods in Interracial and Diversity Communication.  I LOVED this panel.  There were four panelists. The first panelist was Rachel Griffin.  She is an interracial black and white women.  She spoke about the binary that American culture is bound by.  The binary between white and black in particular.  The second panelist was Stephanie Young, an interracial Korean American woman.  She also spoke about the binary, but she spoke about putting herself out there in the classroom to help students open up about race and understand race and ethnic identity better.  Then Eddah Mutua spoke as a panelist again.  She spoke about her experience as an African in America and the way that she relates to African Americans as well as white Americans.  The last panelist to speak was Dorothy Pennington who is an African American professor who spoke about her past experiences and how things have changed since she first became a teacher.  She also touched on the idea that some people believe we live in a post racial society.  This panel was very interesting to me.

The second panel that I chose to attend was called Competitive Papers in the Women’s Caucus: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead.  There were two panelists who spoke during this panel.  The first one to speak was named Molly C. Turner.  She spoke about Hillary Rodham-Clinton and Bill Clinton.  She expanded upon their different leadership styles and how Hillary has become a role-model for women everywhere in the world.  The next speaker was named Kelly Soczka Kaiser. She spoke about working on a Wisconsin dairy farm and the trials she faces in the farmer community because she is a women. Because of the trials she has personally faced, she decided to conduct a study on other farming women.  She presented her results to the panel as well.

The view from the Hyatt

I learned something important at all of the panels that I attended.  My experience at the Elevate Conference was one that I will never forget.  Not only did I get to experience part of the country that I had never experienced, I also got to experience parts of the Communication Studies field that I had never had the honor to experience.

Lexi's Experience at CSCA's "Elevate" Conference

Our group’s time at the Central State Communication Association (CSCA) “Elevate” Conference in Minneapolis, Minnesota was personally, professionally, and academically very rewarding. Not only did we gain experience by presenting at our Great Ideas for Teaching (GIFT) session, we attended several different panels and events based upon our own interests and gained more insight on topics within the field.

It snowed a wee bit our first night in Minneapolis!

First, on Friday, as a group, we attended a GIFT session in order to see how these presentations worked. This proved to be very beneficially to us because the setting was different from what were anticipating. Rather than presenting “at” people during the session, everyone is seated in a round table discussion, are given the handouts prepared by the speaker, and then they listen to the breakdown of the activity. We realized as we participated that our GIFT was unique due to the fact that we, the students, were presenting it. All the other presenters were instructors discussing activities they have done in their classrooms that could be adapted by other teachers. We were given the opportunity by Dr. Carlson to give our own perspectives on the benefits of using 3D technology to understand communication concepts as a class project or activity. 

I had a couple favorites from this session that as a student, I know I would have enjoyed in my own classes. One instructor, Kristen Manthei from Lyons Township High School, had her students create their own commercial for a fictitious advertising company according to the specifications of different target audiences. This GIFT allows for students to use research and creativity in order to promote a product based upon its unique features for their customers. I saw a benefit in this exercise since I have a graphic design background and we often had to think about what designs, color choices, etc., would appeal most to certain demographics. Defining target audiences is also a very important skill set within public relations (my major) as well. Another activity presented by Rose Helens-Hart from the University of Kansas actually connected back to my work visualizing Burke’s Pentad Theory. Helens-Hart described a cultural tradition in Hawaii called “Talk Story” in which people engage in narrative storytelling to describe community or personal history. The Talk Story activity helped the students create a strong narrative structure of beginning, middle, and end by practicing the same story over and over with the students ranking the best speakers. I thought this activity related to the Pentad Theory because it could be adapted so that the students analysis each other’s narratives using the pentadic elements as a guide to discover things about the speaker’s motives and speaking styles.

After seeing Friday’s GIFT presentation, I attended a panel presenting a critical analysis of the HBO show, “Girls”. I found this to be very entertaining and thought-provoking for my own personal interest in media and popular culture studies and also because I am a fan of that particular show. Another panel I attended on Saturday directly correlated with the “Girls” session because it discussed how popular culture (television, film, and music) helps in constructing personal identity.

My final session I attended on Saturday included the top papers in Media Studies.

This session discussed how social media is used to maintain family relationships, a study about a new app that helps college students monitor their risk taking behaviors caused by alcohol consumption, as well as examinations of framing, broadcasting through twitter, and selective exposure on Youtube.

