Chapter 1

Bringing visual appreciation intofocus: Using Flickr for critique and

collaborative feedback

Diane Robbie & Lynette Zeeng

IntroductionIt is said that a picture tells a thousandwords. While this may be true, in the teachingof photography in design programs students’visual literacy needs to be explored, expandedand articulated. Education in the 21st Centuryhas transformed the higher education paradigm,creating innovative opportunities that enable,empower and engage student learning. Theliterature acknowledges the appropriateness ofconstructivist approaches to teaching andlearning in higher education (Biggs J. (2003);Entwistle N., Entwistle A. & Tait H. 1993;Jonassen D., Mayes T. & McAleese R. 1993; andYang, Yeh & Wong 2010) where deeper levels ofknowledge achievement and engagement arepromoted. The application of student-centredconstructivism, along with the affordances andcapabilities of educational technologies, hasthe capacity to improve learning outcomes.Responding to generational changes and diversestudent cohorts (McCarthy 2010) through theadoption of social media has increased

engagement of 21st century students bycatering to their need to engage in ‘an activelearning experience that is social,participatory and supported by rich media’(McLoughlin & Lee 2010 p.28). Visuals created with new technologies arechanging what it means to be literate. In the21st century, the ability to interpret andcreate visual, digital and audio media is aform of literacy as basic as reading andwriting and needs to be incorporated into thecurriculum. Visual literacy is now ‘integralto how we work, entertain, communicate, andeducate’ Bleed (2005 p.10). This case study describes a subject wherestudents are immersed socially andeducationally in a social media experiencingauthentic, well-designed learning activities(Reeves T.C., Herrington J. & Oliver R. 2002).Improvements to learning outcomes in thesubject described can be attributed to achanged pedagogy where heightened visualliteracy, through awareness and interpretationof the meaning of the image, is fullyexplored. Using Flickr has assisted in theteaching of photography to a ‘diverse andgrowing student body with a wide variety ofinformation literacy capabilities’ (LorenzoG., Oblinger D. & Dziuban C. 2006 p.7).Meaningful learning experiences andactivities, through the introduction of Flickrsocial media, has increased collaborative

interaction, connection to the globalcommunity, and encouraged student-centredautonomy improving visual interpretation indesign education. Student engagement in aninteractive peer-to-peer environment, thatencapsulates the visual literacy of the 21stcentury, has augmented the teaching ofphotography in a first-year design context.

Social media for teaching and learningSocial media is a way of using a variety ofhighly accessible technological tools forcreating easy ways of communicating,interacting and sharing information andresources via the internet. Social mediaallows for individuality as well asconnectedness to others crossing political,economic and geographical borders. Kaplan A.& Haeelin M. (2010) define social media as ‘agroup of Internet-based applications thatbuild on the ideological and technologicalfoundations of Web 2.0 which allows thecreation of exchange of user-generatedcontent’ (p. 61). Social media, in terms ofthe internet, are the fastest growth sectors,triple the rate of overall growth, and are nowthe 4th most popular online category – aheadof personal e-mail. (Nielson 2009)Engagement and retention for the online first-year university experience are necessaryattributes emphasised by Krause & Coates(2008) and Kift (2009) in their research on

the first-year experience. The power of sharedknowledge for effective learning via socialmedia technologies has garnered inspiration,motivation and engagement for first-yeardesign students. The implementation of Flickrhas augmented and revolutionised the designstudio-teaching paradigm leading to optimisedstudent learning. (Robbie, D & Zeeng, L. 2008;Robbie, D & Zeeng, L. 2009)

Flickr as a teaching toolThe Web 2.0 social media, Flickr, is a majorphoto-sharing social network community. Inaddition to being a popular website for usersto share and embed personal photographs, theservice is widely used by bloggers. BBC (2010)statistics show that it is still one of thetop five ranked social networks worldwide andboasts more than 5 billion images. Flickr isfreely downloadable 3rd party software withthe option to upgrade to a paid site withgreater uploading capability. For the purposeof teaching, the free limits are more thanample. Flickr also has the ability to betranslated into 8 languages which is veryhelpful when teaching many students whosefirst language is other than English. Flickris continually upgrading its features andfunctionality which has greatly assisted infacilitating further development andimprovement of the subject’s delivery. Overthe four years this subject has used Flickr,improved features of the software include the

