Marisa VanHorn

Professor Wertz-Orbaugh
UWRT 1103-005
22 September 2014
Multimodal Group Project and Presentation Reflection
Group assignments are never an easy task, but often can be completed when the
individual members of the group agree to do their part. I was assigned to take part in a
multimodal project with my group, Just Google It. During this project, not only did I learn about
the topic that my group chose to research, but I also learned many things about my personal
inquiry process as well as different research methods and how to work efficiently in a group.
As an individual group member, I began by looking at the different topics that were
available to research. Initially, the one topic that caught my eye was medical experimentation in
the Holocaust. I do not know much about this subject, and I thought it would be fascinating to
learn about. I already knew that most of the doctors that did the experiments on the victims in
concentration camps were not actual doctors at all. I wanted to research how these doctors
were able to perform these experiments and why they even did it in the first place. This topic was
exciting specifically to me because I have always been interested in the medial field and I can
never absorb enough new information about different medical practices. Once I had chosen the
topic that I was interested in, the first thing I did was brain storm ways of making this subject
into a multimodal project. I was not able to come up with many ideas for a visual representation
of this focus, but I was still stuck on the idea of researching medical experimentation in the
Holocaust.

When I had the opportunity to share my ideas with my group members, most
people did not share the interest I had in medical experimentation. Haley and I both thought that
this subject could be the right topic for our group, but the rest of the members had other ideas.
Eventually, someone in the group suggested that we look at the topic of starvation in the
Holocaust. I was not completely objected to this, because this too sounded like something that
could be of interest to me. After a few minutes of discussing this topic with my group members,
we were able to come up with an accurate and shocking visual representation for this subject,
which was to bring in the actual rations of food that the victims were allotted. We thought that
this would be an incredible way of showing the class how much food was really allowed to be
eaten by the victims in comparison to how much we eat today. Thus, starvation in the Holocaust
was decided to be our topic for inquiry. Next, our group was to decide what exactly each
member would talk about in the presentation. We split up starvation into smaller sub-categories,
such as physical effects, psychological/sociological effects, long term effects, and rations. Right
away, I knew that I wanted to research physical effects because I wanted to learn what starvation
did to the body. My thinking was definitely shaped by the fact that I have a great interest in
anything that has to do with the anatomy of the body, so I was pleased with inquiring about
physical effects of starvation in the Holocaust.
Our final product was a combination of an actual plate of rations as well as a Prezi in the
background. On the rations plate, we included half of a hot dog as the victims meat, half a cup
of chicken broth as the soup, and a small loaf of bread. The Prezi had many different visuals on it
that portrayed what starvation looked like and how it affected people. Each group member took
turns briefly talking about each of our sub-topics and showing the pictures on the Prezi that
correlated to it. The way we chose to present our project fit the multimodal requirements of the

assignment because the class was able to physically see and interact with the rations that the
victims were given in the Holocaust. The pictures on the Prezi spoke for themselves about
starvation, because they were all very graphic and emotionally upsetting. The decision-making
process in our group worked out well. I attempted to take on the role of the leader in the group
by creating a group chat in our phones for communication, challenging the group by asking
questions about how we can further better our work, and making sure all the work was
completed on time. Even though I tried to be the leader, I feel that most of us had equal say in
what our finished product looked like and everyone in the group took on a leadership position of
their own. It was a unanimous decision that the best way of showing our research to the class
would be through the plate of rations and the Prezi, and I was glad about this because we were all
able to peacefully agree on the final product.
On this journey of inquiry, I learned many things about myself and how I work in a
group. I learned that as a group member, I can work better when I have asked an excessive
amount of questions to the group about the final product, so I can visualize what I am working
towards. I also discovered that I can work with better peace of mind when I know exactly what
each of the other group members plan to do. As a researcher, I learned that sometimes it is
necessary to dig deep to find what you are looking for. For example, I was able to find an
abundance of information about the physical effects of starvation, but I wanted to relate it back
specifically to the Holocaust. In my opinion, I did well on creating the Prezi and organizing how
the different slides would show on the screen. Next time I have an assignment like this, I know
that I could probably improve on trusting my group members to complete their work and not
stressing out so much about what others are doing. The reason I always ask other group members
what they are doing with their personal research is because I want to make sure that everyone is

doing their part and carrying out what needs to be done. I know that this can be irritating to other
group members, so I know I will do better with this next time. I learned that as a whole
multimodal work can really help to bring your point across more efficiently by providing visual
representation. Not only does this help your audience in which you are presenting your research
to better understand what you are saying, but it can also help you personally comprehend what
you are inquiring about.
My group, Just Google It, was given the task of completing a multimodal group
assignment. After deciding to research starvation in the Holocaust, the group worked very well
together and took each others ideas and opinions to heart. It was very helpful that we were all
able to agree on a way of presenting our information to the class. I learned many things about
myself as a group member as well, and I know what I am able to do well and what I need to
improve on for next time. I have never enjoyed group projects, but working on this specific type
of project with this group definitely made many of those aversive feelings disappear.