The first presenter was the most relevant to the work we have done throughout the semester.  Yifeng Hu from The College of New Jersey, discussed a study she and her students participated in two years ago using the Virtual world, Second Life. In the beginning of our work this semester, we discussed the implications of using Second Life, a virtual reality in which users create avatars that represent themselves and create the world around them in order to engage in activities and interact within this virtual world. Hu and her students were experimenting to see if common “real life” communication theories held true within the virtual “reality” as well. One example talked about Noelle Neumann’s Spiral of Silence theory where minority viewpoints can often be discouraged to speak out when there is a strong majority viewpoint already doing so. During the 2008 elections, Second Life users were hosting parties for the different candidates, when the researchers opposed their differing opinions at these events, they were rebuffed, just as they would be expected to be in reality. This got me thinking about the objects we have been making in LeoWorld and whether or not we could place them into the Second Life space in order to receive feedback from other users as to whether or not they are useful in teaching certain concepts. It would be interesting to see if and how the representative avatars interact with our models and learn from them.

Our session of GIFT was on Saturday morning at eight o’clock in the morning. From our printed 3D objects, colorful handouts, FHSU freebies, and the candy (which is always a good idea), our table was definitely not one to miss. We were able to share our work with at least 12-15 different educators (not including just passing out our brochures), and all the feedback we received was of genuine interest and intrigue. Many professors stated that their university’s also had 3D printers on campus. We were so happy to tell them that they could print off any of our free .obj files from our blog in order to start experimenting with visualization in their own classrooms. Watching them all interact with our objects was very rewarding because it proved the cyclical nature of our project. One instructor, as we were demonstrating the sender/receiver communication models, picked up a 3D print out of a T-Rex head and started holding it over the communication model saying, “And here you have noise!”. That is exactly what we wanted at the end of our project, to be able to present representations of communication ideas so other people could bring their own new and unique interpretations to build upon them. It was a silly moment that incited a profound sense of accomplishment and satisfaction.

Overall, this experience was so fulfilling. This was the first time I attended a conference of this nature and I found it very refreshing to find so many sessions I was interested and participated in. I also enjoyed conversing with like-minded individuals about topics they also know about and to be able to share ideas within the field. I was especially elated at the response we received about our work and feel confident about its relevance for the future.

Marcella's First Comprehensive 3D Project Process

               I did my first comprehensive 3D project over the theory of agenda setting.  To complete this project I broke it down into seven steps.  Those steps included choosing a concept, conceptualizing the chosen concept in 2D, creating a 3D scene in the Leonar3do program that portrayed the concept, animating the concept in the Leonar3do program, converting the animation into an educational video, printing out the 3D objects from my concept, and presenting my work to my class and mentors.  In this blog post I will take you through those steps and help you to better understand the process that I went through while working to complete this project. 

               Step one was to choose a concept.  I went to www.sclcr.com and searched the toolkit.  In the toolkit you can either search key words or look through all of the concepts listed.  I chose to look through all of the concepts because I did not really have an idea of the one that I wanted to use at that point.  I looked through quite a few before I settled on the agenda setter theory.  I chose the agenda setter theory because I could conceptualize it in my mind.  I thought that if I could conceptualize it in my mind, it may be easier for me to translate the concept into a 3D scene.

               Step two was to plan the concept by drawing a blueprint so to speak.  During this step I drew what I planned to create in 3D.  I drew the scene that I planned to make from the top view and the side view. I labeled all of the parts I planned to create as well.  During this step I also wrote about my plans to turn my concept in to a 3D scene.  That write up can be found in my previous blog post entitled Marcella's Work on her Comprehensive 3D Project.  This write up helped me to explain my concept as I would to someone who had never heard of it.  This planning step set me up to create a 3D scene.

               Step three of my process was to create my concept in a 3D world.  I used the Leonar3do system

to create this scene.  I imported an .OBJ file from a third party website called turbosquid.com.  I also used imported .PNG files to represent different aspects of my scene.  I built objects from primitive shapes, sculpted objects, and used the subtraction tool to create the objects that I needed to complete my scene.

               Step four was to transform my 3D scene into an animation that portrayed the agenda setter theory.  During this step I also used the Leonar3do system.  The Leonar3do system has a feature that allows animation of objects.  By using this feature I was able to manipulate light, camera angles, and objects in order to portray the agenda setter theory. 

