Core Competency: Communication
Communication: The ability to communicate effectively across a variety of contexts using written, oral, quantitative, graphic, and other visual modes of communication. These skills ensure professional and persuasive presentation in the workplace and communities.
Context
Course Information: DIGC1600: A History Of Digital Culture
Creation Date: December 12, 2023
Description of Artifact:
My final DIGC1600 narrated video presentation project, What Hath Man Brought, explores recurring patterns in humanity's interaction with technology, drawing parallels from the telegraph era to modern innovations like social media and AI. Inspired by historical analysis, it highlights how technological advancements intended to enhance communication often have unforeseen cultural consequences. Through generative artificial intelligence graphics and voiceover, the project examines society's recurring cycle of excitement and fear in response to new technologies, noting that today's cautious approach to AI mirrors past reactions to innovations. The work suggests that these cycles reveal fundamental aspects of human behavior and societal change, and encourages deeper reflection from the viewer on how evolving technologies reshape human connection and communication norms.
Skills, Knowledge of Abilities Demonstrated
Specific Skills/Knowledge:
Innovative Communication of Complex Ideas: Demonstrates the ability to clearly convey complex technological and societal concepts in a clear, visual way which encourages reflection and discussion.
Awareness of Societal and Ethical Implications: Visually communicates an understanding of broader societal implications of technology, including ethical considerations and human behavior patterns in response to innovation.
Historical and Comparative Analysis: Demonstrates the ability to vocalize parallels between historical technological innovations and modern digital advancements, providing insights into recurring societal patterns, bridging old and new forms of communication.
Critical Thinking and Reflection: Shows the capacity to evaluate the impact of technology on human communication and culture, questioning both the benefits and unintended consequences.
Research and Interpretation: Highlights strong research skills by referencing historical texts and integrating them into a modern context to support the analysis.
Connection to the Core Competency
Relevance:
Visual, Audio and Graphic Communication: The project powerfully conveys information across multiple visual modes including generative artificial intelligence visuals, narrated video components, text and musical audio elements.
Professional Presentation: The artifact models the ability to present research findings in a visually compelling, structured and thoughtful manner, essential for both professional reports and community engagement efforts.
Written Communication: The artifact effectively conveys complex ideas through a well-structured narrative and crisp textual elements, demonstrating an ability to communicate insights clearly and persuasively in visual and video form.
Contextual Awareness: By comparing historical and contemporary technologies, the project shows an understanding of how communication evolves across different contexts, tailoring the message to diverse audiences.
Analytical Persuasion: The artifact presents a compelling analysis which persuades viewers to reflect upon the societal impact of technological advancements, a key component of effective workplace communication.
Challenges and Solutions
Challenge: Communicating Complex Ideas Clearly
Solution: Simplified complex concepts through concise language, compelling graphic visuals and thoughtful explanations to ensure clarity for readers from diverse backgrounds.
Challenge: Engaging a Modern Audience
Solution: Incorporated contemporary examples such as social media and artificial intelligence to make the project relatable and accessible to a modern audience, bridging the gap between past and present.
Challenge: Structuring the Analysis
Solution: Used a clear and logical structure, starting with historical context, followed by modern comparisons, and concluding with reflections on future implications.
Challenge: Effectively Drawing Historical Parallels
Solution: Conducted in-depth research on past technological innovations to find and distill accurate and relevant parallels to modern technologies, ensuring historical accuracy and meaningful connections.
Challenge: Balancing Objectivity and Persuasion
Solution: Focused on communicating both the positive and negative impacts of technology to maintain a balanced perspective while still making a persuasive argument.
Impact on Professional and Academic Growth
Professional Growth:
Creating this artifact enhanced my critical thinking and communication skills, particularly in analyzing complex concepts and presenting them clearly to diverse audiences through a heavy process of editing and distillation. Moreover, it was a lot of fun to create! The process improved my ability to draw meaningful historical parallels, strengthening my research and analytical abilities. It also deepened my awareness of how to communicate the societal impact of technology, a valuable perspective in professional settings such as my work environment in a busy newsroom, where innovation and ethics intersect. This experience taught me how to convey persuasive, well-structured arguments across various contexts, which going forward will contribute to my effectiveness in workplace communication and decision-making.
Academic Growth:
This artifact significantly contributed to my academic growth by enhancing my research, analysis, and critical thinking skills. It also taught me the power of editing, and saying more with less. By exploring historical and modern technological parallels, I developed a deeper understanding of how innovations shape society over time, but also being able to communicate that process of change. This improved my ability to synthesize complex ideas into clear, structured arguments, strengthening both my written communication and interpretive skills, something I have actively incorporated into my professional life and have started to coach others around me to do. Additionally, this project challenged me to engage with future-facing ethical questions surrounding technology, encouraging a more thoughtful approach to academic inquiry. Overall, it sharpened my ability to conduct interdisciplinary research and communicate findings effectively in an academic setting.
Self-Evaluation
Rubric Score You Think You Earned For This Submission: 20
The artifact is one of my favorites from my time at Penn. It reflects strong communication skills by effectively synthesizing academic and personal experience to convey insights across diverse contexts and time periods. The content is creative, well-developed, clearly structured, and compelling, demonstrating a deep passion for the subject while maintaining clarity and fluency of communication. In holding firm to the rigor of brevity, I was able to craft conclusions which were logical and persuasive, further developing an ability to craft professional, audience-appropriate narratives that are essential for workplace and community communication, and which I continue to expand and evolve for myself.
Survey
This artifact helped me demonstrate growth within the competency of Communication by showcasing my ability to distill and present complex ideas about technology and society in a clear, engaging, and accessible way. By combining historical analysis, modern examples, and generative AI visuals, I learned to craft a narrative that connects with diverse audiences while maintaining both clarity and depth. The process refined my skills in structuring arguments, integrating multimedia elements, and communicating persuasive insights, essential tools for effective academic and professional communication. This project reinforced the importance of balancing creativity with precision, a lesson I continue to apply in my work and academic endeavors.
