As my internship comes to a close, there are a few points I’d like to discuss. First, the challenges. This internship experience was one of my first experiences creating content for professional expectation. Throughout my time in undergrad as a communication student, I have been creating and curating content for a grade. This differs from professional expectation. The content and videos I have created are out there and on the internet forever, as tools for not only Longwood students but college students across the nation. This adds a certain amount pressure that I did not experience in the classroom. My name, credibility and skills are in the hands of an audience I will most likely never meet. So the challenge of creating videos has gone from a learning process, to real world application. Combining the theories and technical skills I’ve learned to create educational content. Apart from the content itself, a skill that I previously underestimated was time management. Personally I believe this skill is what differentiates a great employee from a mediocre one. I have not mastered the skill of time management but I have gotten a better grasp of it. This was a huge challenge for me, learning what methods work best for me and how to create a timeline and stick to it. The other main challenge for me was mastering the technology I was teaching. Some of the topics I discussed I already understood, but many of them I did not and learned for the first time. This was sometimes frustrating because if I did not understand the object I was teaching then I could not teach it to it’s full potential. Often times I had to do hours of research before I truly understood the entire subject.

The next topic I want to discuss are the skills I’ve learned and how this internship has effected my career search. One skill I’ve become more comfortable with is the video capture and editing. This was the base skill of the entire internship. The theoretical aspects make the videos better, but If I cannot make the videos then it doesn’t really matter. So becoming more comfortable with editing softwares was something I wanted to get out of this internship and I believe I am more well-versed with the editing technology than when I first started. Another skill I’ve developed throughout my internship is understanding my role as an instructor and full-filling that role. Much of what I’ve come to learn about instructional videos, came from my online classes. I often found myself rewatching online lectures to better understand the process. I believe in the end I have come to understand the importance of the instructional tone and planning the tutorials. As for my future career endeavors, this internship has taught me that there are always going to be people who need help. There will always be a market and audience for niche tutorial videos. I had to do my own research and sometimes that meant watching other tutorial videos on Youtube with millions of views. People are making legitimate money doing the same thing I did this semester.

Overall I believe I achieved most of the goals I set for this internship. One of my main goals was creating a tutorial people are actually going to use.  Around week five, I created a tutorial video on the graduate writing center. Many graduate students are older and did not see the digital integration that has taken place since they graduated, so they have a harder time grasping these digital academic tools. Longwood took this video and posted it on their website because so many student were having troubles. This gave me a sense a fulfillment, because one of my videos was actually being used. Another goal of mine was to become better at managing my time. Although I have not mastered this skill to it’s entirety, I believe I have a better understanding of professional time management and it’s importance.

Finally, my internship supervisor was a great mentor to me. She believed in my capabilities and taught me how to be a better educator. She was behind me the whole time, providing me with opportunities to showcase my work. She is sharing all my work with her faculty peers as well as putting my videos on her youtube channel. She was uplifting and catered to my needs but at the same time made sure I was on track. She was also a good role model, she works hard and loves the students she teaches. Seeing that love for education made it easier to do the work I was tasked with. I would definitely recommend that more communication students ask to work with her and she’s already looking for another intern next semester.

Some examples of my work:

Video Title: How to embed a presentation

For this video I used the quicktime screen capture method to record how to embed and presentation into a canvas discussion. In the video I point out the steps as well as the importance and benefits of presentations. I had to plan out and write what I said before I started recording.

Video Title: How to Find Scholarly Article In the Greenwood Library Website

In this video I used the screen capture method to detail how to find a scholarly article from the library’s website. Similar to my other videos this took time to plan out and I had to restart it frequently cause it contains a fair amount of content. In addition to the steps I talk about what makes an article scholarly and when it’s appropriate to use for research papers. I also included how to use the quick “cite” icon that shows you all the different citations.

Video Title: Peer Review With a Rubric

Like my other videos I used the screen capture method and planning to create it. I detail the steps but also the importance of peer review and how it can help students preform better. This was an assignment specific tutorial so most of the content was laid out, I just had to put it all together and make it concise and easy to understand.

Video Title: Canvas Collaboration:

For this video I detailed the collaborations tool on canvas using the screen capture method. This was one tool I was not familiar with and had to teach myself. I outlined the steps and uses showing how this tool is beneficial to students and faculty.

Internship Presentation final

If you click the attached link it will take you to my Fall showcase presentation. I created a poster highlighting my internship and then attended a showcase and talked about it with peers. For this I used powerpoint and added QR codes so people could watch example videos during my presentation.

