COM 216: Digital Media & Information in Society

edit

Instructor Contact Information

edit

Professor Steve Schneider
e: steve@sunypoly.edu
o: Donovan Hall 2143B
c: ‪315.520.8861‬

Course Meetings

edit
  • Section 01H: Mondays, Wednesdays 9:20am - 10:30am. Kunsela A-133
  • Section 02H: Mondays, Wednesdays 10:40am - 11:50am. Kunsela A-133

Course Description

edit

An introduction to the impact of mass and digital media on American society. Through study of communication theory and a comparison of broadcast to digital media, and creation of original digital media projects, students will explore the relevance of the emerging information technologies within various disciplines and their own lives. Meets General Education Humanities requirement.

Additional contact information for student issues or grievances about the instructor

edit
  • Department Chair: Professor Ryan Lizardi (lizardr@sunypoly.edu)
  • College of Arts & Sciences Dean: Dean Carlie Phipps (phippsc@sunypoly.edu)

Goals, Objectives and Outcomes

edit

Learning Goals

edit

Broad statements describing overall desired learning outcomes

Understand and Analyze (Digital) Media and Information

edit
  • Comprehend the history, forms, and impacts of (digital) media and information
  • Evaluate the relationship between people, information and technology in historical context
  • Apply theoretical frameworks and scholarly traditions in communications and media studies to explorations about information and technology.

Develop and Apply Exploration and Research Skills

edit
  • Use ChatGPT as a collaborative tool to generate ideas, perform research, and refine writing.
  • Use digital libraries to identify, review, and apply knowledge from relevant scholarly sources.
  • Engage with Wikipedia, understanding the rules, guidelines, and ethics of contributing to Wikipedia, and utilizing Wikipedia for research, writing, communication, and learning citation skills.

Engage in Collaborative Knowledge Creation

edit
  • Create and share knowledge about the future of digital information on Wikipedia.
  • Create and share collaborative conversations applying theoretical frameworks to course topics.
  • Share reflections on the advantages, limitations, and ethical considerations of using AI like ChatGPT and digital libraries in research.
  • Share reflections on the impact of engagement with public knowledge platforms like Wikipedia in digital media and society.

Learning Objectives

edit

Specific statements outlining what learners should achieve

Apply Theoretical Frameworks

edit
  • Use relevant theoretical frameworks to explore course topics

Contribute to Wikipedia

edit
  • Identify and/or select Wikipedia articles related to the themes of the course and assess their current quality
  • Create or enhance these articles according to Wikipedia's editorial standards

Use language models to explore topics

edit
  • Collaborate with ChatGPT to generate exploratory conversations on class topics
  • Summarize, reflect on and share these collaborations

Use ChatGPT and Digital Libraries for Research

edit
  • Employ AI tools like ChatGPT for idea generation, research, and refining writing
  • Utilize digital libraries tools effectively to identify and review resources.

Student Outcomes

edit

Measurable results reflecting learnerns knowledge or skills acquired

Evidence of applying theoretical frameworks

edit
  • Portfolio of journal entries applying theoretical frameworks to class topics and reflecting on the experience of collaborating with a language model.

Evidence of enhancing Wikipedia content

edit
  • Provide evidence by completing project of enhancing Wikipedia content, demonstrating ability to assess quality and improve articles according to Wikipedia's editorial standards.

Evidence of proficiency in using ChatGPT for ideation and exploration

edit
  • Share collaborative conversations with ChatGPT about course topics.

Evidence of understanding Wikipedia's community, guidelines, and citation practices

edit
  • Provide evidence, through Wikiedu assignments, of understanding of Wikipedia's structure, dynamics, rules, ethical guidelines, and citation practices.

Learning Activities and Grading Scheme

edit

Philosophy

edit
  1. This class is designed to allow flexibility for students to select learning activities they believe will best allow them to accomplish the learning objectives.
  2. There are a limited set of learning activities that all students must complete in order to pass the class with a grade of C- or better.
  3. Completing additional learning activities provide a path to earn grades ranging from a C to an A+.
  4. Each type of learning activity earns students a specified number of points when completed.
  5. All learning activities completed by students receive full credit upon submission.
  6. All assignments are due on a specified date. Assignments submitted on or before the due date receive an on-time point. Assignments submitted late do not receive this point. Students are required to certify assignments that are submitted on-time.

