English 407 is designed to
help you become more productive and critical at reading and writing in digital
spaces. (Of course, “reading” and “writing” might be more accurately termed
“producing” and “consuming” to account for the multimodal texts that now comprise
most online discourse, such as video assemblages, podcasts, and digital
compositions.) Taught in a computer classroom, this course examines online
discourse communities and the ways in which people can write to them, in them,
and for them. Students will enhance their understandings by reading and
discussing critical theories of technology and contemporary rhetoric, and by
analyzing and engaging in communicative practices online.
This course is designed for
technophobes as well as technophiles, newbies as well as seasoned experts. So
long as you know what the World Wide Web is, how to use email, and how to
compose in a word-processing program, you will be able to succeed. In the past, this course has been very
popular among majors in English, education, CIS, journalism, and business.
Students in the course will
learn its content by engaging in a sustained team project, developing an online
forum for public writing around a theme and within a context decided upon
collectively.
Required Texts: one packet
of course readings to purchase.