addition of video, galleries, more albums andmore languages. Flickr has the capacity to provide eitherpublic or private image storage. Each user hasthe ability to control who can view theirphotographs. The teaching of this subjectrequires a group to be set up by the teacherwho can apply the privacy settings to thestudent groups. As an educational tool thisprivacy ability means that the group’s imagescan only be accessed by the members within thegroup. Individual users can also customizethe degree to which the public may interactwith their images, they can put images insets, (like albums) and tag (like labeling)them for recognition. Individual users can explore, find, upload andmanage photographs. Images uploaded on Flickrare embedded with valuable teachinginformation and provide students with theopportunity to gain a better visualunderstanding through critique and interactionwith the images. This knowledge is invaluablefor teachers who previously relied ontraditional methods to obtain photographicdata from students. Using Flickr has enabledstudents and teachers to share this technicaland aesthetic knowledge thus facilitating thedeconstruction, reconstruction, interpretationand appreciation of the design within thephotograph.

Teaching photography in a design contextDesign education is about impartingfundamental theory and practical applicationof basic design rules to assist in futureindependent and conceptual realisation ofideas. Students need to resolve problemsthrough a variety of visual responses. Theunderstanding of visual space and the use ofhierarchy in all areas of design includingtypography and photography is essential. Thiscan be achieved through compositionalconstruction and deconstruction, using space,scaling and general placement within theframe. Design education for the 21st centuryintegrates an understanding of social,cultural, economical and technological issues.Design students will participate in a morediverse working life that may include abroader global environment in largerinterdisciplinary teams with a greater onlinepresence. Social media cannot be ignored inthis mix as this area grows as part of thedesigners working life. Design education is traditionally studio-basedwith emphasis on communication through classpresentations of current projects. Within thedesign studio classes, teachers criticallyanalyse student’s concepts and suggest themost effective plan of action within theconfines of designated class time. Teachersmay look at a number of options put forward by

the student and suggest the best way toexecute an effective creative andaesthetically positive outcome. This can beperceived as more teacher focused even thoughthe ‘students are encouraged to see themselvesas key participants in the process of learningdesign’ (Davies A. 2002 p.169) and lead tosurface approaches to learning. (Biggs J. &Tang C. 2007 and Davies A. 2002). Studentswithin each class are involved in the processand give feedback related to their fellowclassmates work, making suggestions on whichoption is best to pursue.Students’ photographic work is looked atduring the studio class. Weekly tasks are set,resolved and printed prior to the studio classthe following week. These prints are shownwithin the class and critiqued by the teacher.Students are encouraged to participate in thisfeedback process. The final submission is leftwith and appraised by the teacher. Thisprocess can be problematic if the workrequires re-shooting or re-presenting as aresult of poor resolution or print quality ofimages. Difficulties can arise if the work isnot processed on time and if studentsexperience technical problems in relation tofilm and print costs. In this situation,students do not receive feedback as regularlyas others and consequently the quality oftheir work suffers.

In Design education the most effective methodof peer review in the studio class is toinstruct students to “pin up” their work orideas during class and allow the teacher andstudents to discuss each concept. Onlystudents within the particular class are ableto see the work. Feedback is restricted toindividual class members and not to a largerstudent cohort. This feedback is done on aregular basis throughout the design process.In theory, this experience is invaluable forstudent learning. Unfortunately, in reality,there are instances where very littleindividual feedback is given. Often theverbal feedback is misinterpreted orforgotten. Students can be afraid toparticipate or respond in the studio setting.Once the work is completed and marked duringthe semester it is often not referred to againby either teacher or student. This way doesnot allow for ongoing review and revision ofthe projects or tasks, without probability toapply new knowledge to improve the finaloutcome. In order to be more effective, new ways ofcollaborating, sharing information andproviding valuable feedback was explored. Ourstudents, by nature, are visual practitionerswho prefer learning from example, byobservation, imitation and modeling.Interaction with thousands of visual images,in a larger community with regular peer reviewand feedback, and using the affordances of

social media, has enhanced the learning ofphotography in design.

