Nayia frangouli lessonplan methods

Lesson plan – nayia frangouli Tesol methods intensive Integrated skills: Reading Writing Speaking Vocabulary Culture

TOPIC:

Critique in Art – use of Scott Berkun’s essay How to give and receive criticism

LEARNERS:

18 Parsons First Year Students, Level 4 - 5

LENGTH:

I spread this lesson plan in 2 consecutive lessons. 1st lesson is 1 hour and 2nd lesson is 4.5 hours.

Each studio class is 6 hours long. I will spend a total 5.5 hours on this topic which will include a 3-hour final critique.

OBJECTIVES:

SWBAT Prepare for Critiques during their next 4 years at Parsons.

- Improve their ability to speak in front of a large group - Communicate better and support one another - Practice reading & writing - Assess and improve their language - Learn key vocabulary - Activate schema

STEPS DURING THE 1st LESSON STEP 1 - WARM UP (10-15 MINS):

I start a mind map on the board with the word Critique. I elicit answers to define it and I write them on the board. I clarify possible elicited words that don’t mean critique. Finally, I write down the key vocabulary that wasn’t mentioned but I consider important as well as key words for the participants’ different roles during critique: the maker and the critic.

Key Vocabulary: Analysis – evaluation – appreciation – criticism – review – study – commentary – discussion – exegesis – Maker – Critic.

I ask students to write the key vocabulary down in their sketchbook.

I post the key vocabulary on Canvas as a reference.

STEP 2 – FOCUS PRACTICE (40 MINS total - 20 mins in each group): I have printed and cut out different excerpts from the Scott Berkun essay and I hand these out to the students. I split students in groups of 4. I ask each group to critique one artwork using the 2 points. In each group one of the students volunteers one of his/her work and the group critiques his/her work using the 2 points. In each group one person rights down the points made for the particular artwork and hands it to the student/maker who volunteer his/her work at the very end of the activity. After that I jigsaw the groups so they all get to discuss and work with all 4 points, they practice how to give a critique.

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I cut and hand out the following critique points. The first 2 points are assigned within one group and the 3 /4 points are assigned within another group.

(I cut along these lines) ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____

How to give critical feedback • Before you speak, know the goals: What problem is the work trying to solve? What are the goals? If you don’t know the intention of the work it’s very difficult to offer careful evaluation and judgment. Remember the frying pan? If I don’t know what the creator is trying to achieve, how can I possibly offer any commentary that’s of value? Now it should be the creators job to inform me of what they’re trying to do, or tell me that they think it should be self-evident in the work, but if they don’t there’s not much harm in me asking “What are you trying to accomplish here?”, and it will save everyone much time and grief. If the problem is at the level of intention, discussion will ensue at that level instead of trying (and failing) to sort out intentions at the level of specific design choices.

• Talk as much about what it is, as what it isn’t. While it can be more efficient to focus on problems and what’s broken, rather than what’s good and working, if the creator can’t see both, there’s not much hope of their next choices being good ones. Make sure you spend as much energy helping them to see and keep the strong parts of what they’ve done as you help them see the weaker and more questionable parts.

(I cut along these lines) ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____

How to give critical feedback • Good and bad, is not the same as what you like or don’t like. You must shatter the idea that anything you like is good, and anything you don’t is bad. If you can’t separate your personal preferences from more abstract analysis of a kind of work, then you will rarely provide much useful feedback: criticism is not about you. It’s about the work you are viewing and the person that made it. Your personal preferences only get in the way of providing the work (and its maker or possible consumers) with useful information. Learn to see the good and respectable attributes in work you do not like: they are there if you let yourself see them. For example: a good film review should evaluate the film’s merits somewhat independently from the reviewers’ personal tastes. It should be possible to read a review about a film the reviewer didn’t like, but be inclined to see it anyway based on the observations he made about its content, style, and form.

• Try the PNP sandwich (positive negative positive): I don’t like this idea much, but I think it can be a good one (see what I did there?) for dealing with people sensitive or new to receiving criticism. The idea is simple: find a way to alternate your feedback. Find something positive, then find something negative, then find another positive thing. It’s an easy way to develop trust and help people become comfortable with hearing other people’s opinion. I don’t like it because it has a touchy-feely vibe and it can lead to pretension and insincerity.

However, I have seen it work as a way to get strangers to warm up to each other, and eventually grow out of this little pattern of behavior.

(I cut along these lines) ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____

HOMEWORK I assign students the following homework for the following week: Read the Scott Berkun essay; answer the following questions; post your answers on your LP before next class. a. What does Scott Berkun asks CRITICS to do to GIVE critical feedback? b. What does Scott Berkun asks MAKERS to do to RECEIVE critical feedback? c. Write anything else you didn’t understand while reading it so we can discuss in class.

STEPS DURING THE 2nd LESSON STEP 1 - WARM UP (20 MINS)

(2-3mins) I project the key vocabulary posted on Canvas last week as a reminder. That includes the elicited vocabulary as well as the key vocabulary.

(Key Vocabulary: Analysis – evaluation – appreciation – criticism – review – study – commentary – discussion – exegesis – maker - critic)

(10-15 mins) I answer questions on anything students didn’t understand while reading the Scott Berkun essay as homework.

(20 mins) I elicit students’ previous experiences regarding Critiques during high school or art class etc. I split students into groups of 4-5 and I ask them to elaborate on their aptitude to critique using examples from their past experiences. I also ask them to assign one person within the group to write down everyone’s comments for a short presentation following the group’s get together.

Then one person in each group presents the group’s different accounts in 5 mins.

After the presentations we discuss cultural differences when critiquing someone else’s work. I give a couple of humorous examples from different cultural contexts. Example: In Italy or Greece critiques take the form of argumentation. This is part of the Southern European cultures and thus unavoidable but this is uncommon in Anglo-Saxon cultures/contexts such as the US.

I project on the wall the following excerpt from Scott Berkun’s essay which brings back the discussion to an American context and since we read this in class last week by repeating it students retain it better and understand the purpose of reading this essay:

How to give critical feedback The verb criticize, once a neutral word somewhere between praise and censure, is now mainly used in a negative sense. To say “He criticized me for being so friendly” generally means something different and less positive than “He made me think about the possible effects of being so friendly”. crit•i•cal (adj.)

1. Inclined to judge severely and find fault.

2. Characterized by careful, exact evaluation and judgment: a critical reading.

The expectation is that students will feel more comfortable and informed and may talk about their own experiences more openly as well as contribute more during critiques.

STEP 2 – FOCUS PRACTICE (40 MINS) I base the following exercises (focus practice) on the discussion above.

(10mins) I split students in groups of 4-5; I’m careful to assign students in groups that haven’t had a chance to meet; and I ask them to discuss the above statement by giving their individual take on how a critique can be helpful. After 5 mins I switch groups in a jigsaw so students have a chance to discuss and hear different answers.

At the end I answer any questions students have after their feedback sessions.

(15mins) Critique Sample: I pick one student - maker to critique his/her work and one student to be the critic.

The maker talks about: The concept and why he/she chose it His/her intentions for this work The material choices and the reasons he/she used them

The critic gives feedback on: The concept and its strengths and weaknesses If he/she thinks the intentions of the maker are observable Alternative materials to consider and why she/he believes they may improve the work

(15 mins) Following the critique, I ask students to give a written response to 3 different points on the critique just completed. The person presented the work (maker) will be writing a selfcritique and the critic will be revisiting the points he/she made and writing them down:

In 1-2 paragraphs write an in-depth response for each critique point. Your response should be constructive comparably to a response that YOU, as a maker, wish you could get from someone else.

1. CONCEPT: Give feedback on the concept. Talk about its strengths and weaknesses. Think of points that may not have been considered and have been touched on the surface and need further development.

2. INTENTIONS: After hearing the maker talk about his/her intentions can you observe those intentions on the work itself?

3. MATERIALS: The material choices and the reasons the maker used them. Give alternative materials to the maker to consider and give the reasons you believe these changes on materials may improve the work. Be explicit with your reasoning.

STEP 3 – COMMUNICATIVE PRACTICE (2hrs + 20/30mins)

Group discussion around the Ground Rules. (15 mins). I elicit responses for each rule, I write them on the board.

(15 mins) In a sentence or two respond to each of Berkun’s Ground Rules.

Scott Berkun’s Ground Rules - I post the Rules on Canvas

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Take control of your feedback process – BE IN CONTROL Write down one example of how you can control the feedback you are given during critiques.

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Pick your partners – FIND HONEST CRITICS Describe a way you can find helpful critics. How do you look for the right person to give you constructive feedback?

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Strive to hear it all, informally and early – IMRPOVE YOUR ARTWORK Give one example of how you can obtain feedback to improve your work. Be specific.

(10mins) Key Vocabulary: Analysis – evaluation – appreciation – criticism – review – study – commentary – discussion – exegesis.

We revisit the key vocabulary. I ask students to write down one word that they think describes Critique better! Which word would they prefer to use instead? Give reasons. They post this on ELP.

(180mins) This is a full Critique for all 18 students.

I assign each student with a role and I group 2 students together to exchange roles as a maker and as a critic. Students apply what was discussed in class during the first 2 sample critiques.

Each critique is 10 mins long and we leave 3-4mins in the end of each critique for feedback from other students who have additional comments.

For each student I print out and hand them the guide below with suggestions how to start a critique question in case they need help:

Questions for Makers: Acknowledge & Agree Im glad you asked me that…

Good question That makes a lot of sense, and…

I can appreciate that that’s an important concern and,…

Thank you for the question…

I agree (that)…

I (totally) agree with you (that)…

I agree with the idea

Acknowledge & Disagree I respectfully disagree…

Im glad you asked me that, but…

I don’t agree because…

I understand what you mean, but…

I think about this differently…

I see why you say that, but…

I was more concerned with…

I understand how that could be confusing; I was more interested in… however,…

That is an interesting point, however,…

Acknowledge & Non-Response That’s an interesting point Thanks I’’ think about that That’s that’s helpful This is new work for me so im still thinking it through. What I can say at this time is…

Clarification So, are you asking about…?

What do you mean by…?

Could you talk about this more?

Questions for Critics: Observation The first thing I noticed (about this piece) was…

Looking carefully, I see…

Strength For me/I think/my opinion …… is particularly successful because…

Im really drawn to…

I was struck by…

My favorite part of this piece is… because…

Interpretation It reminds me of…

From what I see here, I would say…

Now that I’ve been looking at this piece for a while, I’m thinking…

Suggestion I really like…but you might want to think about…

If I were you, I would…

Continuing the conversation I agree, and I would add that…

Compared to the last piece we looked at, this one is…

What you just said makes me think…

Feedback on homework assignment: I elicit the points students didn’t understand while reading the essay at home. My hope is that by now they have revisited the statement or question and have figured out what most things mean. In any case, I respond to anything left unanswered.