Jim and Claudia presented (neither for the first time at Faculty Academy) on an online literary journal created by one of her classes. Calling Nonce impressive does not do it justice. Check it out for yourself.
[Nearly 40 people crammed into the room to hear them–Standing Room Only….]
One particular point raised by Claudia that intrigued me was the notion of applying to change that particular class from 3 credits to 4, allowing for a “lab” component (or perhaps recognizing the increased time that developing and implementing some of these skills may take). [I’m aware that there are some complications related to campus expectations for what constitutes a four-credit course. Let’s set those aside for a second.] What do people think about the idea of a “digital lab” component for more credit?
A digital lab component makes a lot of sense. The multiplicity of tools and cultures of communication (not to mention legal concerns and the like) that accompany many of them would make this course component quite valuable. A question: does a lab component invite the use of a new vocabulary to express and frame its purpose? I wonder if “digital literacy” or even “digital proficiency” (singular) encourages an underestimation of all that a lab component could provide…
Allowing the students, librarians, IT folks, and professors a space, outside the literature coverage, to imagine and examine the technological implications of using these tools would mark a remarkable investment in the amount of thought, energy and possibilities several disciplines might bring to the increasingly more relevant and important questions of technology within the university curriculum.
Jeff and Sue, great stuff.
Jim Groom