Case study: teaching photography The subject in this case study is compulsoryfor first-year students in a communicationdesign program. The students, generallybetween 18-25 years of age, are in cohorts ofup to 220 students. During the teaching periodstudents are instructed in the basic elementsof photography for design including technicaland aesthetic values. Students attend lecturesand smaller group studio classes. Within theseclasses, scaffolded learning tasks thatrequire the capture, presentation anddiscussion of digital images are explained anddemonstrated. In one-hour intensive weekly lecturesphotographic techniques are described andexemplified. Students are shown suitablereferences and design vocabulary, images andtopics are reviewed, and learning activitiesand assessment task requirements are examined.Two-hour studio classes follow the lecture sostudents can use their camera for practicalapplication of technical knowledge. Thoroughexplanation and expectations of the learningactivities to be undertaken are discussed andexamples of previous best practice are shownallowing for problems to be resolved prior tocompletion of the assessment tasks.

On completing their set tasks, as outlined intheir lecture and studio classes, the studentsupload images to a personalised Flickr page.These images are then disseminated to a group‘pool’ in Flickr for the entire cohort ofstudents to see. Students and teacherscritique and analyse student images selectedfrom the pool. See Figure 1 for an example ofimages from the group pool.

Figure 1: An example of images collected from a pool ofstudent work.

A requirement of their assessment is making atleast three comments or critiques per week onthe work of other students. They areencouraged to choose a variety of images eachfrom a different student and preferably imagesfrom students who are not in their studioclasses. All comments must demonstrate use ofappropriate visual language, constructivecriticism, and reflect knowledge andappreciation of the technical and aestheticqualities of the image. This allows forprogressive and continuous sharing, critiqueand feedback of images. Feedback by theteacher covers the technical, academic andprofessional skills required to achieve a

proficient outcome. All students receive atleast one comment on new work placed online bythe teachers or peers on a very regular basissometimes as soon as images are posted.

As a sessional teacher this is great as I can commenton the work almost daily I can open the page toanyone’s work at anytime and give them somefeedback

Further feedback is given when activities arecompleted and placed in an album for theteacher to appraise and make recommendationsfor improvement. The amount of feedback variesas technique improves and tasks become morecomplex to resolve. The students’ whole bodyof work for the semesters remains online whereit can be referred to at anytime during thesemester. Seeing everyone’s photos and havinginstant feedback provides time to reflect onprogressive improvement or resolve continuingproblems leading to better learning. SeeFigure 2 for an example of an album of anindividual students work.

Figure 2: An example from an album of one student

Students are able to self evaluate their work.This self evaluation, where a student can

compare their present performance with theirprior performance, assists in raising levelsof confidence, and aesthetic and technicalcompetence. Three examples where studentshave critiqued their own images are shown inFigure 3.

Figure 3: An example student self evaluation

cheating a point and shoot is harder than it sounds.. i panned the camera as i moved the pear

this one has a bit more mood to it, although i think the shadow cast from the low lightsource creates toomuch a strong shadow that pullsfocus

shooting on my point and shoot at night without atripod proved to be a great struggle, but this is the least blurriest image out of the lot!

This pedagogy, where students can benchmark,increases student’s scope of potentialinspiration, improves their critical andanalytical skills and makes them part of thebroader community.

I think that this is a great way to learn. I could spendhours on here looking at everyone's photos. because of

flickr where we can access anyone's photos at anytime, i'm learning from the people who are moreadvanced. Comments are always helpful because I'mgetting feedback from someone else's perspective andthey will notice things about the photo that I won't.

The students’ involvement has grown andextended the potential for their learningabout the visual image. Integrating Flickr inthe design studio has allowed us as teachers‘an opportunity to connect with learners andenhance the quality of their learning’ (Bleedp.10).

