General course information
Required Texts
- Anderson, M. T. Feed. 2002.
- Baker, Stephen. The Numerati. 2008.
- RoboCop (Verhoeven 1987) will be on reserve in the library: students are expected to watch it on their own.
- A variety of other readings will be required, most of which are online.
Course Expectations or Outputs
By the end of the course, students will be able to
- identify and analyze the key concepts in the field of digital culture.
- assess the rhetorical weight of the presentation of human and/or corporate identity within digital media.
- engage with and apply basic techniques of digital text analysis.
- explain the basic theory of and approaches to digital social profiling.
- assess the rhetorical weight of depictions of the post-human in fictional and/or analytical texts.
- explain some basic theory related to the advanced study of digital games.
- develop analytical arguments that examine one or more key concepts of digital humanities in proper essay format.
- collaborate within a digital environment on an extended research project.
Course Outcomes
Students who successfully complete this course will demonstrate
- a broad understanding of the key concepts and methodologies in the study of digital culture.
- an ability to formulate analytical questions about course themes.
- an ability to interpret texts and develop lines of argument.
- an ability to communicate in reliably clear, coherent, and correct prose.
Preparation and Participation
You are expected to participate in class in an informed manner. At the very least, you are expected to come to class regularly,
having read all assigned reading for that class. Ideally, you will have thought about the reading, taken notes on the reading, and
have prepared opinions on and notes and questions about the reading. Ideally, you will participate in class discussions. Keep in mind
that participating in class is usually a highly rewarding experience, greatly enhancing your ability to understand the course material
and helping ensure your success in the course. Everyone is expected to be courteous and professional at all times in class.
Lateness
- Each of the five assignments can be handed in up to one week late without penalty. After the one-week extension, a penalty of 2% for each day late (including weekend days) will be applied. After fifteen days, the penalty will be 30% and assignments will be graded with little to no feedback.
- The group assignment will have its own lateness penalty schedule.
- No assignment will be accepted after the start of the final exam.
- If you are registered with Student Services for special consideration with regards to due dates, please hand in the appropriate form to the instructor and, if needed, remind the instructor about the consideration when handing in the assignments.
Plagiarism
The Department of English Studies and Nipissing University maintain a strict policy on all forms of academic dishonesty.
Each assignment must be original work produced by the student only for this course. All referencing and documentation must
be complete and accurate for both direct and indirect quotations. The Modern Language Association (MLA) guidelines for essay
preparation are the standard in English Studies. Ignorance of what constitutes plagiarism will not be accepted as an excuse:
if you are uncertain about any of this information, see your instructor immediately. All essays and tests are subject to an
additional oral and/or written test at the instructor’s discretion. All suspected plagiarism will be reported to the
chair of the department, the dean of the faculty, and the registrar of the university.