Assignment Description
I have assigned this collaborative, video-based digital media project in a large-enrollment (110 students) chemistry lab course to pique students' curiosity and wonder by allowing them to explore their ideas and questions about a chemistry topic of their choosing. The project is highly scaffolded and is easily adaptable for other teaching contexts. I've annotated the description to help other instructors understand my decisions.
The Digital Media Project (DMP) gives you the opportunity to explore a chemical product or process that interests you and then to produce a 3-5 minute movie or photo story which creatively teaches something about the chemistry. The completed project must effectively illustrate the chosen chemistry and should be self-explanatory to a knowledgeable layperson; i.e. the "point" of the project should be clear without explanation. Exceptional projects will be both technically sound and aesthetically pleasing.