Learning Activities

edit
Activity Description
Wikipedia Assignment Wikipedia assignments are individually described on the class COM 216 Wikiedu page. To earn credit for Wikipedia assignments, complete the assignment and the appropriate quiz in D2L Brightspace.
In-class Discussion To earn credit for attending an in-class discussion, you must attend the class and complete the appropriate "quiz" in D2L Brightspace after the class has concluded.

In-class discussions are scheduled most Mondays (and a few Wednesdays).

Each class discussion will focus on a specific topic. The topic will be addressed in a Wikiversity page. The Wikiversity page will identify some sub-themes and a few Wikipedia articles to consult.

Outside-class conversation with the professor To earn credit for scheduling and attending an outside-class conversation with the professor, you must schedule a meeting via the professor's calendar page, attend the meeting, and complete the appropriate "quiz" in D2L Brightspace after the meeting.
Discussion Extension Assignment Each class discussion will focus on a specific topic. The topic will be addressed in a Wikiversity page. The Wikiversity page will identify some sub-themes, a few Wikipedia articles to consult.

To extend the class discussion,

  1. Collaborate with ChatGPT to explore using one of the theoretical frameworks ∞ to examine one or two topics raised in the class discussion that most interested you.
  2. Create an entry or entries in your Wikiversity journal that
    1. Reflects on your experience collaborating with ChatGPT
    2. Summarizes the most interesting part of the conversation
    3. Includes a link to your ChatGPT conversation
  3. Complete the associated "quiz" in D2L Brightspace
In-class Workshop To earn credit for attending an in-class workshop, you must attend the workshop and complete the appropriate "quiz" in D2L Brightspace after the workshop has concluded.

In-class Workshops are scheduled most Wednesdays.

Each class workshop will focus on a specific skill or platform. The workshop will be summarized in a Wikiversity page, which will contain links for further information.

In-class Porfolio Presentation To earn credit for attending an in-class portfolio presentation, you must attend the presentations and complete the appropriate "quiz" in D2L Brightspace after the class has concluded.

Presentations are scheduled the last week of the semester.

Portfolio Assignment The portfolio assignment requires that you review your Wikiversity journal posts, and assemble them into a comprehensive and reflective document that explores your experiences with ChatGPT creating the discussion extension assignments and the Wikipedia assignments that required such collaboration.

Post a link to your portfolio in your journal and in the appropriate D2L Brightspace quiz.

Project Assignment The project assignment requires that review your Wikipedia assignments, with a focus on the final article you completed, and create a document that comprehensively reviews your work, and provides reflective comments on your experiences writing in Wikipedia.

Post a link to your document in your journal and in the appropriate D2L Brightspace quiz.

Implementation

edit

The table below identifies the types of learning activities and the points earned for completion of each activity of that type.

Activity Name Activity Number of activities Points earned for each completed activity Minimum to be completed Maximum that may be completed
Wikipedia Assignment Complete the Wikepedia assignment 17 4 4 17
In-class Discussion Go to Class Discussion and Confirm Attendance 16 1 2 16
Outside-class conversation with the professor Schedule and attend a conversation with the professor" 16 2 2 4
Discussion Extension Assignment Collaborate with ChatGPT to extend the class discussion 11 4 4 11
In-class Workshop Go to Class Workshop and Confirm Attendance 9 1 2 9
In-class Porfolio Presentation Attend scheduled class session in which students present portfolios 2 1 1 2
Portfolio Assignment Create portfolio and post a link to it on appropriate Wikiversity pages 1 12 1 1
Project Assignment Complete project assignment and a link to it on appropriate Wikiversity pages 1 12 1 1

Students who engage in the minimum activities required will earn 100 points:

Activity Minimum Activities Minimum Points Earned
Discussion Extension Assignment 4 16
Wikipedia Assignment 4 16
Portfolio Assignment 1 12
Project Assignment 1 12
Outside-class conversation with the professor 2 4
In-class Discussion 2 2
In-class Workshop 2 2
In-class Porfolio Presentation 1 1
Total 17 65

Students who engage in addition activities can earn up to 216 points:

Activity Maximum Activities Maximum Points Earned
Wikipedia Assignments 17 68
Discussion Extension Assignments 11 44
In-class Discussions 16 16
Portfolio Assignments 1 12
Project Assignments 1 12
In-class Workshops 9 9
Outside-class conversation with the professors 4 8
In-class Porfolio Presentations 2 2
Total 65 171

Grades will be dependent on the number of points earned, as well as completion of all minimum activities:

Completed Minimum Activities Earned Points Grade
Yes Fewer than 65 F
No 65 or more D
Yes 65-75 C-
Yes 76-86 C
Yes 87-97 C+
Yes 98-108 B-
Yes 109-119 B
Yes 120-130 B+
Yes 131-141 A-
Yes 142-152 A
Yes 153 or more A+

Academic Integrity

edit
  • The SUNY Poly Academic Integrity policy (https://www.sunypoly.edu/sites/default/files/studentLife/Student-Handbook.pdf, pp. 47-52) provides some guidance for our course with respect to academic integrity.
  • Article III - Summary of Academic Integrity Policy states that "a student's name or other unique identifier on any course exercises ... is taken as assurance that the exercise is the product of the student's own thoughts ... except as indicated by quotation marks, citations, references and footnotes." In our assignments, evidence of collaboration with ChatGPT by linking to the ChatGPT conversation is required.
  • Article IV - Prohibited Behavior states that plagiarism is "Any piece of work that has been presented as the individual creation of the student is assumed to involve no assistance from any other person." In our assignments, this will extent to assistance from a language model, and thus work that has been collaboratively produced with a language model must include a link to the ChatGPT conversaqtion.
  • Article IV - Prohibited Behavior - Section 7 provides examples of other prohibited behavior. In our class, an additional prohibited behavior is falsely certifying attendance in a class, falsely certifying on-time submission of an assignment, or falsely certifying submission of an assignment.
  • Article V - Adjudication of Charges states that "The faculty member must make a judgement of whether the student’s action is an error of learning, an error of judgement, or an action of willful intention. In the event of errors of learning or judgement, the faculty member must follow the guidelines for the assignments or course, wherein the corrective actions and/or pedagogical responses must be stated for such errors. In the event of the latter two, the faculty member shall assess an appropriate penalty."
  • To that end, a student making an initial false certification will be considered to have committed an error of judgement. Second false certifications will be considered actions of willful intention, and will receive a penalty of 12 points deducted from their semester grade. Additional acts of false certification will be considered actions of willful intention, and will receive a penalty of 117 points deducted from their semester grade (resulting, by definition, in an F grade).
  • Upon discovery of any act of false certification, the professor will, within two weeks, communicate the nature of the intended penalty to the student by official University email, create a written record of the incident, including the evidence, the assessed penalty and whether the reason why the incident is believed to be an error in judgment worthy of penalty or willful misconduct, and report the to the Provost of the alleged offense and after notification has been made to the student.

Accommodations for Students with Disabilities

edit
  • In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, SUNY Polytechnic Institute is committed to ensuring comprehensive educational access and accommodations for all registered students seeking access to meet course requirements and fully participate in programs and activities.
  • Students with documented disabilities or medical conditions are encouraged to request these services by registering with the Office of Student Accessibility Services.
  • Please request accommodations early in the semester, or as soon as you become registered with the Office of Student Accessibility Services, so that we have adequate time to arrange your approved academic accommodation/s.
  • Once Accessibility Services creates your accommodation plan, it is your responsibility to provide me a copy of the accommodation plan. If you experience any access barriers in this course, such as with printed content, graphics, online materials, etc., reach out to me or Accessibility Services right away.

For information related to these services or to schedule an appointment, please contact the Office of Student Accessibility Services using the information provided below.

Office of Student Accessibility Services
e: SAS@sunypoly.edu
p: 315.792.7170
o: Cayan Library L113


Schedule of Learning Activities, By Week

edit

Week 1

edit
Date What to do Activity Type Activity Description
Mon 28 Aug Go to Class Discussion and Confirm Attendance In-class Discussion Hello, World
Mon 28 Aug Schedule and attend a conversation with the professor" Outside-class conversation with the professor Conversation with the professor
Wed 30 Aug Go to Class Workshop and Confirm Attendance In-class Workshop Introduction to Brightspace, Wikipedia & Wikiversity
Wed 30 Aug Complete the Wikepedia assignment Wikipedia Assignment Sign up for the course in Wikipedia
Thu 31 Aug Collaborate with ChatGPT to extend the class discussion Discussion Extension Assignment Hello, World
Fri 01 Sep Complete the Wikepedia assignment Wikipedia Assignment Start a class journal on Wikiversity
Fri 01 Sep Complete the Wikepedia assignment Wikipedia Assignment Get started on Wikipedia and Wikiversity