               Step five of my process was editing the animation into an educational video with narration and pausing to adequately portray the concept.  During this step I used Windows Movie Maker.  This was my first experience editing video, and I am proud of the outcome.  Windows Movie Maker was fairly easy to use, but I think next time I have to edit video I will try another video editing software so that I get experience with other software. 

               Step six was to print the objects from my 3D scene with a 3D printer.  I am fortunate that Fort Hays State University has extremely advanced technological resources.  I was able to load my .OBJ files onto a 3D printer and let the printer create physical objects that can be manipulated by the user in real time and space. This step is crucial because it allows individuals to manipulate these objects and learn about the agenda setter theory by doing so.  These printed objects could be used in a classroom setting or by anyone wanting to better understand the agenda setter theory.  These objects are available for download at 3D Concept Visualization Google Drive.

         

      Step seven was to present all of my work to my class as well as some of my mentors at Fort Hays State University.  In order to present my project I decided to put everything into a power point presentation. During my presentation I took the viewers through the same steps that I am writing about now.  My hope throughout the presentation was to show how easy use of the Leonar3do equipment and the 3D printers is. 

               The next step will be to attend the Central States Communication Association’s Elevate conference with my classmates and instructor.  At this conference we will present our G.I.F.T., great idea for teaching, and attend workshops. This year the conference is in Minneapolis, Minnesota. 

               This process has been intense and a lot of work, but I have learned so much about not only the technology involved but also the different communication theories my classmates and I portrayed.  After finishing this project I am excited to work on the next project like this because I want to put the skills and knowledge that I gained from this project to the test.  

Lexi's Comprehensive Concept Project One

I began researching possible communication topics at www.sclcr.com. Here you can find a database under the “Toolkit” section with a large amount of summaries and explanations for different theories. For my project, I chose to work with Kenneth Burke’s Pentad Theory (1945) which aids in examining rhetoric or text. By using five elements, act, agency, agent, scene, and purpose, one can attempt to understand or even create a meaningful communication act. Act refers to what is happening in the scene, agency describes how everything is being carried out, the agent is who is carrying the act, the scene is where and when the situation takes place, and the purpose is why the act were done. I initially figured I could easily represent these parts of the theory using the Leo software because they are simple to show and manipulate. However, I misunderstood that the Pentad theory is more concerned about how these elements are used to figure out the motivations of the speaker or writer more than they are used as catalysts for what is being described. After realizing this, I had to reevaluate my originals ideas. 

Eventually, I decided it would be best to set my scene up like a debate, to show that using the Pentad theory is helpful when analyzing people’s perspectives of cultural topics such as legalization of drugs, vegetarianism, global warming, etc. An issue with two clearly differentiating sides is gay marriage rights. I showed how the motivations of a supporter of gay rights would be obvious by the choices they make to describe a narrative involving a man proposing to another man, and the same would be true for the alternate view. 

The video I produced using the Leonar3do system as well as the LeoWorld software displays how the elements can be used to critically analyze arguments.

 

Part of the assignment for my visual

interpretation of the theory included making elements that can be printed out three-dimensionally in order to help teach the theory to others. Created using Leonar3do and LeoWorld systems, these objects help to depict the five elements as well as allow for demonstrations of the theory at work. The main item related to the theory is a pentagon “ring” that displays one of the five parts of the pentad on each of its sides. Next is a podium to represent the presence of a “speaker” or “perspective”. I then created a thought bubble in the scene and an object that identifies the speaker’s point of view. Whatever the speaker and text is discussing, should be represented as well. I imagined a narrative about a same sex couple, so they are shown as well. However, part of the activity is that students need come up with their own scenario or find a speech or text that could be described and analyzed using the pentad theory. They then can use the pentagon shape to find the elements within their chosen act, and decide whether the argument or perspective can be easily understood as a communication act. 

