edu 596 summer 2012 syllabus

8
1 EDU 596: Social Media Literacy ‐ Syllabus Summer 2012 – American University – School of Education, Teaching & Health Instructor: Alex R. Hodges, Associate Librarian/Professor Online Office Hours: Online via Gchat/Google+ – Tuesdays, 3‐5pm https://plus.google.com/109530999277649806514/ Phone: cell/text 202.210.8850 E‐mail: [email protected] Class meets asynchronously online: May 15, 2012 through June 28, 2012 Catalog Course Description for EDU 596: This online course is an exploration and critical analysis of social media use in primary, secondary, and higher education environments. It includes how issues of constructivist and connectivist learning are reflected across a variety of online platforms such as Facebook, Google+, and other social media, and covers the scope of digital literacy as it crosses into transmedia and mobile learning. Required Reading: See course outline for reading assignments by date. Course Goals and Purposes: Our work together as an online learning community requires reflection, observation and communication. Together we will examine both educational social media and digital literacy. Students will apply what they learn in this class to their eventual teaching practice and to the development of their critical thinking skills. Careful evaluation of social media and digital platforms along with an engaged, conversant dynamic will aid the discussion of curriculum‐ based discoveries. In order to achieve these means, the course will use critical theory and a media literacy framework to uncover meaning, explore design and critique online learning through social networking. As a community, the class will . . . 1. Experience an introductory overview of social media and the concepts of digital and media literacy. 2. Engage critical thinking skills to evaluate, discuss, research and reflect upon reactions to social media in order to . . . View digital/media literacy as a social practice, Engage in debate about online privacy and intellectual property, Explore the possibilities of multiple literacies, Discover situated meanings within educational usage of networking practices, and Examine the motivations of bloggers, online educators, and media companies. 3. Use the lens of media literacy to . . . Discuss and learn about social issues such as information need, information access, information evaluation, information integration, and information ethics. Inform the future teaching of children’s social media use while also reflecting upon teaching practice and critical theory.

Upload: alexhodges

Post on 21-Apr-2015

267 views

Category:

Documents


0 download

DESCRIPTION

This syllabus is for EDU 596: Social Media Literacy, which is a 3-credit hour graduate course taught during summer 2012 by Alex R. Hodges in the American University's School of Education, Teaching & Health.

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: EDU 596 Summer 2012 Syllabus

1

EDU596:SocialMediaLiteracy‐SyllabusSummer2012–AmericanUniversity–SchoolofEducation,Teaching&Health

Instructor:AlexR.Hodges,AssociateLibrarian/Professor OnlineOfficeHours:OnlineviaGchat/Google+–Tuesdays,3‐5pmhttps://plus.google.com/109530999277649806514/Phone:cell/text202.210.8850E‐mail:[email protected]:May15,2012throughJune28,2012CatalogCourseDescriptionforEDU596:Thisonlinecourseisanexplorationandcriticalanalysisofsocialmediauseinprimary,secondary,andhighereducationenvironments.ItincludeshowissuesofconstructivistandconnectivistlearningarereflectedacrossavarietyofonlineplatformssuchasFacebook,Google+,andothersocialmedia,andcoversthescopeofdigitalliteracyasitcrossesintotransmediaandmobilelearning.RequiredReading:Seecourseoutlineforreadingassignmentsbydate.CourseGoalsandPurposes:Ourworktogetherasanonlinelearningcommunityrequiresreflection,observationandcommunication.Togetherwewillexaminebotheducationalsocialmediaanddigitalliteracy.Studentswillapplywhattheylearninthisclasstotheireventualteachingpracticeandtothedevelopmentoftheircriticalthinkingskills.Carefulevaluationofsocialmediaanddigitalplatformsalongwithanengaged,conversantdynamicwillaidthediscussionofcurriculum‐baseddiscoveries.Inordertoachievethesemeans,thecoursewillusecriticaltheoryandamedialiteracyframeworktouncovermeaning,exploredesignandcritiqueonlinelearningthroughsocialnetworking.Asacommunity,theclasswill...