Week 2

edit
Date What to do Activity Type Activity Description
Mon 04 Sep Schedule and attend a conversation with the professor" Outside-class conversation with the professor Conversation with the professor
Mon 04 Sep Regularly scheduled vacation day Vacation Labor Day
Wed 06 Sep Go to Class Workshop and Confirm Attendance In-class Workshop Wikiversity and Wikipedia Pages and Magic Words
Fri 08 Sep Complete the Wikepedia assignment Wikipedia Assignment Evaluate Wikipedia article
Fri 08 Sep Complete the Wikepedia assignment Wikipedia Assignment Make a small edit
Fri 08 Sep Complete the Wikepedia assignment Wikipedia Assignment Copyedit an article

Week 3

edit
Date What to do Activity Type Activity Description
Mon 11 Sep Go to Class Discussion and Confirm Attendance In-class Discussion Media and Information Ages
Mon 11 Sep Schedule and attend a conversation with the professor" Outside-class conversation with the professor Conversation with the professor
Wed 13 Sep Go to Class Workshop and Confirm Attendance In-class Workshop Exploring Natural Language Models: Asking Questions About ChatGPT
Thu 14 Sep Collaborate with ChatGPT to extend the class discussion Discussion Extension Assignment Media and Information Ages
Fri 15 Sep Complete the Wikepedia assignment Wikipedia Assignment Collaborate with ChatGPT in a conversation about possible topics

Week 4

edit
Date What to do Activity Type Activity Description
Mon 18 Sep Go to Class Discussion and Confirm Attendance In-class Discussion Orality
Mon 18 Sep Schedule and attend a conversation with the professor" Outside-class conversation with the professor Conversation with the professor
Wed 20 Sep Go to Class Workshop and Confirm Attendance In-class Workshop Starting conversations about possible topics for wikipedia articles
Thu 21 Sep Collaborate with ChatGPT to extend the class discussion Discussion Extension Assignment Orality
Fri 22 Sep Complete the Wikepedia assignment Wikipedia Assignment Choose possible topics

Week 5

edit
Date What to do Activity Type Activity Description
Mon 25 Sep Go to Class Discussion and Confirm Attendance In-class Discussion Early Literacy and the Manuscript Age
Mon 25 Sep Schedule and attend a conversation with the professor" Outside-class conversation with the professor Conversation with the professor
Wed 27 Sep Go to Class Discussion and Confirm Attendance In-class Discussion Later Literacy and the Age of Printing
Thu 28 Sep Collaborate with ChatGPT to extend the class discussion Discussion Extension Assignment Early Literacy and the Manuscript Age
Thu 28 Sep Collaborate with ChatGPT to extend the class discussion Discussion Extension Assignment Later Literacy and the Age of Printing
Fri 29 Sep Complete the Wikepedia assignment Wikipedia Assignment Collaborate with ChatGPT in a conversation about a specific topic

Week 6

edit
Date What to do Activity Type Activity Description
Mon 02 Oct Go to Class Discussion and Confirm Attendance In-class Discussion Telegraphic and Telephonic
Mon 02 Oct Schedule and attend a conversation with the professor" Outside-class conversation with the professor Conversation with the professor
Wed 04 Oct Go to Class Workshop and Confirm Attendance In-class Workshop Quotes, citations and references
Thu 05 Oct Collaborate with ChatGPT to extend the class discussion Discussion Extension Assignment Telegraphic and Telephonic
Fri 06 Oct Complete the Wikepedia assignment Wikipedia Assignment Finalize your topic and find sources

Week 7

edit
Date What to do Activity Type Activity Description
Mon 09 Oct Schedule and attend a conversation with the professor" Outside-class conversation with the professor Conversation with the professor
Mon 09 Oct Regularly scheduled vacation day Vacation Mid-semester break
Wed 11 Oct Go to Class Workshop and Confirm Attendance In-class Workshop Editing, paragraph types and images in Mediawiki
Fri 13 Oct Complete the Wikepedia assignment Wikipedia Assignment Start drafting contributions

Week 8

edit
Date What to do Activity Type Activity Description
Mon 16 Oct Go to Class Discussion and Confirm Attendance In-class Discussion Broadcasting
Mon 16 Oct Schedule and attend a conversation with the professor" Outside-class conversation with the professor Conversation with the professor
Wed 18 Oct Go to Class Discussion and Confirm Attendance In-class Discussion Pre-Web
Thu 19 Oct Collaborate with ChatGPT to extend the class discussion Discussion Extension Assignment Broadcasting
Thu 19 Oct Collaborate with ChatGPT to extend the class discussion Discussion Extension Assignment Pre-Web
Fri 20 Oct Complete the Wikepedia assignment Wikipedia Assignment Continue improving your article