Two theoretical aspects of communication that informed and influenced me throughout this internship would be: Model of Persuasion specifically Ethos, and The Uses and Gratification Model, which centers around media.

The concept of ethos was something I kept coming back to throughout my internship. Ethos can be summed up as one’s credibility. When making instructional videos or teaching any skill, your audience has to trust that you are an expert worth listening to. This required me to understand and master the technologies I was teaching. I had to appear as credible. I did this by not only confirming the right steps to take, but why they’re important and how the technology can help students. For example: When teaching how to view assignment feedback based on a rubric, I did not only discuss how to find the feedback but why it was important for students to frequently check their professors responses. It has the potential to make the students not only understand the material better but their professors’ expectations. This brief explanation helps build audience satisfaction.

The second theory revolves around media. The Uses and Gratification model suggests that individuals use media to satisfy various emotional and intellectual needs. So when creating a tutorial, establishing those needs helps me understand my audience better. Students use the media I have been creating to help them better understand digital academic tools, that is their need. However, there is also a need from faculty. They need these tutorial videos so they do not have to explain the same steps to every student. So making sure that I hit every aspect of the desired technology was something to consider when making tutorials. Establishing the entirety of my audience and their specific needs, influenced the way I created my videos.

A few classes that have prepared me for this internship would be: digital editing classes, Persuasion Theory, Social and digital media technologies, and public speaking.

My digital editing classes have provided me with the skills necessary to use most editing softwares.  Not only the mechanics and technical aspects, but how to make videos look good so they are appealing to a specific audience. This class also taught me how important organization is when making videos. It’s very easy to lose material when you do not place and name files appropriately.  Persuasion theory, while it did not teach me any softwares, taught me how to understand my audience. This is a very important  and often overlooked aspect of creating instructional videos. You have to know what you’re talking about so your audience trusts you. Persuasion theory taught me ethos and logos and how to use them to my advantage from an instructional standpoint. This class also taught me ethics of persuasion. There is a method in capturing your audience, and you must balance your ethos and logos with ethical decisions.  Another class that has contributed towards my internship work is social and digital media technologies. This class made me more comfortable around a computer and social media, which is the whole nature of this internship.  Additionally, this class taught me about branding and honing in on your “voice”.  In making these videos, I have targeted a niche audience. Longwood University is now my public, so understanding that relationship has shaped my voice and the way I create tutorials. I’m not necessarily  marketing or using social media to create a profit, but understanding media technologies and the relationship with the audience is key.  Finally, a class that has helped me in my internship so far would be public speaking. I’m speaking over all of my videos and that requires confidence in yourself. Public speaking helped me gain that confidence and showed me the importance of writing out what you say before you say it.

Since my last journal entry I have learned a few things. To start it off, I’ve learned that I need to put more time into my work. When I take more time I not only understand that technology more but how to teach it better. So as I make the videos, I can self-edit as I go, rather than creating work as fast as I can. I’ve also been tasked with creating quizzes for each video. This process has taught me how to create the instructional voice better and create content that is easier to understand. If I cant answer my own questions I need to go back and add the needed content.

The biggest challenge I’ve faced is coming back to the internship course. I’m so hyper focused on the work itself that I often forget to log hours or keep track of assignments as they come up. I mentioned it in the last post, but time management is still an issue for me. I’m beginning to understand the importance of that process a little more.  I think doing an internship in the fall while still taking classes is a little different than a full time job or taking a summer internship because I can focus solely on the work. Where as in the fall I have to balance my senior classes with the internship workload.

That being said, being able to manage your time appropriately is an important skill in any field. This is one of the first times I’ve dealt with professional deadlines. Working with a deadline will help prepare me for future work that is centered around a specific time table. Beyond the craft itself of creating instructional videos, the little things are what I need to focus on, such as: going back over my work to look for any mistakes, clear communication with my boss or supervisor and keeping my content organized.

Perhaps my biggest problem is time management. This has always been an issue but this internship has taught me a lot about assignments outside of the classroom. I have to meet with my advisor once a week, to check in an update my progress. Going to these meetings with created content and a plan for future content is crucial. I’ve been learning how to meet professional expectations and talk to elders in a professional setting.

The nature of my internship is learning and mastering certain technologies and then creating instructional videos on how to use them. One consistent roadblock is learning these technologies for myself. Some of these are new to me, so in order for me to be able to teach them I have to master them. Another challenge is creating that narrative and voice within my videos without losing my personality. My aim is to make these videos easy to listen to and part of that by just being myself. Balancing that instructional tone with my own voice has been quite the task. Another challenging aspect of my internship is that sometimes I have to ask for help. In creating one video I had to do a live session with a professor. I had to go to this professor schedule dates and plan the live session so it could go according to plan. During that live session I actually learned a lot about the technology I was teaching, being able to use that content in order to create a well-rounded instructional video was challenging.