The use of vocabulary to build visualappreciation

In order to bridge the language literacy forlearners who express themselves visually, itis important to provide a lexicon where thepicture grounds the text. A vocabulary of commonly used words andprinciples are distributed to students torefer to when commenting on images. This helpsto build an understanding of the aesthetic ofthe image and assists in interpreting visualinformation in photography and design practiceAn example of this vocabulary is in Figure 4showing related ‘light’ and ‘frames’vocabulary only.Figure 4: Extract of the vocabulary provided

Use of Light The frame or composition

direction quantity quality time of day type of day type of light

source e.g natural

colour of light use of shadow

intricacy or simplicity

positive and negative space

placement of subjects

what is in and what is out

abstract or detail style asymmetrical or

symmetrical rule of thirds golden mean

The glossary is discussed in class to ensureunderstanding of meaning and application tothe critiquing of the image. Introducingstudents through this visual literacy helpsbuild knowledge and provides designerly waysof knowing and meaning-making. Students are informed on how to deconstructthe elements within the image and apply thisvocabulary to giving and receivingconstructive peer-to-peer feedback. This helpsfacilitate the critiquing process, and assistsin the analyzing of the image supporting theirengagement in a visual dialogue. Teachersfacilitate this process by careful modellingand giving direction on how to formulatecomments. Students read these comments alongwith their peer reviews and use them toformulate their own commentary that

continually develops their visual appreciationof image.The ability to analyse the photographic imageand the design process has improved thestudents fundamental design skills throughoutthe teaching period. As a scaffolded learningapproach it has provided a structure that istailored to encourage a vocabulary and voicefor critiquing of the visual image. An exampleof the growth in students’ visualinterpretation is shown in Figure 5.

Figure 5: Growth in visual appreciation

Week1

Photo is not good

Week2

I like the way you managed it to make the water looksoft and fluffy…like cotton

Week9

this is a very interesting picture. the shutter speedyou took this photo on makes the water looks almostjelly like or glass like which then makes the trollfloating in it cool, because it almost seems stuck.The two colours contrast making the troll stand out

Week10

I love the blue against the white and how this photois so simple, but the way you took this photo andcropped the head and feet off makes this image a lotmore intriguing. The focus is very good too becauseeven though the background is white you can still tellit is out of focus.

Light is the most important component whenteaching photography. How it is used to re-

create the concept of a 3D world needs to becomprehended. Students are instructed in theways light is used within the photographyprocess, direction, quality and quantity oflight plus time and type of day: all whichinfluence the subject matter within the frame.The students consider these and use theirdeveloping visual literacy when commenting. Anexample of this is shown in Figure 6. Theunderlined words are from vocabulary relatedto light and frame.

Figure 6: Visual appreciation of light and frame

I really like how you've used thenatural light through the windowsto create a very dramatic shot. Theshadows of the letters are verydefined in the light due to yourappropriate positioning of the

wooden letters. The overall framing of this shot has been welldone and I like that there is more dark space in the lower halfof the image than in the top half. You've demonstrated a goodvariety of shapes in the image and I especially like how theframing of the image has created a triangle of shadow belowthe window frames.

Another important component when analysing andunderstanding the visual in photography is the‘frame’. Discussion of the ‘frame’ includesits intricacy or simplicity, the use ofpositive and negative space and the rule ofthirds. An example of this is shown in Figure

7. The underlined words are from vocabularyrelated to the ‘frame’.Figure 7: Visual understanding of the frame and rule of thirds

I like the concept of this shot and howit has a sense of humour to it. You’veused the rule of thirds effectively andthere is good use of negative space. Ialso like how the guy’s smile catchesmy attention, then immediately my eye

is drawn down the length of his arm and into the cup. It is atthis precise moment that the idea behind the photo is realisedand you know what he’s smiling about!

Critique and Collaborative feedback Feedback and assistance with improving visualinterpretation and standard of imagery hasbeen one of the most powerful aspects of thismodel along with learning through interactionand collaboration. This supportive model hasfacilitated dynamic peer-to-peer (see Figure8), student-teacher (see Figure 9) andteacher-student feedback (see Figure 10). Thecritiques and collaborative feedback hasstrengthened interpretation of the visualimage. It has stimulated deeper learning in amore personal, social and flexibleenvironment. While verbal feedback is usedregularly in class, it is often forgotten ormisinterpreted later. In Flickr, a dated andtimed record of any interaction is kept at allstages throughout the semester for review,referral and response. As feedback in

education is integral to learning, studentengagement in the process is essential (HattieJ. Timperley H. 2007; Hounsell D. 2007; andKift S. 2009). The critiquing on Flickr hasengaged students in regular, immediate, andtimely and anywhere feedback valuable to thelearning experience.