Week 9

edit
Date What to do Activity Type Activity Description
Mon 23 Oct Go to Class Discussion and Confirm Attendance In-class Discussion Participatory Web
Mon 23 Oct Schedule and attend a conversation with the professor" Outside-class conversation with the professor Conversation with the professor
Wed 25 Oct Go to Class Workshop and Confirm Attendance In-class Workshop Exploring Natural Language Models
Thu 26 Oct Collaborate with ChatGPT to extend the class discussion Discussion Extension Assignment Participatory Web

Week 10

edit
Date What to do Activity Type Activity Description
Mon 30 Oct Go to Class Discussion and Confirm Attendance In-class Discussion Social Web
Mon 30 Oct Schedule and attend a conversation with the professor" Outside-class conversation with the professor Conversation with the professor
Wed 01 Nov Go to Class Workshop and Confirm Attendance In-class Workshop Moving work to Wikipedia and peer reviewing
Thu 02 Nov Collaborate with ChatGPT to extend the class discussion Discussion Extension Assignment Social Web
Fri 03 Nov Complete the Wikepedia assignment Wikipedia Assignment Peer review two articles

Week 11

edit
Date What to do Activity Type Activity Description
Mon 06 Nov Go to Class Discussion and Confirm Attendance In-class Discussion Advanced AI Models and the Semantic Web
Mon 06 Nov Schedule and attend a conversation with the professor" Outside-class conversation with the professor Conversation with the professor
Wed 08 Nov Go to Class Discussion and Confirm Attendance In-class Discussion Web 4.0
Wed 08 Nov Complete project assignment and a link to it on appropriate Wikiversity pages Project Assignment Project Due
Thu 09 Nov Collaborate with ChatGPT to extend the class discussion Discussion Extension Assignment Advanced AI Models and the Semantic Web
Fri 10 Nov Complete the Wikepedia assignment Wikipedia Assignment Respond to your peer review

Week 12

edit
Date What to do Activity Type Activity Description
Mon 13 Nov Go to Class Discussion and Confirm Attendance In-class Discussion Post-cybernetic: Human-Machine Integration
Mon 13 Nov Schedule and attend a conversation with the professor" Outside-class conversation with the professor Conversation with the professor
Wed 15 Nov Go to Class Discussion and Confirm Attendance In-class Discussion Post Cybernetic (Generalized Artificial Intelligence
Fri 17 Nov Complete the Wikepedia assignment Wikipedia Assignment Begin moving your work to Wikipedia

Week 13

edit
Date What to do Activity Type Activity Description
Mon 20 Nov Go to Class Discussion and Confirm Attendance In-class Discussion Post-cybernetic: The Singularity
Mon 20 Nov Schedule and attend a conversation with the professor" Outside-class conversation with the professor Conversation with the professor
Fri 24 Nov Regularly scheduled vacation day Vacation Thanksgiving

Week 14

edit
Date What to do Activity Type Activity Description
Mon 27 Nov Go to Class Discussion and Confirm Attendance In-class Discussion Reprise: Media and Information Ages
Mon 27 Nov Schedule and attend a conversation with the professor" Outside-class conversation with the professor Conversation with the professor
Wed 29 Nov Go to Class Workshop and Confirm Attendance In-class Workshop Exploring Natural Language Models
Fri 01 Dec Complete the Wikepedia assignment Wikipedia Assignment Polish your work

Week 15

edit
Date What to do Activity Type Activity Description
Mon 04 Dec Attend scheduled class session in which students present portfolios In-class Porfolio Presentation Student Showcase
Mon 04 Dec Schedule and attend a conversation with the professor" Outside-class conversation with the professor Conversation with the professor
Wed 06 Dec Attend scheduled class session in which students present portfolios In-class Porfolio Presentation Student Showcase
Fri 08 Dec Complete the Wikepedia assignment Wikipedia Assignment Final article

Week 16

edit
Date What to do Activity Type Activity Description
Mon 11 Dec Schedule and attend a conversation with the professor" Outside-class conversation with the professor Conversation with the professor
Mon 11 Dec Create portfolio and post a link to it on appropriate Wikiversity pages Portfolio Assignment Porfolio Due