Miami as Text

FIU HONORS COLLEGE
JW BAILLY

MESSAGE TO STUDENTS AND CONTRACT/ESSAY MILL WRITERS
The FIU Student Conduct and Honor Code define plagiarism as “The deliberate use and appropriation of another’s work without any indication of the source and the representation of such work as the Student’s own.” Submitting the work of someone else as your own work is plagiarism. This is a serious instance of Academic Misconduct by the student. In Florida, Essay Mill/Contract Cheating sellers are in violation of Florida Statute 877.17: “It shall be unlawful for any person or business entity to sell, offer to sell, or advertise for sale any term paper, thesis, dissertation, essay, or report” Read more

RELIABLE RESOURCES
Truth and accuracy are an essential foundation to every Miami as Text reflection. The manner we develop an accurate understanding of a subject is through research. Recognizing and relying on reliable sources is a learned skill. Students should always seek primary sources when possible. Secondary sources are acceptable as well, but a student should always examine the origin and nature of the source. Students should view with caution anonymous, unverified, and/or unattributable websites, such as blogs, commercial websites (especially travel), and Wikipedia. Students should always seek primary sources when possible.

MIAMI AS TEXT
Miami as Text is the world as seen by the students of John William Bailly of the FIU Honors College at Florida International University. The project provides authentic reflections through a juxtaposition of image and text. Neighborhood by neighborhood, place by place, object by object, young people respond with praise and criticism to the 305. In addition, Miami as Text projects see young Miamians journey across España, France, and Italia and reflect upon Western Europe with a unique Miami perspective.

These are not diaries or summaries of experiences. Miami as Texts projects are academic reflections that see students utilize a personal experience in a place as a starting point to reflect on a broader social, cultural, or historical issue. Andrea Sofia R. Matos’s Miami as Text reflections are the embodiment of this engagement and every student should read her blog prior to creating their own.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION
Each student will create an image and text reflection specific to the visited location. All reflections will be posted on miamiinmiami.co m.

Generally, students will be given a tour of the venue. Following the tour, students will revisit the location individually. Each student will select one aspect of the location that was discussed in class to reflect upon. The subject selected can be an artwork, an architectural space, flora, fauna, a person (employee or visitor), or any other relevant aspect. The subject must have been addressed in class.

The student is expected to reference the Bailly Lecture Notes for their respective class: España, France, Italia, or Miami. The student should also conduct additional research on their selected subject, and cite that research.

CREATE AN ACCOUNT
Students must create an “author” account on the website miamiinmiami.com and post their projects here. The use of this website is free and uncensored. The website miamiinmiami.com is personally paid for Professor John W Bailly. This website is a platform for students to freely express themselves. miamiinmiami.com is ad-free and does not generate revenue. The views expressed by students are their own.

Remember this blog post you are creating is PUBLIC! Imagine your future employer is viewing it: how would you want them to perceive you?

NAME THE PAGE
Name the page “First Last: Miami as Text Year” That would be “Maria Cruz: Miami as Text 2023”

STUDENT PROFILE
At the top of your webpage, write a brief student profile. This should consist of a photo (appropriate for a professional setting) of yourself and a short blurb introducing yourself.

CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER
After the profile should be every post (“as text”) assignment in order of their due date. So, ALL your assignments will be on ONE webpage. Use the following format as a title.

Format: (Title of Your Reflection) by First Name Last Name of FIU at official name of location, date
Example: “Art is Art” by German Etcheverry of FIU at Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, January 11, 2023

WORD COUNT
Each reflection must be a minimum of 500 words! Each project must consist of original writing and original image. The writing can be either fiction or non-fiction and either prose or poetry. The images can be a single photo or a collage of photos. ONLY USE ORIGINAL PHOTOS. NEVER USE SOMEONE ELSE’S PHOTO WITHOUT GIVING THEM PHOTO CREDIT. Read Bailly’s Guide to Image Rights and Usage.

Projects submitted by email will not be graded and will be deleted. Failure to submit projects in the proper manner will result in a failing grade.

MEDIA
Due to storage limitation, refer to the rules laid out below:

Recall that each student creates ONE page that ALL as texts will be posted under. Each reflection is permitted only one photo, if you would like to include multiple photos they need to be in a collage format.

NO VIDEOS UPLOADED TO WEBSITE. If you have a video to share, upload it to Youtube and a link will be embedded to your page. Instructions:
– Go to youtube video you want to embed.
– Under the video click SHARE.
– Click Embed.
– From the box that appears, copy the HTML code.
– Paste the code onto your page.

DO NOT upload multiple copies of one photo. Be patient, your photo may take time to upload initially. Do not upload several times. Also, check the media gallery to see if the image you want to use has already been uploaded. Site editors will delete multiple copies of photos.

CITATIONS
All citations must be listed in MLA Format (in-text citations required). No exceptions. If you look at it, cite it.

TURNITIN
Every reflection must individually be submitted to turnitin through Canvas. Students must include the text and image in a Word or PDF document only. No other formats are accepted.

PROJECT GRADES
Successful projects are original, engage a “big idea” and are specific to place. For example, Vizcaya as Text should be specifically about your perspective on an important aspect of Vizcaya: culture, history, identity, gender, race, class. Additional, independent research is essential: historical facts and relevant ideas are important in forming your perspective. The topic the student reflects upon must have been addressed or happened in the class meeting.

Your photos should be creative. Think about composition, lighting, and color. Find an original angle. Provide a context to an object.

Poor projects are often general in nature and superficial in reflection. Errors in facts and typos reveal a lackadaisical effort. These characteristics result in a poor grade.

Your text should always name the place the as text is about or an artwork (artist name) that you are discussing.

Lastly, be honest. If you love something, love it. And if you hate something, write it. Your professor and every institution are interested in honest assessments.

PROJECT CONTEXT
Have fun. Be you. You are now part of a partnership between FIU and the broader Miami community. Your reflection is part of an ambitious mapping through reflection of Miami.

DIRECTORY OF STUDENT BLOGS
Miami as Text student reflections are available to read online. We thank the individuals and institutions that annually welcome us. The Miami as Text Directory is viewable here.

Miami as Text was founded by John William Bailly Stephanie Sepulveda and German Etcheverry.