eKaqchikel 2008 - Return to Pana

Derek's Flickr Feed for today | Marie's eKaq Flickr photos | Valerie's eKaq Flickr photos

Wed, July 16 - We've returned to Guatemala for the next phase of production for the Kaqchikel digital learning tool we're developing with the Stone Center. Or as we like to simply call it - eKaq2008! Read more about it...

We left New Orleans early on Wednesday morning and arrived in Guatemala City at around noon. Easy flight and no hassles at the airport. Our driver met us outside the terminal and after a three hour - occasionally bumpy - drive we arrived in Panajachel, our base of operations for the next nine days.

Panajachel is a not-so-quaint tourist town on the shores of Lake Atitlan. Though not as picturesque as some of the other, less visited towns that line this large volcanic lake, Pana is well-located and ideally suited to support both the Kaqchikel language school and our video project.

I plan to keep a running summary of our production, our progress and our experiences here - much like last year. This year, in addition to the still image documentation I hope to include a bit of video shot on out new Flip camera - a nifty little tool that we may begin using more at the university, especially with students. Here's something I shot in the hotel restaurant on the first night.

And just to remind you, and in case you don't already know us, participating in this year's production trip are Marie Carianna, Valerie McGinley Marshall, Lee Rubin and me - Derek Toten. Marie and Valerie are the brains behind our little production band - writing the scripts and planning the vignettes that will ultimately illustrate the language and cultural concepts we're teaching. Lee and I are the videographers, lighting, mic-ing and shooting the scenarios. Lee will also act as editor, piecing it all together when we return to the US. He'll do the editing long distance from his home in Portland, but in conjunction with Sheldon Jones back at Tulane.

We're basing all this off of the work of Tulane professor Judith Maxwell and the Kaqchikel language program she organizes and runs each year. The Guatemalan teachers who she recruits for the program work closely with us to illustrate the language concepts being taught.

This year, we plan to shoot material for four new modules illustrating vocabulary and concepts related to the weather, the home, the classroom and the town. More about these later.

So, check the blog, follow the Flickr feed, and watch the videos posted to YouTube. We may be on the next continent, but there's no reason to stay out of touch!