The Internship Selfie Project: A Visual Analysis of Immersive Out-of-School Time High School Internship Experiences

• In Event: Visual Education Research: Exploring Photographic Research Methods in Education

Abstract

The ability to analyze, evaluate and synthesize information that can be applied to the creation of new knowledge is a keystone to the development of higher order thinking. In an increasingly technologically-advanced world, development of higher order thinking skills take a strong precedence to direct instructive models focusing primarily on the memorization of facts and information; information that is now readily accessible by students of all ages through the Internet (via computer or mobile device) – shared globally, authentically, and in real-time. A shift in focus from pure factual memorization and direct knowledge sharing toward development of 21st century higher order thinking skills, such as creativity, innovation, critical thinking, problem solving, communication, and collaboration stands front and center in the process of “reimagining” learning for the 21st century (Partnership for 21st Century Skills, 2014). 21st century skill development is also a major pillar of the new Common Core standards which include processes that develop the “application of knowledge through higher-order thinking skills” that are “aligned with college and career expectations” (Common Core State Standards Initiative, 2014). Traditional methods for assessing the acquisition of these new skills will require innovative strategies for measuring the socio-emotional-cognitive gains associated with higher order processes. Following years of increased standardization of curriculum and resultant assessment methods for ensuring proficiency, these alternative methods for assessing inherently unique learning processes may succeed in helping develop new measurements of success which capture the individual application of acquired knowledge in a variety of learning settings.
Part of a larger study focused on assessment of higher order thinking skills through an immersive internship experience, this paper focuses on one such method for measurement of two higher order thinking skills (collaboration and problem solving) through photo analysis of the self portrait photographs or “selfies” of 11th grade students immersed in a four-week out-of-school time high school internship experience. The four-week “academic internship” is a capstone learning experience for a small group of charter high schools (grades 9-12) in San Diego, California focusing on developing 21st century skills through three main design principles: adult world connection, common intellectual mission, and personalization. Prior to starting their internship program toward the end of the second semester, students had received five semesters of instruction in a collaborative project based learning setting with opportunities for community-based projects and connective experiences. Internship provided students the opportunity to be placed in a non familiar setting with strangers requiring them to do significant work for an organization they knew little about – a liminal tension space.
During their internship, students were asked to take a selfie in their work environment and to provide a one-word description. Selfies/descriptors were analyzed and classified using a “visual metaphor” technique based on whether they exhibited “shared intentions” – an anthropological construct that connotes collaboration – either with the workspace, the work focus, or with coworkers. Visual data indicates that students adapt (problem solve) to the unfamiliar through shared intentionality for the work space, thus applying strategies gained in school to deliberately promote collaboration in an unfamiliar environment.

Author

• Lisa Johnson Davis, San Diego State University