I love this format and have not tried it this way. My year 12 students often get very lost at this stage when I’m easing off the direct teaching and handing the ideas over to them to figure out. I used to do a lesson where they had to condense their initial idea onto an A2 mood board with images and annoations in one lesson, I’d pin these up as soon as they made them so we could refer to them as the projects progress. This used to work but it began to feel a bit too pressured and the research would be a bit superficial. I’ll have to give tour way a whirl this year - thanks again for sharing.
Embracing Chance, Structures, Urbanisation, Chasing Light, Dynamism, Soft Evidence, The infra-ordinary, Distortion/Abstraction, Surfaces, Subjective Photography, Contrasting Landscapes, The Overlooked, Taking Up Space, Liminal Spaces, Backstreets, Nature in the City, Framing the City/Edges, The City in Motion, Image & Text
It's tricky isn't it? Students only know what they know. I'm hoping this approach is an impetus for looking at lots of great images and that this leads to interesting questions/directions. Interested to know how you get on. Maybe we could share our students' investigation ideas by about Easter...?
Great ideas so far, my group aren’t quite there yet with being able to put titles to their photos but there’s some interesting stuff emerging; self portraiture, architecture, night photography, still life, suburban and rural spaces, historic sites.
Great stuff, I’ll be happy to share their progress. We’re embarking on a week of experimenting with physically manipulating our photos. Each student picks a prompt at random eg. Tear, destroy, repeat, shatter and has a week to break down and rebuild their photos. I may try and get a post together about it.
That sounds fun. I'm still reeling from seeing Steinmetz and Guidi on the same day (plus listening to Wolves give away 2 penalties and 3 goals in the first half!) A big day of learning ;-)
Your students are so lucky to have you, Jon. It’s so important for them to understand that language comes in many forms. My son is a visual learner- he struggled terribly with exams as he has slow processing speed. However, visually things come to him quickly & easily. He also did an A level in photography & thrived.
That’s very kind Deborah. The fascinating encounter between pictures and words has defined my career as a teacher. I do believe that it’s possible to think without words.
I like both your and the student's approach. Very recently, someone commented on a photo I have posted on Facebook, saying something along these lines - your photos always make me feel insecure, riddled with anxiety and pensive. I was not sure whether to like the comment or find it troublesome. We do need to be able to speak about our photos, aside from making them appealing or algorithm-worthy.
Thanks Crina. My training is in English Literature and Art History so that inevitably shapes my approach. I have so much empathy for students who struggle to articulate their feelings in words and I believe in the notion of visual literacy (without words). Trying to find a balance between words and images in photography education is a constant challenge. I'm enjoying the idea of photographs as maps, or thresholds. Imagine all but one of your photographs were destroyed. Which one would you hope had survived to explain the entirety of your work to future generations?
I am vain, but not that vain as to think about my posterity as an artist. But your reference to Fernweh, which is the only book I have read of those you listed, is important, because it summarizes my approach to what I have photographed along 18 years or so. A longing overlapping with coldness. Difficult to explain, but familiar to feel (for me). I'm heading to messenger to ask for your postal address.
I love this format and have not tried it this way. My year 12 students often get very lost at this stage when I’m easing off the direct teaching and handing the ideas over to them to figure out. I used to do a lesson where they had to condense their initial idea onto an A2 mood board with images and annoations in one lesson, I’d pin these up as soon as they made them so we could refer to them as the projects progress. This used to work but it began to feel a bit too pressured and the research would be a bit superficial. I’ll have to give tour way a whirl this year - thanks again for sharing.
Here's what they've got so far:
Embracing Chance, Structures, Urbanisation, Chasing Light, Dynamism, Soft Evidence, The infra-ordinary, Distortion/Abstraction, Surfaces, Subjective Photography, Contrasting Landscapes, The Overlooked, Taking Up Space, Liminal Spaces, Backstreets, Nature in the City, Framing the City/Edges, The City in Motion, Image & Text
Need refining but plenty of potential.
It's tricky isn't it? Students only know what they know. I'm hoping this approach is an impetus for looking at lots of great images and that this leads to interesting questions/directions. Interested to know how you get on. Maybe we could share our students' investigation ideas by about Easter...?
Great ideas so far, my group aren’t quite there yet with being able to put titles to their photos but there’s some interesting stuff emerging; self portraiture, architecture, night photography, still life, suburban and rural spaces, historic sites.
Great stuff, I’ll be happy to share their progress. We’re embarking on a week of experimenting with physically manipulating our photos. Each student picks a prompt at random eg. Tear, destroy, repeat, shatter and has a week to break down and rebuild their photos. I may try and get a post together about it.
That sounds fun. I'm still reeling from seeing Steinmetz and Guidi on the same day (plus listening to Wolves give away 2 penalties and 3 goals in the first half!) A big day of learning ;-)
Sounds like quite a day! 😅
Your students are so lucky to have you, Jon. It’s so important for them to understand that language comes in many forms. My son is a visual learner- he struggled terribly with exams as he has slow processing speed. However, visually things come to him quickly & easily. He also did an A level in photography & thrived.
That’s very kind Deborah. The fascinating encounter between pictures and words has defined my career as a teacher. I do believe that it’s possible to think without words.
I like both your and the student's approach. Very recently, someone commented on a photo I have posted on Facebook, saying something along these lines - your photos always make me feel insecure, riddled with anxiety and pensive. I was not sure whether to like the comment or find it troublesome. We do need to be able to speak about our photos, aside from making them appealing or algorithm-worthy.
Thanks Crina. My training is in English Literature and Art History so that inevitably shapes my approach. I have so much empathy for students who struggle to articulate their feelings in words and I believe in the notion of visual literacy (without words). Trying to find a balance between words and images in photography education is a constant challenge. I'm enjoying the idea of photographs as maps, or thresholds. Imagine all but one of your photographs were destroyed. Which one would you hope had survived to explain the entirety of your work to future generations?
I am vain, but not that vain as to think about my posterity as an artist. But your reference to Fernweh, which is the only book I have read of those you listed, is important, because it summarizes my approach to what I have photographed along 18 years or so. A longing overlapping with coldness. Difficult to explain, but familiar to feel (for me). I'm heading to messenger to ask for your postal address.