Week 8 – Evaluating and Presenting Digital Scholarship

Blog Post: Due Monday, July 17

When asked about your digital scholarship project, you may only get a few minutes, or even seconds, to explain what you are working on. Write an elevator speech for your project, hitting the main points of what you are researching, and how you are presenting it in a digital format. Don’t dwell too much on the technical aspects. Think about the different situations you may be in where an elevator speech may be important, and how you could customize your speech to different audiences. You should have at least 2 elevator speeches for this post; you can pick from the following scenarios:

  • It’s the start of the fall semester and you’re early for a class. Your professor is already in the classroom. They make small talk and ask how your summer went.
  • You’re in line in Servo with one of your friends and they heard you did “some thing with computers” over the summer.
  • A librarian from another school is visiting Musselman Library and you happen to be studying on the Main floor; a member of the digital scholarship committee introduces you both and you find out quickly that the librarian is really excited about digital scholarship work.
  • You’re at a job fair and the recruiter is looking over your resume; they ask you, “What’s this Digital Scholarship Summer Fellowship?”

Monday, July 10

8:30am-9am: Check-In (Library 014)

10am-Noon: How to Talk About Your Research: Working with Faculty and Elevator Speeches (Library 014, Public Session)

Digital scholars spend a lot of time thinking and working on digital projects, but how do we talk about them? Sometimes you may only have a few minutes to talk about your research and the work that has gone into your project, so today we will create elevator speeches so you can hit the high points of your project in 1-2 minutes. Today’s session will include the Bucknell University Digital Scholarship Summer Research Fellows!

Readings and Assignments

  • No readings. Come prepared to move around!

Noon-1pm: DSSF Lunch (Library)

1pm-4:30pm: Project Workshopping

This afternoon we will pair off with the Bucknell DSSRFs and workshop projects. This will be a time to give and receive feedback!

Tuesday, July 11

8am-4:30pm: Research/Project Work (on your own)

Wednesday, July 12

8:30am-9am: Check-In (Library 014, Public Session)

9am-11am: Worst Presentation Ever! Or, How to Talk About Your Research (Library 014, Public Session)

Many times you will only have a few minutes to discuss your project, which is why elevator speeches are important. However, if you’re presenting at a conference or other talk where you have an extended amount of time to discuss your research (like at the end of this summer!), you need to plan out a presentation. Today, we will discuss some best practices for creating a longer presentation, and practice giving a short talk.

Readings and Assignments

Noon-1pm: Lunch (On Your Own)

1pm-4:30pm: Research/Project Work (on your own)

Thursday, July 13

8am-4:30pm: Research/Project Work (on your own)

Friday, July 14

8:30am-9am: Check-In

9am-11am: Assessment and Evaluation Workshop (Library 014, Public Session)

Way back in week 3, we discussed the importance of planning your projects so your users have a good experience on your sites. However, how do you know you have a project that is easy to use and navigate? Web usability testing is a way to evaluate digital projects, as well as get feedback to revise your websites. Today, we will look at strategies for designing usability studies and ways to evaluate digital projects, both your own, and others.

Readings and Assignments

Noon-1pm: Lunch (on your own)

1pm-4:30pm: Research/Project Work (on your own)

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