Figure 8: Example of peer-to peer feedback

Comment to peer Reply from peer1. I like the use of side lighton the faces, looks good.Maybe you could have onlyone of the figures in focus, itcould give the image astronger focal point and alsoadd depth.

Thanks, I might go andretake the shot using DOF. Ididn’t know how to do that atthe time!

2. i realy like this photo, didu over expose the flash like wedid in class or did you just getlucky with the lighting

thank you! i was playingaround with flash, n of courselighting helps a lot..

3.This photo feels like a stillfrom an unmade horrormovie. The light spilling outof the box should make it feelinviting, a port in the storm,but the evil T logo dispels anyof that, heh heh.. One point –did youuse flash? The hardlight around the top of thephonebox looks that way – itmight have been better had

No flash, just a digital snap.My camera unfortunatelydoesn’t let me have controlover shutter speed oraperture etc

you used a longer exposureand no flash.

Figure 9: Example of teacher-student feedback

Comment by teacher Response from studentGood use of movement.Gunshot is good but could bemade more exciting with alighter background toaccentuate the subject. Lots ofwater shots in this and yourlast set. You have a lot bettershots for this task eg SoldRed, Sail, Yachts and GoalUmpire. So review these sets.Please leave numbers orname images in future so Ican refer to them.

I’ve changed my movementand DOF sets, plus renamedmy images (as requested)Yousuggested for the DOF animage taken outside thestatute should I put this in,please tell me?

4 of 6 of these images aretaken at the same place andtime. Please review theseimages and change them.Remember, only 2 -3 imagesat the same location and timeallowed in your photostreamand definitely not more than1 or 2 in the set.

I've added more variations.Please have a look at themagain. Thanks.

Figure 10: Example of student-teacher feedback

Comments from student Reply from teacheri am a little concerned about Photographs taken indoors

my image 11 and image 5. onmy computer at hme (pc) andon my camera the lighting isa burnt yellow. yet i amlooking at my images nowfrom a mac book and theylook orange. does this affectmy images??? thank you forur time

do tend to look very orange.However, in the scheme ofthings you have a lot of othershades of yellow to choosefrom. The white balance youhad set on your camera willaffect the outcome. If you setWB on sun then indoorphotos will be veryyellow/orange.

I'll have to get your help onFriday to go over whitebalance. I'm using that newcamera I borrowed and Idon't have the instructions forit. You suggested that ichange the bottom threeimages in my Shutter set. Doyou have any suggestions ofwhich ones I should put intheir place?

Wait till Friday and we willreview all and show you howto use the camera properly. Iwill suggest images from yourphotostream to replaceexisting images in youralbum.

Discussion Evaluation of student experiences and learningoutcomes within the framework of this newpedagogy highlights the value of feedback andit’s pivotal role in underpinning successfullearning. The adoption of social media hasenhanced the learning and teaching experiencethrough well-crafted feedback that has raisedindividual and collective attainment (Hounsell2007). Using social media has fostered new

ways of designing and developing engaginglearning experiences. Furthermore, it hasencouraged new ways of critique, analysis andcommentary in the design studio leading toimproved visual appreciation. Contrary totraditional teaching methods it is moreflexible, creative and challenging. Students have commented unanimously on theefficiencies of using Flickr. All assessmenttasks of the image are done online. Whilstthis is sometimes not the ideal way of viewingimages it is a reality of 21st century digitalphotograph. The beauty of using social mediafor the teaching and learning means there isno longer expensive printing and reprinting toget the image right. As visual educators weare able to assess the quality of the image asit was intended. Our students are constantlyusing social media, and take photos on camerasand phones that are rarely or never printed.They are used to experience visual images on ascreen. Apart from the initial purchase of acamera there are no other costs incurred. Theuse of chemicals and papers are alsoeliminated creating a more sustainableenvironment. Teachers are more critically reflectivereviewing and evaluating practice for improvedcurriculum and design delivery. This hasenabled a paradigm shift from scholarlyteaching to scholarship of teaching withdissemination through publication and

recognition. Social media has facilitatedanywhere/anytime teaching generatingenthusiasm and sharing of practice. The student learning experience has beenimproved through access to a broadercollection of photographic images andcommentaries with anywhere/anytime interactionand collaboration. There is noticeablyincreased motivation and engagement evidencedby heightened visual literacy, improvedphotographic technique and better writtencritiquing and analytical skills.

