Logo

I think my personal logo creation was much better than the Learning Technologies one I submitted. I think the current logo is a bit busy, and I had some problems fitting the text into the circle. I really do not like white backgrounds that much as they seem too simple; however, that was all I could really work with here.

What do you think?

VS.

CBI Screen Design

In the module presented in this website, I reviewed the history of the color red in Asian culture, specifically Korean culture. The Korean cultural perception of the color red differs significantly from the general Asian cultural perception of red. While most Asian cultures perceive red as a symbol of luck or happiness (keep in mind a common underlying theme of passionate emotions that is consistent with Western culture), Korean culture somehow ended up associating red with feelings of trust and belongingness. 

In Life or Death: The Color Red in Asian Culture, I review the history of the Korean language and identify some possible connections between this unique perception of red and the development of Hangeul (the Korean alphabet).  

I made sure to focus on organization, setting up my pages so that students can click on tabs going from right to left as they progress through the module. First, the students will read the overview, explaining what all the module will cover. Next, the students will read the discussion I posted on the abovementioned linguistic connection. After they finish skimming through this reading, they will continue on to the next tab where they will take a five-item assessment. Finally, they will move on to the last tab--a discussion forum--where they will discuss the reading, the assessment, and their own personal responses to the topic.

Website

When creating my website, I tried to include color and images where possible. However, I had several issues with the free website hosting service. I've never had problems with freewebs.com before, but this past week, I have been in a constant battle against Freewebs glitches, struggling to keep my font choices from changing on a whim and to be able to upload images. Right now, I'm just going for simplicity. 

Graph/Chart

I created this table in Microsoft Excel, using different shades of red to indicate the statistical results for each year indicated in the accompanying labels. I then copy-pasted this table into Microsoft Word and used a clipart depiction of an antique gas pump to further connect the statistics and fuel using red as the common theme.

Pop Art Decorations. (n.d.). Red Gas Pump [Digital visualization]. Retrieved from http://www.popartdecoration.com/projects/gas-pump-cabinet-red-2281-1425-2074-2.jpg

Print Layout Design

At first, I wasn't quite sure how to format this portfolio component--especially concerning how exactly I should incorporate design elements when using a rather boring and limited template. When reviewing several examples of print layout designs, I realized that most of these layouts used basic text but included some type of colorful logo/design in the top right corner of the first page of the document. Following suit, I made a little design using the color red where possible to include within my otherwise black-and-white document.

Another thing I was unsure about was what exactly I should do with the lorem ipsum filler text when pasting this into the test items and references sections. I wasn't sure if I should try to format it as assessment items or reference citations would be if I were using actual text. In the end, I just went ahead and changed this--just to be safe. 

When I saved it as a PPT, it deleted some spaces between paragraphs. However, the format contains the required spaces when in Word.

Book Cover

For the book cover, I photoshopped an image that was originally in full color. This served as the background with red serif text dominating the foreground: the use of a serif font creates a bolder statement.

Colors used/related emotions:

• Silver = femininity
• Red = danger, passion, fire
• Brown = orderliness, earthiness

In my discussion of the design concepts present in this book cover, I will analyze each element, working from background to foreground. I took a picture of an eye and juxtaposed this with its mirror image, thereby utilizing symmetrical balance--where images have the same or nearly the same mass--to further emphasize the differences between these two images.

I faded out and blurred the color in the background so as to create a silver background--thus establishing the concept of femininity. Then I increased the contrast on the brown iris; the color brown typically indicates a feeling of earthiness and orderliness. Thus this creates a sort of contrast with the chaotic red text. The red text likely appears foremost within the depth of this image, emphasizing the concepts of danger, fire, and vitality.

Printable Poster

This poster was created in PowerPoint using a 24" X 36" template I downloaded from Microsoft’s online help site. I used Arial for the heading and downloaded a "digital" font for the subheadings. 

As my research topic discussed here involves the use of technology to promote student confidence within the classroom, I used the color red as this can symbolize confidence--in addition to vitality and courage.

Printable Poster References

Tall English. (2005). Motivation-Confidence Graph [Digital visualization]. Retrieved from http://blog.cito-lt.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Motivation_Confidence-graph.jpggration/

PowerPoint Presentation

This item was created in PowerPoint. I changed the color scheme of a past presentation I gave this semester, mentioned in an earlier post. It was a book report on Resonate--a book on PowerPoint design by Nancy Duarte. Essentially, the author highlights the presence of a "story arch" within the presentation pattern of many famous speeches. Duarte also emphasizes the importance of minimalism within PowerPoint presentations--thus my use of mainly just images. (I went over what each of these meant verbally and provided a discussion prompt at the end of the presentation so that students could reflect on the contents of the PPT.)

Within this PPT, I used the color red to tie together all the elements of Nancy Duarte's book—e.g. found clip art that included the color red, added a red hue to photos, etc.—as this color denotes the energy and excitement present within resonance.

PPT References

Cheezburger. (2010). Mr. Gorbachev. Tear down this wall [Digital visualization]. Retrieved from http://i.chzbgr.com/completestore/2010/3/2/129120359513574161.jpg

DBA Designs. (2011). Memory [Digital visualization]. Retrieved from http://www.dbadesigns.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/memory36969112_crop1-640x650.jpg

Hatchcock, B. (2008). Story Arch [Digital visualization]. Retrieved from http://quarterlyconversation.com/my-life-in-alumni-profiles

Kelner, S. (2011). Steve Jobs [Digital visualization]. Retrieved from http://www.independent.co.uk/incoming/article6280790.ece/ALTERNATES/w620/Steve-Jobs.jpg

La Mesa Courier. (2011). Martin Luther King, Jr. [Digital visualization]. Retrieved from http://scoopsandiego.com/la_mesa_courier/local_news/a-city-of-la-mesa-centennial-event-th-annual-la/article_c783b5da-42cc-11e1-9f89-0019bb30f31a.html?mode=image&photo=0

Red Bull Stratos. (2012). Felix Baumgartner [Digital visualization]. Retrieved from www.redbullstratos.com/the-team/felix-baumgartner/

Tzadok, O. (n.d.). Abstract Art [Digital visualization]. Retrieved from www.osnatfineart.com

US History. (2012). Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness [Digital visualization]. Retrieved from www.ushistory.org/declaration/document/

USPS (n.d.). Liberty Bell Stamp [Digital visualization]. Retrieved from https://store.usps.com/store/

Diagram

I created this diagram using an online program: Lucid Charts (https://www.lucidchart.com/). This diagram covers the meaning behind each color, showing that different shades and combinations of colors affect and alter the original emotions symbolized by the primary colors. For instance, red is typically considered to be a symbol for lust, and white is typically considered to be a symbol of purity. Then, when these two colors are combined to create pink, the resulting emotion is a purer form of lust: love.

Handout/Flyer

For this item, I did print screen to capture snippets of an old manuscript border. I pieced these together in Microsoft Paint and then stretched this out to cover the background of my flyer.

After some reflection on the color scheme I would need to implement for this flyer, I decided upon dark blue, dark red/maroon, and the light yellow-ish color of the manuscript background. The manuscript was originally darker at the top of the image, so I flipped the background, thus making the item brighter at the top, darkening gradually as you look down the page.

•          Dark Blue: knowledge
•          Lt. Yellow: intellect
•          Dark Red/Maroon: uses brown to mute the brightness and energy present in the color red, thus creating a more "organized" and "sedated" version

As far as the text, I arranged this in such a way that it would allow the viewer's eye to be guided in a somewhat unique path as it follows the content flow.

Initially, I had difficulty with the topic puzzle piece as the blue here was too bright and was distracting--especially as it was so close to the heading. I reformatted this puzzle piece, choosing a darker hue with less contrast.

The text for this flyer was taken from http://iass-ais.org/. This is the official website for the International Association for Semiotics Studies.