Internet & social media curriculum and materials for first-year university students
Colleagues, This is a little bit different from the research- and publication-focused questions that are often asked here but it may be interesting to some of you: If you could design a few relatively short exercises focused on "responsible use of the internet and other social media" for all (18-21 year old) undergraduate students at a university, what would you do? I'm on an ad hoc committee formed by my university's Faculty Senate to examine and revise the First-Year Seminar (FYS) courses that all University of Delaware undergraduate students are required to take. One of the specific items that the senate has mandated be included in every FYS course is "responsible use of the internet and other social media" so we have to figure out how faculty from any discipline can responsibly and effectively address this topic with first-year students. We've drafted the following student learning outcomes: 1. Describe principles and specific examples of ways the Internet and social media can be used to both help and harm others 2. Demonstrate effective ways to responsibly use social media to positively engage with others and portray oneself with authenticity There are many other important topics and skills addressed in these courses so the time available to focus on these specific outcomes is limited. I think that if we aim to keep our recommended curricula to less than 60 minutes of in-class time then the faculty who teach these courses are very likely to adopt our curricula and materials. Given the immense variations in resources, expertise, interest, and nearly everything else across the ~100 sections of the courses that fulfill this requirement, creating curricula and materials that address these outcomes is quite daunting. However, it's also very exciting given the potential impact since this would reach nearly all of the approximately 18,000 undergrad students at our university. We're very focused on basing our curricula and materials on empirical knowledge rather than personal opinion or experience. I'd very much appreciate any specific or general thoughts, recommendations, or resources you'd be willing to share! Kevin
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Kevin R. Guidry