1. Experienceanintroductoryoverviewofsocialmediaandtheconceptsofdigitalandmedialiteracy.

2. Engagecriticalthinkingskillstoevaluate,discuss,researchandreflectuponreactionstosocialmediainorderto...• Viewdigital/medialiteracyasasocialpractice,• Engageindebateaboutonlineprivacyandintellectualproperty,• Explorethepossibilitiesofmultipleliteracies,• Discoversituatedmeaningswithineducationalusageofnetworkingpractices,and• Examinethemotivationsofbloggers,onlineeducators,andmediacompanies.

3. Usethelensofmedialiteracyto...• Discussandlearnaboutsocialissuessuchasinformationneed,informationaccess,

informationevaluation,informationintegration,andinformationethics.• Informthefutureteachingofchildren’ssocialmediausewhilealsoreflectingupon

teachingpracticeandcriticaltheory.

Page 2: EDU 596 Summer 2012 Syllabus

2

4. Develop,discoverandshareresearchmethodsandstrategies.5. Respectthediversityofcommunicatedthoughts,experiencesandbeliefsystems.6. Reframetraditionalliteracylearningwithinthemultimodalonlinelearningenvironment.

CourseLearningOutcomes:

1. Studentswillcriticallyinvestigatesocialmedialearningenvironmentsinordertounpacktheinherentprivacyconcernsandsocialbenefitsofonlinecommunication.Studentswillhavebothassignedreadingsandself‐chosenreadingsaswellaslearntofacilitateonlinelearningthroughsocialmediaplatforms.

2. Studentswillcreateandmanagetheirownblogentriesinordertousemultimodalwritingasameanstoreflectupon,communicateandsharetheircriticaldiscoveries.

3. Studentswillcritiquetransmediareadingexperiencesthatcommandbothindependentandsocialreadingexercises.Thisabilitytomovereadingexperienceacrossatraditionalterrainfromaprinttexttothedevelopingterrainofanonline,socialtextwillrequireactivatinginquiryskillsanddialogicliteracythroughlibrary‐basedprintandonlineresearch.

4. Studentswillactivateandbuilduponcreativeproblem‐solvingskillsinordertocompleteproblem‐basedlearning.

5. Studentswillcreateamedialiteracyanalysisofasocialmediaplatforminordertoprovidein‐depthlinguistic,webdesignandorganizationalanalysis,whichshowshowteachingaboutmultimodalitycaneffectthedevelopmentofmultipleliteracies.

6. Studentswillcreateasocialmediawebsiteandscreencast/videotodisplaythestepsoftheanalysisinordertodisseminatetheirreflection,newlycreated/researchedknowledgeandmultimodalcommunicationskills.Thissitewillprovideotherstudentsintheclasswithnewknowledgeaboutthesocialandpoliticalmessages/usestoconsiderwiththeirownfuturestudents.

Page 3: EDU 596 Summer 2012 Syllabus

3

COURSEREQUIREMENTSProfessionalismandParticipation(10Points)Yourparticipationandcriticalengagementarecrucialforyoursuccess–especiallyinacompletelyonlinecourse.Youarerequiredtoparticipatemeaningfullyandcriticallyinallasynchronousdiscussionsaswellascompleteallassignedwork.Studentswhoaccrue1‐2misseddiscussionsmayreceiveaone‐halflettergradededuction(i.e.anA‐becomesaB+)fromtheparticipationgrade.Studentswhomiss3ormorediscussionsmaynotreceiveanyparticipationpoints.BlogDiscussionPosts(20Points)Eachstudentwillblogaboutassignedsocialmediaissues.Participationinthisforumiscriticaltoattaininggoalsandobjectivesforthecourse.

BloggerviaGoogleStudentsareexpectedtojointheclassBloggersitethroughapersonalGoogleaccount(seetheinstructorforaGoogleaccountifyoudon’thaveoneseparatefromAU),andprovidetheclasswiththeirresponsestothediscussionprompts.ActiveparticipationwillbegaugedFOURtimes(at5pts.pereachofthefourgradingdateranges)duringthecourse:

• May28(gradingdaterangesMay21‐27)• June4(gradingdaterangesMay28‐June3)• June11(gradingdaterangesJune4‐10)• June18(gradingdaterangesJune11‐17)

Fullpointscanbeearnedweeklybyprovidingaminimumof3weeklysubstantialposts—

a)ONEpost(withinthesameweek’sMonday‐Fridaytimeline,dueby11:59pmontheFridayofeachweek)mustbeanindividual,originalresponsetothediscussionquestionprompts,b)TWOotherposts(withinthesameweek’sMonday‐Sundaytimeline,dueby11:59pmontheSundayofeachweek)mustreflectonandcontributemeaningfully(in2‐3sentences)tootherstudents’posts.

Project#1(Individual‐30points):SocialMediaPlatformAnalysisEachstudentwillanalyzeasocialmediaplatform.Therearemanyplatformsthatcanbechosenforthisassignment,andwewillusethetenetsofmedialiteracytohelpunpackhowtheplatformsaresociallyconstructed,non‐neutralterrainsthathavepotentialeducationaluses.

1) AnnotatedBibliography(worth10points)Theseresourcesareself‐selected.Theyarethebasisforlearningmoreabouttheeducation‐relatedusesofyourchosensocialmediaplatform.

2) Essay‐3ppminimum(worth15points)Thisessayisanevaluationofyourchosensocialmediaplatform.

3) OnlineJingPresentation(worth5points)This2‐minutemaximumscreencastwillprovideasummaryofyourfindingsaswellasbrieflyoverviewyourselectedsocialmediaplatform.

Moreinformationaboutthisassignmentwillbeexplainedduringthesemester.

Page 4: EDU 596 Summer 2012 Syllabus

4

Project#2(IndividualorGroup‐40points):Transmedia&EdmodoIndividualsorgroups(nomorethan2studentsmayworktogether)willcollectivelychooseonetransmediachildren’sliteratureoryoungadulttextandcorrespondingmultimediaresourcestoexamineindepth.AnEdmodosociallearningsitewillbedevelopedinordertoshowhowatransmediatextcandevelopstudents’inquiryskills.

1) EdmodoWebsite(worth10points)StudentswilldesignasimpleEdmodowebsitethatcollectsandorganizesonlinecontentforthesocialmediaandtransmediaproject.

2) Essay‐5ppminimum(worth20points)Thisessayisanevaluationofyourchosentextandlearninggoals.Itwillincludeanannotatedbibliographyofothersources/texts.Forthosewhochosetoworkinagroup,itmustbecollaborativelywritten.

3) OnlineJingPresentation(worth10points)ThisprojectandyourrationaleforitscreationwillbepresentedtotheclassviayourJingscreencast.

Moreinformationaboutthisassignmentwillbeexplained.

COURSEPOINTS/GRADINGSCALE:Assignment/Project PointsValue

Professionalism&Participation 10pointsBlogPosts 20pointsProject#1 30pointsProject#2 40pointsTotalAvailableCoursePoints: 100POINTS

CourseGrade %ValueA 100‐94A‐ 93.9‐90B+ 89.9‐87B 86.9‐84B‐ 83.9‐80C+ 79.9‐77C 76.9‐74C‐ 73.9‐70D 69.9‐60F 59.9‐00

Page 5: EDU 596 Summer 2012 Syllabus

5

CLASSSCHEDULE–SUMMER2012–EDU596.E02LNote:Thesedetailsaresubjecttochange.Beawareofonlineannouncements.Date

Lecture/DiscussionTopics&Activities

Assignments/ReadingsDue

Week1May14‐20

IntroductiontotheCourse• Reviewsyllabusandcourseoverview• Developcommunicationsstructure

o Blackboardo Blogsetup

• Introtosocialmedia,informationliteracy,andmedialiteracy

1) Watch:MediaLiteracyinthe21stCenturyClassroomAssignments:IntroductionsSocialmediasurvey

Week2May21‐27

IntellectualProperty:Privacy&Ethics• Self‐pacedreading• Classdiscussionanddebate• WatchvideoonGoogleoverview• Project#1assigned

ReadingDue:Coutu,etal(2007)WeGoogledYou,HarvardBusinessReview,CaseStudy&CommentaryWatch:GoogleToolsforEducation(2011)

