Reading Response Instructions

EMAC 4325: Fall 2013

Purpose:

• To facilitate familiarity with theoretical and material connections between analog and digital forms of text, image, sound, and moving image.
• To help focus Investigations into the social and cultural implications of new forms of text, image, sound, and moving image.

• To help students identify their questions and areas of interest in a text prior to class discussion.

• To help students enter into the larger community of emerging media scholars.

Background:

Class discussions are more satisfying when everyone has actively engaged with the text and when they bring their ideas and questions to the class meeting. To that end, students will complete reading responses as either video or written responses, posted to our Google+ community, in advance of our meetings.

The Specs:

• The Google+ community is public, so you just have to browse to it and join.
• Primary Responses
• 250 - 300 words or 60-90 seconds of video.
• Your responses to the readings should
• address one reading in depth or one or more themes across multiple readings.
• though you may make connections to one or more readings from another day, you should primarily address the readings assigned for the day that your response is due. 
  
• show evidence that you read carefully.
  
• offer an opinion, elaboration, tangible comparison or example, or critique with solution. In other words, they should say something meaningful.
  
• avoid ranting, summary, or just being boring.
  
• may also ask questions.
• Secondary Responses (comments on the primary responses of your peers)
• 100 - 150 words or 30 seconds of video.
• If your primary respondent did not complete hir response, choose another group and respond to their respondent. 
• Your responses to your peers
• should address the primary response, though you may bring in additional material from the reading.
• should avoid simplistic agreement or being overly critical.
• Praise, constructive criticism and disagreements are allowed, but you should add something to the discussion.
• may ask questions.
• