Module 11: Future-Casting

Module 11: Future-Casting and Review

Monday, April 4, 2016 - Friday, April 8, 2016 April 4: Tweet @JessL something that you’ve just learnt from a reading April 6: Think about all the readings you have done and all the games that you have played (board games, playground games, computer games, ipad games, nintendo games etc…) in relation to what Dr. Mark Butler says about time and that all games create their own idea of time and don’t always maintain that idea (see the video of his talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ag5MMKkk0k, see his ideas at about the 5 minute point though the video is 20 minutes). Write a blog comment on my Module 11 blog post explaining your thoughts April 8: Write a blog post in which you reflect on the course. What has been new to you? Have any of the readings, discussions, blog conversations, tweets etc.. changed how you thought of any of the topics? What readings really made an impression on you? What are your key take-aways? Is there anything you might change in the future (tweet more often, run a crowd-funding project, look at selfies in a different way)

Module 10: Co-Creation or Crowdsourcing

Module 10: Co-Creation or Crowdsourcing: Moving Beyond Multiple Choice

Monday, March 28, 2016 - Sunday, April 3, 2016 March 29: Find three kickstarter projects that are based in Alberta. Write a blog comment noting your critique of how the stories of the projects are written, whether the projects are (or seem to be) successful and what you would do to improve their success (in terms of the narrative and getting funders emotionally invested) March 31: Having read Vladimir Zwass’s article: “Co-Creation: Toward a Taxonomy and an Integrated Research Perspective,” in a blog comment on my Module 10 post define: co-creation commons collective intelligence trust creation

Module 9: Technobiophilia

Module 9: Technobiophilia

Monday, March 21, 2016 - Sunday, March 27, 2016 March 21: Choose any of the readings from this module and paste it into Wordle.net. Save and embed the Wordle tag cloud in a blog post. Write a few points about what you notice: what has the tag cloud highlighted? Does it align with your interpretation? March 25: Having read the excerpt on Amazon of Sue Thomas’s “An Enormous, Unbounded World,” ask Sue a question about what you’ve read. Send your tweet or tweets to both @suethomas and @JessL

Module 8: Social Media and Narratives of Protest

Module 8: Social Media and Narratives of Protest (two weeks)

Monday, March 7, 2016 - Sunday, March 20, 2016 March 8: Tweet three new things that you’ve learnt so far about social media and protest March 15: Choose any TWO of the readings for this module and summarise them in a blog post. As you are writing online, remember to be multimodal and embed an image and another element (video, tweets, links, podcast etc…) that supports your summaries (i.e. is somehow related to what you are saying about the two texts) Online Activism: Petitioning & Protest Assignment Due by 23:59 March 18

Module 7: Identity, Representation & Selfies

Module 7: Identity, Representation & #Selfies (two weeks)

MACT Reading Week Feb. 15-21 Monday, Feb.22, 2016 - Sunday, March 6, 2016 Feb.22: As practise for your Selfie Assignment, tweet two #selfies (in two separate tweets) and include a short critique using the remainder of your character count Feb. 29: As practise on weaving theory alongside your critique for your Selfie Assignment, read Lauren Katz’s “Say it with a Selfie: Protesting in the Age of Social Media” article and Crisia Miriou’s “The Selfies: Social Identities in the Digital Age” paper ALONGSIDE at least the first page of selfies on “Which Picture Would they Use?” at http://iftheygunnedmedown.tumblr.com/. How do you interpet the selfies and how does the representation fit alongside the two articles and the theories of identity raised? Post your findings in a 2-3 paragraph response as a COMMENT on my Module post on the class blog March 2: Tweet your thoughts/reflections/questions about any of this module’s readings March 3, 7:00 pm: live e-class chat Theory of the Selfie Assignment DUE by 23:59 March 6

Module 6: Content Creation with Pinterest

Module 6: Content Creation with Pinterest

Monday, Feb. 8, 2016 - Sunday, Feb. 14, 2016 Feb. 12: Using the Module’s readings as context and theory, curate a Pinterest board. Your board must be related to ONE of our course Modules (digital literature, twitter fiction, #selfies). You must include 7-10 pins. Each pin must include a description that draws from the Module readings. Remember, you are curating specific and pertinent information artefacts. Cite any references using APA style. Embed your completed board in a blog post on the course blog. Tweet a link to your Pinterest blog post. Use the class hashtag #NMN and always tweet to me @JessL

Module 5: Facebook & Narratives of Memory

Module 5: Facebook and Narratives of Memory

Monday, Feb.1, 2016 - Sunday, Feb.7, 2016 Feb. 2: Tweet two reflections on a reading from this Module’s list Feb. 5: Conduct an experiment! Read your Facebook feed and analyse how your “friends” employ their timelines? Can you find narratives? What is the role of “public” in these narratives (are they clearly written for an audience? A specific audience?) How does the format/character constraint affect the narrative?