Week3May28‐June3

DigitalLiteracy:PanaceaTerm?ClassDiscussion

• Self‐pacedreading• Classdiscussionanddebate

ReadingDue:Jenkins,etal(2009)ConfrontingtheChallengesofParticipatoryCulture

Week4June4‐10

MobileLearningClassDiscussion

• Self‐pacedreading• Classdiscussionanddebate

ReadingDue:Lenhart,etal(2010)PewInternet&AmericanLife,SocialMedia&MobileInternetUseAmongTeensandYoungAdultsProject#1Due:EmailtoAlexbySun,June10,11:59pm

Week5June11‐17

TransmediaLiteracy,partoneClassDiscussion

• Self‐pacedreading• Classdiscussionanddebate• Project#2assigned

ReadingDue:Thomas,etal(2007)“Transliteracy:Crossingdivides”FirstMonday

Week6June18‐24

TransmediaLiteracy,parttwo• Connectingchildren’sliterature• InvestigateEdmodo• Project#2work

ReadingDue:Choose/readatransmediachildren’soryoungadultbookthatcrossesthetransmedialandscape

Week7June25‐28

Project#2‐PreparationsActivity:WorktimeonProject#2

Project#2DueEmailtoAlexbyThursday,June28,11:59pm

Page 6: EDU 596 Summer 2012 Syllabus

6

AcademicIntegrityCodeStudentsareexpectedtoconformtotheregulationsoftheUniversityinregardtoacademicintegrity,especiallyinregardtoplagiarism,inappropriatecollaboration,dishonestyinexaminations,dishonestyinpapers,workforonecourseandsubmittedtoanother,deliberatefalsificationofdata,interferencewithotherstudents'work,andcopyrightviolation.Thestudentacademicintegritycodeislocatedhere:http://www.american.edu/provost/registrar/regulations/reg80.cfmResearchAssistanceTheUniversityLibraryfacultyprovideassistancewithdevelopingsearchstrategiesforAU’sonlineresearchtools.Youcanseekhelpbyvisitingthereferencedesk,bycalling(202)885‐3238,orbyinstantmessagingaskaulibraryviaAIM/GTalk/Yahoo!/MSN.UsingAppropriateDocumentationFormatsTheSchoolofEducation,Teaching&HealthendorsestheuseofAPAorMLAstyleforresearchcitations,footnotes,listofreferences,andlayout,andallwrittenwork.Allstyleguidescanbefoundinprintinthelibrarynexttothereferencedesk.AmericanPsychologicalAssociation.(2010).PublicationmanualoftheAmericanPsychological

Association,SixthEdition.Washington,D.C.:AmericanPsychologicalAssociation.(AtReferenceDesk–Callnumber:PN147.A72010)

Gibaldi,J.MLAHandbookforWritersofResearchPapers.7thed.NewYork:ModernLanguage

Association,2009.(AtReferenceDesk–Callnumber:LB2369.G532009)NewMediaCenter(LowerleveloftheUniversityLibrary)TheNewMediaCenteroffersstudentsassistancewithadvancedmultimediaproductivitysupportservices.Discovertheirofferingshere: http://www.american.edu/library/technology/nmc.cfmEmergencyPreparednessIntheeventofadeclaredpandemic(influenzaorothercommunicabledisease),AmericanUniversitywillimplementaplanformeetingtheneedsofallmembersoftheuniversitycommunity.Shouldtheuniversityberequiredtocloseforaperiodoftime,wearecommittedtoensuringthatallaspectsofoureducationalprogramswillbedeliveredtoourstudents.Thesemayincludealteringandextendingthedurationofthetraditionaltermscheduletocompleteessentialinstructioninthetraditionalformatand/oruseofonlinelearning.Intheeventofadeclaredpandemicorotheremergency,studentsshouldrefertotheAUWebsite(http://www.american.edu/emergency/)andtheAUinformationlineat(202)885‐1100forgeneraluniversity‐wideinformation,aswellascontacttheirfacultyand/orrespectivedean’sofficeforcourseandschool/college‐specificinformation.

