Assignments

As soon as you can - even if this is before the class officially begins - send your Prof email with the following info:

• Your Full Name
• Any nickname you may wish to use in this class [Optional]
• Your preferred email address
• An alternate email address [Optional]
• Your phone number [Optional]

You can find your Prof's email address at the CONTACT YOUR PROF page.

At least once during the semester, you will be called upon to serve as Discussion Leader for a particular class meeting. The Discussion Leader will choose 2 or more articles from the assigned readings for that day.

For each article, she or he will

• give a brief summary
• initiate a class discussion

This semester we will all work on our class Wiki located here at BaruchNewMedia/wiki. Everyone will contribute in some way - editing pages, research, writing, graphics, etc. - to this wiki project, throughout the semester.

You will be expected to add content to at least one page (feel free to create a page if it does not exist) and also to edit other pages. The idea is to show that we can use this technology collaboratively.

Every page should have one editor and may have several contributors. To get credit for this assignment you must give yourself one job on the 'Task List' page:

         Go to: Task_List_-_Current_Semester

Complete what you started in the lab. Your Wiki Bio will be similar to your Blackboard Homepage. So this assignment doesn't really require much new work on the content. It is designed to familiarize you with wiki-ing.

This is where we get to know one another. Use your Bio page to introduce yourself to your instructor and classmates. Submit any personal information that might be useful and/or interesting toward developing a sense of community with your classmates. Try to include in your introduction something about where you are in your career and education, and where you expect to be at the end of this semester.

Enter the name and URL of your favorite websites. If you have a Web page on another server, include that URL. Be sure to include http:// in the URL (for example http://www.google.com). When you do create your blog, you can enter the blog URL here as well.

Include a graphic in your bio. It could be a photo of yourself, or some other graphic that interests you. You will not get credit for this assignment without a graphic of some sort.

You must hit "Save page" in order to save what you have written. You can use the "Show preview" button to view a preview of the page before submitting.

ASSESMENT: Your assignment will be graded based on its completeness. To get full credit, you must type information about yourself in your bio, include at least two working links, and upload and link to your picture. Also, you must link to your bio and your blog from the Baruchnewmedia:Community_Portal page.

choose a task

... assuming Blackboard is up and usable...

This is where we get to know one another. Use this forum to introduce yourself to me (your instructor) and your classmates. Submit any personal information that might be useful and/or interesting toward developing a sense of community with your classmates. Try to include in your introduction something about where you are in your career and education, and where you expect to be at the end of this semester. To complete this assignment you must post a message about yourself and respond to at least one other student.

To Post: Log into the Blackboard course site. Click "Discussion Board" in the frame on the left. Go to the "INTRODUCTIONS" Forum and follow the instructions for adding a new thread.

ASSESSMENT: In order to get full credit you need to remember to respond to at least one student in the class besides for your own post.

Your assignment is to become familiar with our Blackboard course site and to create your own homepage there. The main purpose of this homepage is to allow your professor and your classmates to get to know who you are. Please use a professional writing style and include only relevant information.

In the Tools area, click on "Course Tools" and then "Homepage." Fill out all the sections according to the following instructions:

In the Introduction box, you should type in a short message that introduces you to the other people taking our course. In the Personal Information box, provide information that will help us get to know you a little better. Write about things that you think your peers and your professor might want to know. Pretty soon, you can use the same information when you start your own personal blog on blogger.com but for now, practice on Blackboard. :)

You must upload a picture of yourself. This is essential to get credit for this assignment. The purpose of the picture is to link your face to your name. Please do not use a group photo where it is hard to tell who you are . You can use any picture you want, as long as it clearly shows your face. The optimal size of the picture is about 150 x 150 pixels (you can resize it with any photo program) and it should be saved as a jpeg file.