Module 4: Twitter Narratives

Module 4: Twitter Narratives

Monday, Jan. 25, 2016 - Sunday Jan. 31, 2016 Jan. 27: Tweet links to two examples of twitter fiction. Remember to include the course hashtag: #NMN By Jan. 29: Write a blog post in which you critically compare print narrative to Twitter fiction.  Analyse differences of story, readership and potential of the public to publish. Refer to the module readings. Reference sources using APA style. Your critical analysis should be 3-5 paragraphs. Please use examples. And, since you are writing online, please be multimodal in your response; embed videos, images, screen captures of tweets. Cite all using APA style in a references section at the end of your post.

Module 3: Digital Literature

Module 3: Digital Literature

Monday, Jan. 18, 2016 - Sunday, Jan. 24, 2016 Jan. 20: On my Module 3 post, add your comments summarising three readings that you found most interesting Jan. 24: Having read Inanimate Alice, episode 1 to episode 6 (the most recent), craft your own 30 second episode of Alice. Think of this as Episode 7. You will use the free version of Animoto, https://animoto.com/home. You can use images/photographs of your own making or creative commons licensed ones. You must include images, text and a soundtrack. Have a look at this example from a previous student: https://animoto.com/play/RpxpiFjbYjDxIRYqyD9IjA. Embed your Animoto video within a blog post.

Module 2: Making/Publishing History

Module 2: Making/Publishing History: Printing of THE Book

Monday, Jan. 11, 2016 - Sunday, Jan. 17, 2016 Jan. 11: Watch video clip from The Big Bang Theory: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCpr_QHAqks. In a blog post (not a comment!) examine Sheldon’s response to early text-adventure games to contemporary responses in relation to Elizabeth Eisenstein’s quote: “Scissors and paste are now outmoded; the integrity of the codex is being threatened, and blocks of text get moved by punching keys. Yet the views held by previous generations cannot be deleted as easily as can words upon a screen. Western attitudes that have survived for so long are likely to persist, no matter how many new electronic instruments are devised. Premature obituaries on the death of the sermon and the end of the book are themselves testimony to long-enduring habits of mind. In the very act of heralding the dawn of a new age with the advent of new media, contemporary analysts continue to bear witness, however inadvertently, to the ineluctable persistence of the past“ Jan. 18: 7 - 8 p.m.: eClass Live By Jan. 16: Tweet reflections on your readings (goes towards your Web 2.0 Participation marks)

Module 1: Introduction

Module 1: Introduction

Monday Jan. 4, 2016  - Sunday, Jan. 10, 2016 First Day of Class (January 4th) 1)  Join Twitter 2)  Follow instructor: @JessL By Jan. 4th send an introductory tweet with the            class hashtag: #NMN By Jan. 8th: Be sure to send me your preferred e-mail address so that you may author on the class blog due on or before end of day Class Blog: Add a comment on my Module 1 post – introduce yourself and share with us your thoughts on the readings for Module 1. Remember to critically analyse the readings and your reaction; a simple “I agree” won’t suffice By Jan. 10th: Watch the 33 second video: 51 Keywords of Digital Literature”: http://glia.ca/2010/ELO/51keywords.html Send me @JessL, at least 3 tweets with your findings, remember to include the class hashtag: #NMN Digital Literacy Assignment DUE by 23:59 Jan. 10th

Assignment 5: Online Activism

Assignment 5 (30%) – Online Activism: Petitioning & Protest - March 18, 2016, 23:59

Having discussed aspects of online activism and protesting, students will have an opportunity to participate themselves. Students will craft a petition, keeping in mind the online environment, and choose an online tool such as Change.org, Avaaz.com, ipetition etc. Students should choose an issue that is relevant to them and write a strategic, directed and impact-driven petition. You will be creating an effective advocacy narrative. You will need to write text and include an image. Both image and text must be your own. You may remix and existing image but only if it’s Creative Commons license allows you to do so. Additionally, you must properly cite any sources for your text and image using APA style and links.