Page 7: EDU 596 Summer 2012 Syllabus

7

ProtectionofHumanSubjectsCatalogAnyresearchinvolvinginterviewing,surveying,orobservinghumanbeingsissubjecttoreviewandapprovalbytheUniversityInstitutionalReviewBoard(IRB)andinformationabouttheuniversity’sIRBprocessisoutlinedathttp://american.edu/irb/index.cfm.TheuniversityIRBliaisonisMatthewZembrzuskiandhisemailiszembrzus@american.edu.AcademicandDisabilitySupportServicesAppropriatemodificationstoacademicrequirementsmaybenecessaryonacase‐by‐casebasistoensureeducationalopportunityforstudentswithdisabilities,andindividualfacultymembersmayneedtomodifyspecificcourserequirementstopermitequalparticipationbystudentswithdisabilities.Awiderangeofservicesisavailabletohelpyoumeetcourserequirements:

AcademicSupportCenter‐‐http://www.american.edu/ocl/asc/index.cfm DisabilitySupportServices‐‐http://www.american.edu/ocl/dss/index.cfm CounselingCenter‐‐http://www.american.edu/ocl/counseling/index.cfmIncompleteGradesFacultymembersmustapprovestudentrequestsforanincompletegrade,andmustdosobeforetheendofthesemester.StudentsmustcompleteandsubmitanIncompleteContractFormtothefacultymember.Incompletesaregivenonlyincasesofsevereemergencies,orspecial,well‐documentedcircumstances,etc.AdditionalInformationforstudents‐‐

AmericanUniversityAcademicRegulationshttp://www.american.edu/provost/registrar/regulations/academicreg.cfmTheStudentHandbookhttp://www.american.edu/ocl/upload/student_handbook.pdf

StudentEvaluationofTeachingNeartheendofthecourse,youwillhavetheopportunitytoevaluatethisonlineclassandyourlearningexperiencebycompletinganonlineStudentEvaluationofTeaching.Theevaluationcontainsthesamesetofquestionsusedinassessingclassroom‐basedcourses,withtheadditionoffourquestionsspecificallyapplicabletoonlinelearning.Aswithanyotherface‐to‐facecourse,youarestronglyencouragedtoparticipateinthisevaluationofyoureducationalexperience.AhighparticipationrateiscriticaltoAU’sabilitytocontinuallyimproveandstrengthenthequalityoftheUniversity’slearningopportunities.

Page 8: EDU 596 Summer 2012 Syllabus

8

PhilosophyoftheSchoolofEducation,Teaching&Health(SETH)ThefacultyoftheSchoolofEducation,Teaching&Healthiscommittedtoexcellenceinadvancingeducationaltheoryandpracticethroughtheinitialandcontinuingdevelopmentofreflective,dedicatedandproficientteachers,administratorsandresearchers.Graduatesareequippedtomeetindividualneeds,tonurturethestrengthsandtalentsofthoseindividuals,andtoinitiateandprovideleadershipinclassrooms,educationalinstitutions,andinthepublicpolicyarena.ThemissionoftheSETHisderivedfromthefaculty'ssharedconvictionthatthefundamentaltaskofschoolinginAmericaistheadvancementofthewelfareofchildren.TheSETHfacultywantsourteachereducationprogramstobeknownforpreparingeffectiveteacherswhounderstandandmodelacommitmenttoexcellence,equity,communityanddiversity.TheSETHfacultyandstaffarecommittedtocelebratingdiversityandbuildingacommunityoflearners.Asweworkincollaborationinandoutoftheclassroom:♦ Webelievethatrespectingeachother'sdifferencesandopinionsleadstoapositiveand

openenvironment,♦ Webelievethatopendiscoursepromotesreflectiveandthoughtfuleducators,♦ Webelievethatequitabletreatmentofeachotherisnecessaryforapositive,sustained,

andworkingcommunity,and♦ Webelievethateachandeverymemberofthecommunitycanmakeavaluable

contributiontothecommunity.♦ Thesebeliefsinactionprovideforallstudents,staff,andfacultyasafe,productive,and

positiveeducationalcommunity.

EDU 596: Social Media Literacy – Summer 2012 Syllabus by Alex R. Hodges is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License.