The functionality of my scene’s printed objects relies heavily upon facilitating the process of Pentadic Analysis. Rather than just reading a text, hearing a speech, or looking at an image, these pieces help visualize the analysis. It is actually more difficult to go about understanding the Pentad Theory this way, and by the end they should know more about it and be able to explain it better since they have worked through all the manners in which it can be described. By setting up an ambiguous representation of a speaker and using the pentagon pentad, they can identify the five elements in Burke’s theory to examine the rhetoric. This is important because it exemplifies how Burke’s theory can be utilized as a critical thinking tool. Being able to recognize the act, agent, agency, scene, and purpose behind a message allows for better decision making in order to decide whether to absorb or reject the information in a useful way. My objects are available for download in the .obj format at: https://drive.google.com/folderviewid=0B0fIsxtWF8N_a05TMkpRNU9JOFE&usp=sharing

I learned a couple notable things throughout this particular assignment. Using Leo to illustrate this theory really helped me understand it better than I had when I only read the summary of it. At first, I misunderstood the function of it, and after having to actually see the idea somehow in my mind and think about showing it in a way it could be easily shared with other allowed me comprehension beyond what I initially received.The one thing I was not anticipating was how long completing this entire project would actually take. Each session I had working with the Leo system lasted no shorter than three hours, and that is with little trouble-shooting, so any larger set back with the technology caused me more stress than if I had planned out my time more efficiently. So for our next comprehensive assignment, I will better prepare for that consideration.

Drew Waechter's First Comprehensive 3D Assignment

Over the past few weeks, my group members and I have been working on our first set Comprehensive 3D projects. We were tasked with creating two types of classroom aids that could be used to help explain a communication studies concept. These were an animated video and a set of 3D printed objects, and both were created using only the various 3D technologies we had available. I hope that by sharing my experiences in this project that I can demonstrate the potential of this technology in education.

Before I could start creating my various learning aids, I had to find a communication concept to visualize. To find my concept, I used an online database provided by the Society for Conceptual Logistics in Communication Research (SCLCR). It took me awhile, but I finally chose to visualize Zizi Papacharissi’s concept of “The Networked Self”. I chose this concept because I felt that it would be a fun challenge to try to convert something fairly abstract into 3D. I then spent a few days to research and make sure that I fully understood the concept. Once I felt confident enough, I then started designing my learning aids.

After finding my concept, I was then able to start creating my video. To prepare for my video, I spent a fair amount of time sketching out a blueprint of my model and a creating a storyboard for my animation. Creating this blueprint was

absolutely vital as it allowed me to thoroughly plan out my model and animation in advanced. Having this strong foundation was quite useful and it helped me to get the most out of the time that I spent in Leonar3Do. The model creating experience was quite fun and was probably my favorite part of the whole process. I enjoyed building my scene and adding the little bits and pieces together to create my vision.

After creating my model with Leonar3Do, I then used the animation features in the LeoWorld software to bring the concept to life. Honestly, I would have to say that animating was the most difficult and time-consuming part of this entire experience. In my first animation attempt, I developed a bad habit of nitpicking and over adjusting each frame of my animation. I made so many adjustments, that by the time I completed my animation it didn’t even remotely resemble my original storyboard. After seeing how confusing and jarring the animation was, I then decided to scrap the whole

thing and start fresh. My second attempt in animating was a much more successful. I forced myself to strictly follow the storyboard I had created. This not only kept me calm and focused, but it prevented me from wasting precious time. I then allowed myself a day away from the computer and returned the following day to edit with a fresh mind. This greatly increased my productivity and within a few hours I was able to finally finish my animation. With my animation complete, I then added narration and edited the footage in video editing software to create an educational video of my concept.

The second half of this project was to create tangible objects from my scene that I felt would be useful in a classroom setting. These objects would need to be able to be shared with the general public and easily printable with a 3D printer. The objects I chose were my humanoid token and a speech bubble. My idea was that students would be able to use these object to create and map out their own networked selves in a classroom. This would allow students a chance to visualize the concept and give them opportunity to apply what they’ve learned.

I also chose these two objects because I felt that they could be used to help visualize other communication concepts. I think it would be interesting to create a set of universal objects in which an instructor could pull out at any time. That way they could have a kit of sorts to demonstrate various communication concepts and theories. With that in mind, I created my objects to be simple enough that anyone could take them and customize them for their own use.

After completing this project, I feel that 3D technology is a powerful tool in the classroom. Whether it is creating a 3D video or model or using tangible 3D objects, I feel that 3D provides rich a learning experience for students. From my own personal experience with this project, I feel that I’ve been challenged to think and perform in a way that feels far more rewarding than simply listening to a lecture. I feel like I’ve been given the opportunity to use my creativity and critical thinking skills to fully immerse myself into a communication studies concept. I’m excited to see how this technology will change  education in the years to come.

 If you would like to use any of the objects created in this project feel free to click here for all of the items our group has created so far.