This assignment comprises TWO parts. Part ONE is your online petition that you will publicise on an online activism site of your choosing (such as Change.org). You may delete the petition after the completion of this course HOWEVER you may find that you receive signatures and make a difference. As such, take care in choosing your topic to petition. The more local and relevant it is, the more likely to be successful. Part TWO is a blog post authored by you and that is published on our class blog. In the blog post you will link or embed your petition (or a screen capture of it). You will also write approximately 2-3 paragraphs discussing the creation of your petition alongside the critical readings and discussions throughout the course. Include multimodality in your blog post so at least another image (other than your screen cap to your petition) and a video or a pertinent twitter feed etc. So TWO aspects of multimodality.

You will also need to submit your assignment in e-class. To do so, please create a Word document that includes the text of your petition and a link to your blog post and submit that.

Assignment 4: Theory of the Selfie

Assignment 4 (25%) – Theory of the Selfie - March 6, 2016, 23:59

During this course and in the Selfie module especially, we have addressed and critiqued issues of identity and representation and the role narrative plays in that representation. Your task, is to critique at least FIVE selfies. You may choose your own selfies or selfies that someone else (celebrity or otherwise) has posted publicly online. You are to analyse each selfie in relation to ideas of power, production, representation and identity. You will address key concepts and readings we have done in class and on the blog. You will examine the selfies as both a “creator” and a “product/subject.” Also, you will need to address issues of publishing; how selfies are easily published today if one has internet access etc.

Your critical analysis of at least five selfies will be published on the class blog. You must include the five images to which you refer. Keeping multimodality in mind, you may embed videos or podcasts that help support your analysis. You may also refer to other students’ comments or work. All sources, including blog comments, must be cited using APA style and links.

You will also need to submit your assignment in e-class. To do so, please create a Word document that includes the your analysis and images and a link to your blog post and submit that.

Assignment 3: Digital Literacy and Me

Image from Doug Belshaw via Lyn Hilt. 

Assignment 3 (20%) – Digital Literacy and Me - Jan. 10, 2016, 23:59

1. This assignment asks you to assess your overall literate practices and to present them in a

podcast format. It’s designed to help you think critically about all aspects of literacy, and also to help you explore your experiences in an autobiographical genre

2. How do you collaborate and build communities on the web? How have you done so in the past? How will you do so in the future? What aspects of your identity are available online? When did you first make a web page or blog? How has the web, and participation on online communities like Facebook, Blogger, or Twitter, shaped your life so far?

3. Assemble a collection of information related to your (trans)literacy life – images, links, video and any other forms of media and writing you’d like.

4. Craft a narrative which explains and discusses your literacy autobiography experiences using the web and online applications (like Facebook, Twitter, Delicious) from the first time you can remember to today.

5. Create a small podcast of at least three during which you present your literacy narrative in a way that takes advantage of the web as a medium.

6. Record and publish your podcast on audioboom.com space and then post your podcast along with any other information (see step 3) to the class blog.

7. Title your blog post: Digital Literacy & Me, tag your post with “assignment 1, your name” (NOTE: do not include quotation marks in the tags).

8. Include a brief 1-2 paragraph reflection on creating your podcast.

Rubric

1. Introduction effectively draws the listener in. Provides relevant information and establishes a clear purpose engaging the listener immediately. You note who is speaking, the date the podcast was produced, and where the speaker is located. (15 points)

2. How well you create a narrative which presents your experiences using the web, discuss your involvement in online spaces and incorporate answers to the questions noted in steps 2 and 4. (30 points)

3. How well you incorporate different types of media (sound, video, photos) and links to

outside sources into your narrative. Do the images and other modes support your digital

literacy experiences? How well does the music add to the mood of the narrative? (25

points)

4. How creative you are in presenting your material in ways which take advantage of the podcast medium ( i.e. how usable and accessible to your readers is your podcast = voice, clarity, pacing, creativity and grammar). (20 points)

Assignment 2: Web 2.0 Participation

Assignment #2 (15%) – Web 2.0 Participation - Throughout

This course on New Media Narratives is informed by contemporary thinking on transliteracy, meaning the ability to read, write and interpret across a range of media. For this reason, it is important that the course itself is delivered across these environments and that you develop a fluent and practical understanding of their operation. Teaching is not confined to the model adopted by some distance learning courses in which material is asynchronously downloaded by students and thenceforth treated as conventional print texts. Likewise, video, audio and synchronous Skype chats and presentations are useful and will be included as learning materials.

