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English
488/688/LLC 750 : Advanced Topics in Rhetoric and Composition:
Issues of Visual and Technological Literacy
Fall 2004
Instructor: Dr. Karen Carpenter, English
Time: Tuesday 7-9:45 pm
Location: Room FA001, Fine Arts Building
Office Hours: Tuesdays 1-2:30pm, FA444
Email: carpente@umbc.edu
Focus: New media impact on visual and technological literacy
English 488/688/LLC 750 focuses on the impact of new media on an evolving
visual and technological literacy. The course will examine literacy development
and expectations in contemporary communication forms. To ground the study
we will begin with a solid history of literacy development, both visual
and textual, across cultures. The course goal is both to understand how
we see and how we communicate in various cultural contexts. Practical
applications will include both composing and designing in the computer-mediated
classroom. We will explore art history, reading and writing theory, and
the evolution and sociological expectations of literacy development.
Technology’s impact on our literacy practices is great in scope;
only be comparing print literacy with electronic literacy can we truly
begin to understand, interpret, and create documents that meet contemporary
visual and textual literacy expectations.
For both readers and writers, technology is reshaping our literate practices;
literacy definitions are expanding; literacy expectations are increasing.
Yet, as educators, while we may be competent in the skills associated
with technology, we are often unprepared to help student writers as they
experience a changed composing process. Reading the screen, transitioning
among software programs, researching and validating research online,
integrating and 'reading' visual messages, sharing ownership in new collaborations,
and practicing new composing processes including the conflated practice
of editing while composing are just a few of the ways technology has
extended our literacy practices.
English 488/688 introduces the methods of computer-assisted writing instruction
to current and prospective teachers across the curriculum. It allows
participants to practice these methods in class and provides opportunities
for discussion and investigation. Designed for educators and professionals
in all disciplines and at all levels, this course invites participants
to explore ways of integrating visual and technological literacy practices
within their own documents, classrooms, or curricula. We will meet Tuesday
evenings, 7pm, in FA001.
PREREQUISITE: Permission of the instructor.
TEXTS
Literacy in the New
Media Age by Gunther Kress
Publisher: Routledge (March 2003)
ISBN: 041525356X
Literacy in a Digital World: Teaching and Learning in the Age of
Information by Kathleen Tyner
Publisher: Lawrence Erlbaum Assoc (September 1998)
ISBN: 0805822267
Visual Methodologies: An Introduction to the Interpretation of Visual
Materials by Gillian Rose
Publisher: Sage Publications (March 2001)
ISBN: 076196665X
Creating Graphics for Learning and Performance: Lessons in Visual
Literacy by Linda L. Lohr
Publisher: Prentice Hall (October 2002)
ISBN: 013090712X
Recommended: [wait to purchase; will be individually assigned during
class one for graduate student presentations]
Mutltimodal Discourse: The Modes and Media of Contemporary Communication by Gunther Kress, Theo Van Leeuwen, Edward Arnold
Publisher: 2001)
ISBN: 0340608773
Handbook of Visual Analysis Theo Van Leeuwen and Carey Jewitt (editors)
Publisher: Sage Publications (2001)
ISBN: 0761964770
Mediamorphosis: Understanding New Media by Roger Fidler
Publisher: Pine Forge Press (l997)
ISBN: 0803990863
Image-Based Research: A Sourcebook for Qualitative Researchers, Jon Prosser
(editor)
Publisher: Routledge (l998)
ISBN: 075070649X
POLICIES Attendance in class and at conference
is mandatory, as this is a participatory rather than passive learning
experience. Plagiarism will not be tolerated. When you write or speak,
present your own work and not the effort of another writer. Plagiarism
is easily avoided by using quotation marks when you quote directly,
by
citing the author whose ideas you are using when you paraphrase, and
by never taking credit for writing or for ideas which are not your
own. Students
who plagiarize will automatically fail the course. Students are required
to complete all assignments. Papers are due on assigned dates. Late
papers
will not be accepted. All papers must be word-processed and must demonstrate
a mastery of page design and audience awareness. All papers will
be submitted
in a labeled folder with all prewriting, an outline, a rough draft and
a final, camera ready draft. Revisions will be accepted no later
than
one week following the return of the initial graded paper. When revisions
are exceptional, the grade may be raised by as much as one letter
grade.