I’ve really found flickr to be a useful teaching method,as the ability to upload, review and comment on otherpeoples work allows for quick responses and learning.I find that this actually pushes my creativity further, asthere is a chance to go back and improve upon yourstyle each week

ConclusionSocial media has transformed the teaching andlearning experience. The implementation ofFlickr has changed the way photography istaught. There is now improved feedback tostudents through mechanisms of feedback,feedup and feedforward. (Fisher D. & Frey N.2009 and Hattie J. & Timperley H. 2007).This approach has also addressed the needs ofthe 21st century student who prefers activeparticipation and conversation in a social,anywhere-anytime dynamic.

In our experiences the dynamic, social andvisual aspect of this social media has playeda significant role on student learning.Students have become more engaged, inspiredand motivated in this interactive and flexiblelearning environment. As many of the studentsare active users of social media in theirdaily lives, they have identified with thediversity, immediacy and connectivity ofFlickr. Continuous reflection and review has changedthe way we think about presenting information,designing learning tasks, teaching witheducational technologies, and giving andreceiving feedback. We have made a significanttransition from teacher-centred instructivistto student-centred constructivist approachesaffording personal satisfaction and enthusiasmfor innovative practice. Our engagement in the social media hascontributed to teacher-student collaborationsfostering active participation and co-production of learning not constrained bytraditional, formal structures of time, placeand space (McLoughlin & Lee 2007). In a designcontext, the regular commentary andprogressive guided feedback has heightenedstudent visual interpretation (Blair 2007).Not only does ‘Web 2.0 allow us to harness thepower of the network and to exploit socialinteractions and connectivity’ Conole G. &Culver J. (2009 p.765) but additionally,

students are now better able to analyse,critique, deconstruct and reconstruct an imagewith improved visual interpretation.A visual and written record of students’ workand the feedback students give and receive isnow maintained indefinitely in Flickr’sprivate group pages. This allows students toreturn to the site for review and reflectionand continue the learning cycle. Embracingsocial media in the design classes hasprovided an opportunity to address the biggestchallenge nominated in the Educause Project byLittle et al (2009) and ‘create learningenvironments that promote active learning,critical thinking, collaborative learning, andknowledge creation’ (p. 34). Thispedagogically appropriate practice has notonly manifested stronger student involvementbut assisted in the achievement ofsubstantially improved student outcomes.While that the use of 3rd party software notsupported institutionally can be fraught ourexperiences and the current rate of Flickrusage, and social media more generally,suggest that this dynamic model issustainable. The challenge is to continue tobe cognisant and responsive to our diversestudent cohort and their ways of learning anddoing and ‘acknowledge and utilise thesenuances rather than disregard them’ (McCarthy2010 p729).

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Diane RobbieDiane is an academic developer in the Faculty of Design and Program Coordinator and teacher in the Graduate Certificate in Learning and Teaching (Higher Education) in Swinburne Professional Learning.Diane provides academic leadership in curriculum design, development and improvementinitiatives; reflective practice; inquiry and scholarship of learning and teaching; and university-wide and faculty-based professionaldevelopment. Diane collaborates with teaching staff to implement innovative teaching practices aimed at enhancing the student learning experience.Diane's research interests include exploring models of academic professional development; reflective scholarly practice in higher education; and innovative learning and teaching using educational technologies.Diane Robbie Dip Ed, BEd, MEdSwinburne Professional Learning Swinburne University of Technology

Lynette ZeengLynette Zeeng is Education Development Co-ordinator in the Faculty of Design at Swinburne University. Lynette is involved in extensive research related to web-based learning and it’s application in the age of the digital student, her work in this area hasbeen presented at education conferences Nationally and Internationally. She is an experienced professional photographer and produces both commercial workand fine art pieces which she has published and exhibited regularly. This professional experience has given her an appreciation of the current changes surrounding photography and design. It has caused her to re-evaluate her teaching of photography and design in the digital environment. Lynette lectures in a number of disciplines in design.

Lynette ZeengDip Ed, MA (Arts) RMIT,Education Development Co-ordinatorFaculty of DesignSwinburne University of Technology