- Home
- Peer Review: Ofrendas
Ratings
Overall Rating:
5.0 stars
Content Quality:
5.0 stars
Effectiveness:
5.0 stars
Ease of Use:
5.0 stars
- Overview:
Ofrendas is a self-contained multimedia module on the Day of the Dead (Dia de Los Muertos). The study module "Ofrendas" (Offerings) brings to life the custom of remembering and honoring the deceased by celebrating the Day of the Dead.The author, Barbara Kuczun Nelson of Colby College, was the 2002 recipient of the MERLOT Editor's Choice Award for her world renowned Ojala que llueva cafe As in Ojala, Ofrendas features a guided reading of a song by contemporary recording artist, Pedro Guerra, culturally rich photographs, and related activities and exercises. The author again incorporates music, photographic
images and interactive exercises with rich, pedagogically-sound modules to
entice learners to develop Spanish-language skills. The "Ofrendas" module
includes an interview with a native speaker describing the Day of the Dead
customs in Ecuador. There is also an audio component in which the composer,
Guerra, explains the message in his song. In the lyrics, he is offering
"Ofrendas" to bring back a visit or return of one's beloved ones, and also
offering "Ofrendas" to bring back better living conditions on earth as they once existed.
Nelson has also adapted her latest module to the criteria of the National Foreign Language Standards. A teacher resource guide is also included.- Type of Material:
Multimedia module- Recommended Uses:
This material may be used in class for group work, at home for homework or by independent learners. The site contains good material for student interaction.- Technical Requirements:
QuickTime- Identify Major Learning Goals:
The site is designed as a culturally-based module with a global focus on
honoring and valuing all peoples living and dead. The learning goals are to
develop listening comprehension, vocabulary, develop speaking and writing skills
via interactive activities, and a review of grammar concepts. Through the use
of images in some of the online activities, learners are encouraged to use their
imaginations to recount the life of a deceased person based on an image of a
tombstone, e.g., the "Nichos en el cementerio" activity. The module also
encourages the creative writing of poetry via photographic images surrounding
the "Ofrendas" themes.- Target Student Population:
Students of Spanish as a foreign language at the intermediate level will profit the most from the complete module. Even beginners can make use of the photos and enjoy the art and song.Since the site is a multimodal tutorial, it will
also appeal to all type of learners having diverse learning styles. The module
can be assigned to first and second year postsecondary learners, or those having
a comparable intermediate proficiency skills in speaking and writing.- Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:
This material is designed for developing intermediate speaking and writing
skills. The module is also designed for developing listening and reading
skills among beginning students when providing guidance with the glossed texts.
Beginning students can also write creative materials with the virtual
altar assignment, but need guidance with the gustar construction, and other
similar types of verbs such as encantar, fascinar, etc.
Content Quality
- Rating:
-
- Strengths:
Ofrendas capitalizes on the richness of the Internet as a multi-sensory medium. Students can hear the music, stop it and replay as often as they like. They can read the lyrics to the song as they go along, stanza by stanza. The images that are used to gloss the lyrics give students access to meaning without the interference of a language other than Spanish. The context remains target language and target culture. An example is the image that depicts the meaning of descansar- a bright and colorful hammock that would conceivably be found in the culture.
There is an interview in the cemetery with a professor describing the Dia de Los Muertos in a clearly articulated Spanish. The accompanying video is clearly in synch with the audio. Exercises to follow this interview highlight all the key vocabulary in a straightforward, logical way.
In addition to this informational interview there is a more artistic interview with the song's author, Pedro Guerra. Here, vivid images and Guerra's words come to bring out a social message regarding the care of the earth annd respect for the peoples, particularly the indigenous people of the Americas. Again, the captions are carefully and exquisitely matched to images, with the full interview available to the user elsewhere on the site.
Ofrendas is a mature work that has been carefully edited by the author to provide the most complete linguistic and cultural experience for the learner.The use of this module not only strengthens the language skills but helps to
demystify the concept of "death" in the Latino culture. The use of a song, an interview with a native speaker about the "traditions held on "El dia de los muertos," and an audio and written text of an interview with the composer, Pedro Guerra, create solid materials for developing classroom and internet
activities. The theme of death and the use of preterite vs. imperfect and the
subjunctive mood may not appear inviting for learning or reviewing difficult
grammar and unique cultural behaviors. Nonetheless, the module entices the
learner to sample, learn, review, experiment amd express language in both tried and
novel ways.- Concerns:
An enhancement would be to see some biographical information on Guerra and perhaps a discography. It would also be nice to see a bibliography and related links on the Dia de los Muertos somewhere on the site.
Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool
- Rating:
-
- Strengths:
The module includes an authentic text with follow-up classroom activities and
online content and instructions. The author provides for easy instructions for
use in the classroom, and for learning with the online activities. Most of the
online activities are also self-grading for independent use.
The classroom activities center around listening and reading components that
include a song, video, and audio interview. These have follow-up activities for
listening comprehension, grammar practice, and creative writing.
The Part I online activities uses a cultural content on traditions, and at the
same time provides for a fill-in the blank activity with drop-down list of the
useful words and English translations. The text is also glossed. This
activitity can be easily comleted by first semester students reviewing all of
the Present tense conjugation patterns.
The interview of "El dia de los muertos" in Part II is an excellent example of
good video pedagogy when working with closed captioning and without it. The
follow-up comprehension questions require listening and completing written
responses that can be mailed in to the instructor. The second follow-up activity
focuses on reporting someone's life based on the images the user uses to
recreate his invented narrative. The author guides the learner in employing
correct usage for writing in the past, e.g., use of preterite vs. imperfect
tenses.
In Part III, the user first listens to audio clips following along with the
written transcript of the composer's message in his song. The follow-up
activities center on grammar practice using the present subjunctive (adjectival
noun clauses). The last activity draws the learner to create poetry based on
images using the "Day of the Dead" themes. The construction requires the use of five lines with specified parts of speech to use for each line. This technique demonstrates how creative writing can work hand in hand with a linguistic perspective and analysis.
This module is a very complete study unit on the Dia de Los Muertos. It adds music and art to the lesson which are always two great motivators in the language classroom. There are critical thinking activities as where students imagine the contents of their own "altar" only to fill out a form which they can send to their instructor by e-mail.
Teachers will appreciate the generosity of the online Teacher Resource guide where Nelson suggest methods of integrating Ofrendas into the curriculum.
Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty
- Rating:
-
- Strengths:
The navigation is clear and easy. The white space on the pages give them a very clean and uncluttered look. The streamed video allows user to use appropriate hi or low bandwidth with or without close-captioning. With Quicktime, the module and all its components are easy to use.- Concerns:
When tested for review this site definitely ran quicker on a Mac than on a PC, although download time was really minimal.
It would be nice to see prominent credit for the front page art work.
- Creative Commons:
-