Enter the name and URL of your favorite websites. If you have a Web page on another server, include that URL. Be sure to include http:// in the URL (for example http://www.google.com). When you do create your blog, enter the URL here as well. Click Submit at the bottom of the screen to save what you have written. (If you forget to click Submit, everything you wrote will be lost!)

To view someone's HomePage, go to the Tools area and click "Communication" and then "Roster." Then enter the name of the person whose Home Page you want to view. You can use the "List All" tab to see everyone's name and pick one.

ASSESMENT: Your assignment will be graded based on its completeness. To get full credit, you must type information in the introduction and personal information boxes, include at least two working links and attach your picture.

After you read both sets of assigned readings on this topic - and after the class discussion - we will have an online discussion here. To complete this assignment you must create at least one thread (by posting a new idea) and respond to at least 3 of your fellow students. )

After you read the assigned readings on this topic - and after the class discussion - we will have an online discussion here. To complete this assignment you must create at least one thread (by posting a new idea) and respond to at least 3 of your fellow students.

After you read the assigned readings on this topic - and after the class discussion - we will have an online discussion here. To complete this assignment you must create at least one thread (by posting a new idea) and respond to at least 3 of your fellow students. Anonymous posts are allowed, but - obviously - you will not get course credit for them. :)

Create a blog of your own at blogger.com or wordpress.com. This will be the place where you will comment on new media, on the course, and on your classmates presentations; you may also post reviews of the assigned readings. Please include your name somewhere on your blog.

Add the URL of your blog to your blackboard homepage.

If you are a blog newbie you may be interested in this video on youtube.

ASSESSMENT: To receive credit for this assignment you must email your Professor the link to your new blog.

Add a "Blogroll" or Blog List to your Blog. Here you will link to all your classmates' blogs. You may find your classmates' blogs at the Community portal page.

If your blog is on blogger, here's how to set up your blogroll:

• Once you have logged in to your blog, choose Layout view
• Select Add a Gadget
• Select Blog List
• ADD your classmates' blogs (one ad a time) to your Blog List
• You now have a "Blogroll"

NOTE: This is not just a cosmetic touch for your blog. Once most of the students in your class has their blogs in place, you should use your blogroll to navigate to your fellow classmates' blogs, read their blog posts and comment on them. This is how we will create our own blogosphere. You will receive credit for your comments at the end of the semester; see your Prof's course outline.

Respond to several of your classmates' blog posts by posting comments. Be considerate and thoughtful.

Create a new post on your blog with the above title. In your post, answer the following questions.

What kinds of technologies are part of the new media? How important is the Internet to the new media? Why and how are the new media replacing and / or enhancing the old media?

Cite at least 1 (preferably more) of the assigned readings.

Create a new post on your blog with the above title. In your post, answer the following questions.

What kinds of technologies are examples of new media? How do we distinguish “new media” from “old” media?

Cite at least 1 (preferably more) of the assigned readings.

Create a new post on your blog with the above title. In your post, discuss the following.

Visit Facebook, Myspace, Friendster - and one other social networking site of your choosing. Compare your impressions of these sites. Note that you probably should register and log in to get the complete picture.

How do we distinguish “new media” from “old” media? List and explain several ways to do this.

Create a new post on your blog with the above title. In your post, answer the following questions.

Compare and contrast blogs and wikis. Comment on the importance of convergence in today's networked world. How can blogs be used for collaboration? Can you think of a new use for a wiki that has not been done yet?

Cite at least 1 (preferably more) of the assigned readings.

Create a new post on your blog with the above title. In this post, describe the work you personally have been doing for this class. How would you describe this type of learning?

Create a new post on your blog with the above title. In your post, answer the following questions.

What are some ways (corporate and otherwise) that these technologies can be used? What are the benefits of these technologies to society? Be specific. Is there a "dark side"? Make sure to include your opinion of the way these technologies might evolve in the future.

Cite at least 1 (preferably more) of the assigned readings.

Create a new post on your blog with the above title. In your post, answer the following questions.

