Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills

To facilitate understanding by a variety of audiences, information must be formatted in ways to promote comprehension. Users format and deliver information in multiple ways and with a variety of media. Products are evaluated for communication impact. Elements of process and product are evaluated.

Background: 

The Communication/Publishing strand emphasizes the formatting of information to promote comprehension by others. Different learning styles require the formatting of data in a variety of ways.

The Communication/Publishing strand includes three related areas of knowledge and skills:

  1. Formats digital information for appropriate and effective communication.
  2. Delivers the product electronically in a variety of media, with appropriate supervision.
  3. Uses technology applications to facilitate evaluation of communication, both process and product.

Additional Explanation:

Avenues for communicating information include mediums such as visual presentations, brochures, newspapers, Internet documents, database reports, spreadsheet layouts, and graphic creations. Displaying the information appropriately allows the students to learn skills related to the corresponding medium and to deliver the message via a variety of media.The mediums target a variety of audiences through different media such as the Internet, the monitor, printed copy, CD-ROM, and video tape. Product development includes analysis of audience requirements and consideration for effective communication methods. Consequently, product development options involve process and product considerations.

Evaluating for product, purpose, and relevance to task or assignment is essential when communicating and publishing information. A variety of techniques can be employed to facilitate evaluation and assessment, such as the use of rubrics, peer-evaluation, self-evaluation, teacher-evaluation, and/or other methods. The use of technology plays a major role in such evaluations.

Instructions: Three representative samples are listed for each grade cluster (K-2, 3-5, & 6-8) and selected high school Technology Applications courses. The samples represent the three related knowledge and skills for each strand at each grade cluster and for two selected high school courses.

Communication/Publishing

  1. Formats digital information for appropriate and effective communication.
  2. Delivers the product electronically in a variety of media, with appropriate supervision.
  3. Uses technology applications to facilitate evaluation of communication, both process and product.

Examples:

DISCLAIMER - Samples listed below are representative samples only. Many other examples could be also be used. Users are encouraged to think about additional ways to present and teach specific TA TEKS student expectations.

K-2

 1. After appropriate instruction, including discussion of existing advertisements, students create an advertisement announcing their favorite book. Advertisement is created on the computer with appropriate use of color, font attributes, white space, alignment, balance, and other design considerations.
2. Students create a product and deliver it as a file, a monitor display, and a printed copy.
3. Students uses an existing rubric to evaluate their product for relevance to the assignment.

3-5

 1. Students use spreadsheet to develop charts and graphs illustrating the ratio of colors found in any multi-color candy (i.e., M&Ms, Skittles, etc.).
2. Students use presentation software to create a story. Presentation should include a title slide, credits, and story narrative slides. Each slide should include text and graphic(s).
3. Students select representative technology products to be stored according to process determined by teacher.

6-8

 1. Students create a newsletter depicting a significant historical event and an accompanying presentation to advertise important points within the newsletter.
2. Students design, develop and deliver a presentation around a theme (change, hunger, etc.) that includes audio, video, text, and graphics.
3. Students design, develop and use a project management tool. This tool should include a timeline with corresponding product evaluation processes throughout the development cycle.

9-12

 Video Technology
1. Students use camera perspective effectively to communicate specific ideas/concepts for a particular audience.
2. Students publish video products in a variety of formats (e.g., monitor display, saved files, etc.).
3. Students research distribution and marketing methods and apply such methods to classroom assignments.
  

9-12

Digital Graphics / Animation
1. Students define design elements and requirements for a specific product.
2. Students publish DGA products in a variety of formats.
3. Students evaluates DGA products for design, content, delivery, purpose, and audience.