Students

MMCC8046 – Social Media

2023 – Session 2, Online-scheduled-weekday

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Convenor
Terri Senft
terri.senft@mq.edu.au
Contact via email
10 Hadenfeld Ave Room 147
Office hours held via Zoom. For more details, please see iLearn.
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
Admission to MMediaComm or MCrInd or MIC
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

This unit will offer students an advanced understanding of the key role social media now plays in professional media practice and the way it is reshaping public debate and media business models. It will involve students in integrating emerging online platforms and technologies into media practice, including news gathering, feature and current affairs production, and opinion writing. Students will analyse the way mainstream media organisations are utilising social media to produce and augment media production and enlist media users in producing content. They will also examine the way social and online media have opened up new possibilities for media producers to bypass traditional media organisations and attract large audiences using blogs, Twitter and Youtube.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: apply media theory and concepts to the study of social media.
  • ULO2: research, analyse and evaluate the relationships between individual users of social media platforms, and larger cultural, social, legal, economic, corporate, state and industry factors that inform and shape that use.
  • ULO3: evaluate the increasingly important role that branding and celebrity plays in shaping expressions of identity (individual, group, corporate, national, activist, etc. in the contemporary landscape, and analyse various types social media presence in terms of branding and fame theory.).
  • ULO4: analyse the challenges (logistical, legal, ethical) of applying classic research, design, communication, advocacy and/or public relations strategies to social media environments.

General Assessment Information

Late Assessment Submission Policy

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, a 5% penalty (of the total possible mark) will be applied each day a written assessment is not submitted, up until the 7th day (including weekends). After the 7th day, a mark of ‘0’ (zero) will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted. Submission time for all written assessments is set at 11.55pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical issue. This late penalty will apply to written reports and recordings only. Late submission of time sensitive tasks(such as tests/exams, performance assessments/presentations, scheduled practical assessments/labs will be addressed by the unit convenor in a Special consideration application.

 

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Illustrated Glossary Entry 50% No Friday, 8/09/2023 by 23:55 pm
Video presentation 50% No Sunday, 5/11/2023 23:55 pm

Illustrated Glossary Entry

Assessment Type 1: Qualitative analysis task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 50 hours
Due: Friday, 8/09/2023 by 23:55 pm
Weighting: 50%

In class, you will receive a list of concepts we have covered to date. For this task, you will be expected to create a visual glossary entry that engages with ONE concept from this list. To do this, you will create a document where you: - define your concept using your own words and illustrated with a captioned image; - theorise that concept, using a scholarly quote from a class reading, illustrated with a captioned image; - complicate that concept, introducing an example of your choice, illustrated with a captioned image.

Refer to iLearn for further information.
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • apply media theory and concepts to the study of social media.
  • research, analyse and evaluate the relationships between individual users of social media platforms, and larger cultural, social, legal, economic, corporate, state and industry factors that inform and shape that use.

Video presentation

Assessment Type 1: Media presentation
Indicative Time on Task 2: 50 hours
Due: Sunday, 5/11/2023 23:55 pm
Weighting: 50%

The purpose of this task is to assess your capacity to practically engage with social media theory, by way of a social media-friendly format, a short video. For this task, you will be expected to create a video of no more than 3-5 minutes.

Refer to iLearn for further information.
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • evaluate the increasingly important role that branding and celebrity plays in shaping expressions of identity (individual, group, corporate, national, activist, etc. in the contemporary landscape, and analyse various types social media presence in terms of branding and fame theory.).
  • analyse the challenges (logistical, legal, ethical) of applying classic research, design, communication, advocacy and/or public relations strategies to social media environments.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

 

Start of classes and tutorials 

  • Classes begin Week 2 

Delivery of unit

This unit will be delivered as two-hour interactive seminar. It will combine lecture-style material with guided inquiry, production tasks, writing workshops, small group activities and discussions.

 For current updates, classrooms and times please consult the MQU Timetables website: http://www.timetables.mq.edu.au

Lecture portions and interactive portions of the class will be recorded for review purposes only. See Echo block on iLearn for filmed weekly lectures. Discussions and activities will be available via archived Zoom recording link.

Attendance Policy

Students are expected to attend all seminars this semester. They may opt for either in-person attendance where feasible, or remote delivery via Zoom. No part of this class is optional: all lectures, workshops, and peer-review sessions deliver content and are a central component of meeting the learning outcomes in this unit. Although attendance is not formally graded, students who elect to not attend class will miss out on unit content and learning activities, and do so at their own risk. 

Readings and Other Media

Please consult the iLearn site for weekly readings and media   

Laptop Policy

Please DO bring your own devices for use in class (laptops or tablets + mobile phones). The library has laptops and iPads available for lending if you don't have your own. http://www.mq.edu.au/about/campus-services-and-facilities/library/facilities/computer- facilities and there are other computer labs on campus. Please also bring a pen or pencil and paper to class.  

Other Technology Matters

Students are expected to make use of everyday information technologies to complete their assignments (i.e. Personal Computers, mobile Phones, freely available editing software and online publishing platforms). As this is not a production unit, students should not contact the department's technical staff for equipment or support. Feel free to challenge yourself but work within your technical abilities.  

Feedback

Feedback in this unit is available in multiple forms: 

  • For points of relevance to the whole class, informal feedback will be given through the ‘announcement’ function in iLearn.
  • For individual student questions related to unit activities, in-class and electronic communication will be used.
  • Students wishing to discuss unit content or assesments outside of class time are invited to join us for our weekly group office hour sessions via Zoom (day and time will be posted on iLearn.)
  • For students wishing a private consultation regarding their assessments this semester, there will be two opportunities to book a short personal consultation session with Terri (on campus or over Zoom). Please note: these spots are limited and fill up quickly. Once they are gone, students will be encouraged to raise their requests for feedback during class time, or over Zoom during group office hour sessions.  
  • Students needing to discuss deeply personal matters (e.g., illness, harships, disability accomodations etc.), are warmly invited to  contact Terri at any time via email to set up time for a private discussion about how I can help support you.
  • For assessment feedback:  We make a special effort to devote blocks of time each week to workshopping in-process assessment materials, such as brainstorm documents, rough proposals, working drafts, etc. Historically,  students who have garnered the highest marks in this unit are those who make use of this time in class to get feedback from Terri, and their peers. Conversely, students who receive lower marks in this unit tend to be those who cannot or will not share their in-process work for feedback, either due to  time management issues (i.e., they haven't prepared anything to show), or for emotional reasons (e.g.,  they struggle with shyness, anxiety, perfectionism, etc.) If you are in this second group, fear not! We are your friends and we want you to succeed here. We have developed several ways to help students feel less anxious about connecting to classmates for feedback in this unit, and I look forward to sharing some of those with you.
  • For assessment marks, students will receive numerical scores corresponding to a detailed rubric, attached to assignments marked in  Turnitin. 

Unit Schedule

Please see unit schedule at this link: https://z9bcp7k.sharing.bublup.com/ui/landing_page?item_id=001-i-5b7e6ea9-58df-4888-861b-0fbc7ba23ba1

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

The Writing Centre

The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via AskMQ, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Unit information based on version 2023.01 of the Handbook