What are different ways these virtual worlds can be used? What are the pros and cons? Be specific. How do virtual worlds foster creativity? What do you think the future of virtual worlds will look like?

Cite at least 1 (preferably more) of the assigned readings.

You are hired by Baruch College to use new media to improve the College. What are some suggestions you would make?

Suggest a new type of "new media" that doesn't currently exist. Describe it.

In this post, discuss how the issues of privacy and confidentiality are related to new media.

Post to your Blog a thoughtful answer to the question: What have been some of the effects of the new media on society?

Create a new post on your blog with the above title. In your post, discuss the following.

...what you have been doing to contribute to our class wiki. Pages you have created and/or edited. Describe in general terms content you have added. If you have not added any content yet (besides your own bio, that is), then at least describe the research you have done and what you are working on towards this goal.

By the day of your presentation, post a summary of your presentation on your blog.

For classes assigned a term paper:

Create a post for your blog summarizing your term research project. You can say something about several of the following:

How you did your research

What you found in your research; what you learned

Why you chose your topic

Your major findings / conclusions

How your paper contributes to the field of "new media"

If you used material from your term project in your wiki contributions, link to the relevant page in the Baruch New Media Wiki so we can all appreciate your findings.

Pick a research presentation other than your own. Summarize and comment.

Go to http://twitter.com/ and create a username/password.

Post your username in the appropriate table on the Community Portal page. You may also wish to post it to your blackboard profile.

On Twitter, click on the "Find People" link. Enter your professor's twitter username that s/he gave you and hit the search button. Then hit the "Follow" button.

Go to your classmates entries on the Community Portal page or their profiles on blackboard and find their usernames and follow them on twitter.

You are now following your classmates and professor and will be able to read their tweets.

For this assignment, we will use twitter to have an online discussion with your professor and classmates. Go to Twitter and login and post a tweet regarding one of the articles you read about twitter. Please note that tweets (similar to a status update) on Twitter are only allowed to be up to 140 characters long.

In order to get full credit for this assignment, you must:

1. Respond to at least two classmates' tweets. Remember in order to respond to someone on twitter you need to use the @ symbol. For example, if you want to reply to a student whose username is veronica, you will begin your tweet with @veronica. If you don't reply right away, it might be best to use RT (retweet) and include some words from the original tweet in your response - just enough so 'veronica' knows what you are responding to. Your tweet would then start with: "RT @veronica <section you copied from veronica's tweet>". And don't forget the class section tag. Of course that leaves you with very few characters for your reply so try to respond quickly. Responding to old tweets without RT-ing can be confusing.

NOTE: Include #3810<yoursection> - e.g., #3810NET1A - in each of your tweets or replies to others' tweets. This way each class section of CIS 3810 can easily find all tweets in the discussion. The # symbol in twitter is a tag which helps when searching through tweets.

2. Post to your blog about this experience. How does a twitter discussion compare to the BB Discussion Board? To an in-class discussion?

Write a review of book of your choosing (related to New Media) in 3-4 double spaced pages (i.e., less than 1000 words).

If your book is a readings book you may, if you wish, give a general overview of the book (using the points above) and then choose 3 representative articles from the book for a more detailed review.

Your review should include (but is not limited to) the following:

A title - your own - for the review. Full bibliographic citation: title, author, year published, publisher, number of pages, … A review of the major points made in the book. A critical analysis of these major points. Does this book accomplish its goals? Is it effective? Is it reliable? … What is the book's audience? Who was it written for? Discuss the major contribution(s) of this book to the topic of new media. Discuss how the material in the book relates to what we are learning in class. In your opinion is the material in the book still valid? Has anything changed since the book was published?

Choose a book from the readings section of the course syllabus; from the books placed on reserve in the Newman Library for this course; or some other book of your choosing related to New Media.

Send your Prof email with your choice of book.

Rough outline. Submit by email.