Much of the online learning in this course happens within Blackboard and our class blog. We will make use of other networked environments, including but not limited to: wikis, delicious, Twitter, audioboom, flickr, delicious and more. Therefore, participation is essential to online learning, and this in turn requires regular logging-on. Besides regular logging on, your active and sometimes synchronous participation will be required. For the inaugural running of this course, we have the great pleasure and benefit of several key people in the field who have agreed to give up their time and share their expertise and experience with us (see the syllabus). Sometimes this sharing may unfold through a blog post to which you will be required to comment and respond in a timely manner. At other times, discussions will occur in real time via a Skype chat or call. During these synchronous events, your participation is very much required and encouraged. All synchronous meeting times/places will be indicated well in advance on the class blog and in Blackboard. It is your duty to check both “home-bases* frequently.

Participation is not, however, simply a case of being online. For NMN, participation includes reading and viewing material, doing some of your own research, and discussing material and ideas (on the blog, in Blackboard, during Skype chats etc...) with an open, questioning mind and strong opinions. It does not necessarily include understanding all the readings immediately. For your participation you will not be assessed upon your brilliance, but upon the basis of your involvement. This includes saying things like “I didn’t understand the bit where Howard Rheingold notes...” or “Thomas presents and interesting argument however she doesn’t consider...” Such engagement will form the essence of our online learning and community.

Rubric

1. Participate regularly.

Managing tasks in an online environment invariably involves some sort of communication or group work with your peers. In some courses you may find that regular participation is the norm, whereas in others there may be less activity. It all depends on the nature of the course and, of course, the people involved. Nearly all groups go through some peaks and troughs of activity. If the main communication you have with other students is by using discussion boards or other tools in e-class, you will get to know people well. Even so, not having the usual face-to-face contact can make a difference. The main way of ensuring that others know you are participating and ‘okay’ is to continue contributing to the online course.

2. Let others know when you will be offline for a prolonged period.

Don’t feel you have to be permanently ‘present’ online. If, for some reason, you feel you are unable to contribute as much as others for a time there’s no need to panic. Some people find it useful to let others know when they will be next available or whenever they will be offline for a particular time span. The main thing is to keep a focus on essential contributions related to learning issues and teamwork.

3. Post messages to signal any difficulties.

Guest lecturers and I will rely on you posting messages or e-mailing about any difficulties, confusion or clarification that you feel you need.

4. Respond to and use your peers as a source of support.

Online communication is practical in that you can add something, ask a question or

make a point as you think of it, rather than wait your turn. Other students are a good source of information as well as myself and our guest lecturers and may often be able to answer your question.

5. Make your messages clear.

It can be helpful if everyone keeps to clear messages, headings and feedback, especially for others who need to have a quick read to catch up on anything they may have missed.

6. Remind yourself of what to do when next online

Before logging off from a session, you can make use of the text pad to remind yourself of anything you need to finish next time you logon. The ‘What’s New’ feature in Blackboard lists all items that have been added since you last logged on. You can also always check the class blog.

Assignment 1: Blog Comments

Assignment #1 (5%) – Blog Comments - Throughout

Each student is responsible for contributing comments to fellow students’ blog posts on our course blog. Students are also encouraged to comment on the posts written by the instructor. Comments should be a minimum of 200 words and offer a critique of that week’s posting, seek clarification, compare or contrast postings, or provide additional evidence or new information (such as a link to a related article, website, etc.). Each student must contribute a minimum of 10 comments, credit will be given for a maximum of two comments each week, students can comment on the same blog more than three times over the duration of the course however, only two of those comments will count towards this assessment criteria.

Comments must be posted by 7:00 am Mountain Time on Sundays for posts related to that week’s lecture notes/readings/guest lectures.

Note: Part of this assignment requires that you comment throughout the duration of the course rather than add 10 blog comments at the end of the term.