In terms of future use of the skills I am developing/mastering, I hope to being able to edit and create video content. I’m also starting to enjoy the instructional aspect of this internship and I think I have a good voice for these types of videos. Another skill this internship is teaching me is the ability to take an outline i’ve written and turn it into audio and visual content. I think this is a valued skill in the field of digital media that will benefit me moving forward

Starting college can be extremely scary with all of the new concepts being thrown at you. It is a whole new way of living and the work can be very different. Writing is crucial to many college classes. Unlike high school level writing, college level writing can be a bit more thorough. Professors tend to look for key elements in your essays. One of the most essential parts to any essay is the thesis statement. Learning how to form a thesis statement is very important. A thesis statement is an imperative trait to form a strong essay. Normally one or two sentences, a thesis unifies and provides direction for a piece of writing.

There are two main reasons why thesis statements are so important for an essay.

• First, the writer develops a thesis to create a focus on an essay’s main idea. It is important for the writer to be able to write the main idea in a few sentences to create a clear idea for the paper. Not only does the thesis guide the reader, but also the writer. The thesis provides direction to help the writer keep their paper organized.
• Second, having a well-crafted thesis statement helps the reader understand the main idea of the essay. The thesis statement sets the reader up for the rest of the essay. Usually at the end of the introduction paragraph, the thesis leads into the body paragraph, which provides evidence and ideas to back up the thesis. The thesis statement is important because it tells the audience what they will be reading about.

Because thesis statements are essential in any essay, it is important for writers to understand what makes up a solid thesis. As the basis of an essay, a thesis must support three things: audience, purpose, and content. This basically just means answer who, why, and what in your thesis. Who are you writing this thesis for? Be sure to identify the audience to clarify who your paper is for. Why are you writing this thesis? Establish a purpose to ensure that the reader knows the direction of your paper. What will be included in this thesis? Determine the key points of your essay and include them in your thesis.

Here is a comparison to help you understand the importance: The role of a thesis statement is like the role of the sun in the solar system. Just as the planets orbit the sun in the solar system, the different parts of an essay orbit the thesis statement. The planets feed off of the sun, just like the body paragraphs and conclusion feed off of the thesis.

Your audience should be able to easily find the thesis in your essay. The thesis statement should be clear and concise so the reader can identify it and efficiently understand the meaning of the paper. If someone can’t find the thesis in your essay, go back and make sure that you created a meaningful and well-understood thesis.

All styles of writing are different, but a strong thesis is something that they all share.

Quotes are words taken from another source that the author places into his or her paper; and they are very important while writing papers in the academic world and for writing in many career fields. The affective use of quotes within a paper can be the difference between and A and a B. Quotations are important because they help you back up your main point, can add length and depth to the paper, and allow the audience to trust you. Quotes can also affect all three parts of writing, the purpose, context and audience. Quotes can help convey the purpose, make up the context of the writing and affect the relationship between the author and audience, which shows that the good or bad use of quotes can influence a papers grade. Quotations are similar to a protein shake after working out; they help make your writing stronger after all the hard work you put in.

While writing papers (especially in the academic world) if you are ever making an argument you must remember to back up that argument. The way to do that is using quotations. By taking words from professionals you can make your point much more credible. They help you back up what you are trying to say and make it easier to convey your purpose in a paper.

Quotes help beef up your writing too. Many academic papers will have a word or page limit, and if you ever find yourself trying to reach a certain amount or words or pages, quotes can help. They add more words and can also help string into other ideas about the topic or argument. Many academic papers will also require quotations as criteria toward the grade, which in such cases they directly affect the context and content of the paper.

Another huge aspect of writing papers is the relationship between the author and audience. All audiences want to trust the author and know what they are saying is factual. If the audience does not trust the author they would most likely not even want to evaluate the paper. Trust greatly influences a positive or negative view of the writer and the paper. A good way to earn trust is the use of quotations. Using quotations means that the author did some sort of research on the topic they are writing about. Researching means that the author has knowledge on the topic and knows what he or she is saying. So by using quotes you let the audience know that they can trust you because what you’re saying is backed up by facts.

So as you can see, as you enter the academic world it is ideal to learn how to affectively use quotes. Quotes are a very important aspect to writing they can “beef up” a paper. Properly used quotes help back up an argument by providing substantial evidence, they give the author credit by proving that he or she knows what they’re writing about and they add depth to any paper.

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