The full review. Submit hard copy in class.

Choose a substantial scholarly article to critique - make sure it is one that your Prof will like. :)

Some articles on the Readings page are marked with a . You may choose any of these for your Critique.

• In the critique you should briefly summarize the key points of the paper. Your critique should include (but is not limited to) the following:
  • A title - your own - for the review.
  • Full bibliographic citation: title, author, year published, publisher, number of pages, …
  • A review of the major points made in the article.
• The major contribution(s) of this article to the topic of new media.
• How does the material in the article relate to what we are learning in class?
• What, if anything, does the author(s) of the paper propose or recommend?
• I want to know whether or not you agree or disagree with the author(s). Why? You might provide your own examples that support or refute what the author(s) is saying.

Send your Prof email with your choice of article.

Your paper should be 2-3 double-spaced pages. Submit hard copy in class, or by email as per your Prof's instructions.

Your term project will require research and a paper OR presentation. Your Prof will let you know.

You will do the following:

Select a topic in consultation with instructor. Your instructor must approve your topic BEFORE you start working on it.

IDEAS FOR YOUR TERM PROJECT: Choose one of the following or come up with a topic of your own.

• A: RESEARCH. Pick a new media technology to research (see below, also many of them are linked to from our Blackboard course site). Discuss from multiple perspectives, e.g.:, economic perspective; sociological perspective; technological perspective; moral, anthropological, educational, etc. You do not have to use all these perspectives, but you must use SEVERAL.
• B: ANALYSIS. Pick a new media technology to study (see below). Analyze positive and negative effects on society. If you can come up with about 5 or more positive and negative effects (each), that would be nice, but you must have SEVERAL.
• C: IMPACT. Examine a particular area / discipline in which the new media have had an impact. It can be an area you are particularly interested in - say your major, or your hobby. How have the new media affected this area? How is this area likely to be affected in the near future?
• D. IN DEPTH: Choose one topic, narrower than above, and fully research it. Examples:
  • Social Networking: A purposeful loss of privacy;
  • Social Networking: Better or worse than the real thing?
  • Ebay: community or bazaar?
  • Blogs vs. wikis: How similar are they?
  • Wikipedia: A business model that should have flopped;
  • The future of old media.
  • New media and access for the disabled - boon or bust?
  • The Digital Divide

You need to submit a topic by email for approval by your prof.

Post the Title and a brief (one paragraph) Description of your research topic to your blog. This description is your project proposal. It should offer a clear understanding of the area you will research and the approach you expect to take.

Research the area. Different topics will require different types of research. For the most part, we are interested here in scholarly research. We will discuss research techniques in class. See Doing Research Submit a full annotated bibliography to your instructor by email. Use a standard format for your bibliography, like the MLA, APA or Chicago style (your choice). For each item in your bibliography, write a brief sentence (the annotation) explaining what it is and / or its place in your presentation.

Note: Many of your Prof's will prefer that you use APA style for your bibliography. Take a look at it here: http://www.dianahacker.com/resdoc/p04_c09_o.html.

Prepare an outline of your paper or presentation and submit it by email to your instructor.

Send your presentation materials - e.g., ppt file, class handouts, etc. - to your Prof by email.

Prepare a 10 minute presentation using presentation software such as MS Powerpoint. You may also choose to first create a web page, video, and / or incorporate any (old and new) media you consider appropriate to create a dynamite project. A good rule of thumb is about one slide per minute. Your presentation must have:

• • a paper handout for the class
  • a Title slide with your project title and your name
  • a Conclusion slide
  • Souces: your annotated bibliography (you will probably need more than one slide here)

Assessment

Your term paper should be about 10 double-spaced pages (not including the title page and bibliography) and contain the following sections:

• • Title page. Include your name, class section, semester, professor.
  • Introduction. Answer the question: why is this topic important?
  • Other sections as needed
  • Conclusion
  • Souces: your annotated bibliography