Everyone needs an email account right away; everyone needs to see me
during the first class to discuss your computer-assisted writing
background.
This upper level undergraduate/ graduate seminar is a decentralized,
student-centered class meeting only one time each week; it is highly
participative, intense
and great fun. Plan to attend all classes; come prepared for class. We
will write each week, both in and out of class. Remember: revision
grades are averaged with all prior grades per paper to determine
that paper's final grade.
Online portfolios, a three step process.
Students create online portfolios by writing in response to a journal
entry and to a classmate, each week, on the classlist. Weekly journal
prompts will be posted to the classlist on Tuesdays.
1. Student journal entries answering the questions posed in the prompt
are due to list by Friday evening. Entries are typically 1-2 pages in
length.
2. After reading entries, students select one classmate's entry and respond/react;
those responses to one classmate are due to list by Sunday noon ; ie,
student portfolios consist of weekly entry plus weekly responses to a
classmate. Responses are typically 1 page in length.
3. Bring a hardcopy of your journal entry and of your response to your
classmate to class at the next meeting; archive these hardcopies in the
folders kept in the classroom. The final in-class essay will be a reflective
essay using your portfolios as the text.
Note: If, as a result of our classlist activity, your email account is
exceeding your limit, you may delete the list responses every third week.
Presentations
All students will deliver at least one oral presentation; graduate students
will deliver two-- one collaborative, one individual. The purpose of
this exercise is to provide an in-depth study of the text your group
has selected. Group members may divide tasks as they wish, both for composing
and presenting responsibilities. A general timeline that will work well
is to have everyone read the text immediately, assign individual tasks,
exchange emails and phone numbers, meet to prepare the assignment, and
then plan to meet several times prior to the presentation to practice
the delivery.
Consider, as you prepare, the best way to present an informative lesson
within an electronic classroom. Where to stand? How much to deliver as
a lecture? How much participative work? How to integrate the technology?
How to store, or make available, the materials? How to satisfy the needs
and expectations of the audience and engage them for the entire 45 minutes
allotted.
Individual Graduate Presentations
- Abstract: write a 3 page abstract
on the text selected and post it to the classlist no later than Monday
of the week you are scheduled to
present. Bring a hardcopy of the abstract to class the night of the
presentation. In the abstract , [1] first summarize the text, [2]then
review the text,
and finally, [3]discuss, in depth, several key points of interest
to this audience.
- Handout: Prepare a handout with at least one teaching
application as well as both pedagogical and theoretical
applications.
Group Presentations on Creating Graphics text
- Abstract: write a 1 page abstract on the text selected and post
it to the classlist no later than Monday of the week your group is scheduled
to present. Bring a hardcopy of the abstract to class the night of the
presentation. In the abstract , [1] first summarize the text, [2]then
review the text, and finally, [3]discuss, in depth, several key points
of interest to this audience.
- Handout: Prepare a handout in which you demonstrate your understanding
of the visual concepts discussed. Include a minimum of three examples
of how this applies to visual and technological literacy theory and application.
Notes on the delivery for all presentations: Use excellent presentation
delivery skills: good eye contact; useful, well-prepared audio visual
support; print supplements; careful, clear diction; appropriate volume
and pace
Class work and discussion:
Class participation and discussion are key to success in our course.
The course material will engender lively discussions, thoughtful reactions,
and detailed, critical analyses.
2 short Essays
Students will write three 4-6 page essays with supporting research. In
addition to the primary text, each essay/analysis requires a minimum
of 6 supporting sources, 3 of which must be print. Use APA citation form.
Final essay#3
Students will write a final essay [with a thesis statement] on the topic
of their choice relating to visual literacy. This essay should demonstrate
your understanding and application of the theories discussed in class.
The undergraduate level requirement is a minimum of 8 pages in length
with a minimum of 15 supporting sources [half must be print]; the graduate
level requirement is a minimum of 15 pages in length with a minimum of
20 supporting sources [ half must be print]. Graduate students are encouraged
to explore the impact of visual literacy on their research area of interest.
Use APA citation form.
One reflective, in-class essay#4
the last night of class [ based on portfolio]
** Reading assignments are to be completed [so that you are prepared
for discussion] for class as indicated on the assignment schedule. For
example, be prepared to discuss chapters one and two of Literacy in a
Digital World, when you come to class on September 14.
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