if anything, "social software" needs to find a better/more descriptive name for itself. generally, it seems to describe a fairly tightly constrained/circumscribed subset of the available socia[b]l[e] media. were i to submit a paper on some aspect of IRC, a *very* sociable (and fairly popular) software medium, would it likely be rejected? it is hard to tell from the text of this announcement. [to some extent i'm trolling/stirring-the-pot, here, danah - but i do notice an unusual prevalence of purely *web-based* media among the terms used below to describe the workshop. that's kind of ... unsettling. and, i think, something that we should all be thinking / talking about.] --elijah wright school of library and information science indiana university, bloomington On Fri, 25 Feb 2005, danah boyd wrote:
Date: Fri, 25 Feb 2005 17:30:24 -0800 (PST) From: danah boyd <dmb@sims.berkeley.edu> To: citasa@mit.edu Subject: [CITASA] CFP - Social Software in the Academy Workshop
Social Software in the Academy Workshop May 13-14, 2005 Annenberg Center, University of Southern California, Los Angeles http://www.annenberg.edu/ssaw/
Call for Participation (Submission Deadline: March 31, 2005)
Tools for collaboration and communication have proliferated in academia. Students and professors regularly communicate via email and mailing lists and course materials are commonly made available via the web. Students regularly use instant messaging and cell phones to communicate with each other, enhancing relationships and building support networks for college life. A new wave of tools for communication and collaboration has surfaced under the name 'social software' including tools like weblogs, wikis, del.cio.us, Flickr, tagging, etc. Researchers are exploring how these tools fit into everyday life and how they can be employed in professional contexts.
The goal of the conference is to bring together researchers working in a variety of academic disciplines to understand current and possible uses of social software in the academic context. We invite submissions for papers, panels and demonstrations of relevant research tools.
Possible topics might include:
- The social/learning issues of using backchannels in the classroom - How weblogs and wikis can be employed in support of teaching and learning - The possibilities and challenges of using folksonomies for organizing academic knowledge - Wikipedia as an encyclopedic tool - Designing better social software tools for the classroom - The use of social software as assistive technology - The role of instant messaging in learning - Models for using social software to collaborate across disciplines and universities - Using social networking tools to create and/or enhance campus community - Methodologies for researching the use and impact of social software tools on various aspects of campus academic and non-academic life
We are looking for three different types of submissions: papers, discussion panels and demonstrations. Papers are 10-20 pages, and cover new research and development projects. Discussion panels consist of 3-5 participants who will collectively discuss and explore key questions or issues in the field. Discussion panels should be constructed before submission and are not connected with paper submissions. Demonstrations offer an alternative format in which to present posters or media or technology simulations in a setting that encourages interaction between presenters and participants. Please note: demonstrations are meant to highlight research developments, not promote products. If you have an idea for an alternate format for presenting your research, please contact us.
Individuals interested in participating in the conference can apply by submitting the following: the author's bio (name, email, affiliation, relevant publications), a brief description of current research, and a 500 word abstract describing the paper, discussion panel or demonstration. Video, sketches or other relevant media are welcome as additional material if appropriate. Each member of a panel should prepare a brief position statement in addition to the 500 word panel abstract.
Submissions for consideration should be mailed to danah boyd (dmb@sims.berkeley.edu) and Sarah Lohnes (scl2103@columbia.edu) by no later than March 31, 2005. Some travel support is available for student and underemployed speakers. Please indicate in your submission if you need sponsorship to attend.
Papers presented at the conference will be considered for publication in either a journal special issue or a book on this topic. Please indicate in your proposal if you are interested in submitting your presentation as a formal document for publication. Full and short papers will be considered. Panels and demonstrations may also be publishable in some form.
This conference is being sponsored by Annenberg Center for Communication at the University of Southern California. If you have any questions, feel free to contact the conference chairs.
CONFERENCE CHAIRS: danah boyd - University of California, Berkeley - dmb@sims.berkeley.edu Sarah Lohnes - Columbia University - scl2103@columbia.edu
CONFERENCE COMMITTEE: Todd Richmond - University of Southern California Mimi Ito - University of Southern California Justin Hall - University of Southern California _______________________________________________ CITASA Email List citasa@mit.edu On the Web at: www.citasa.org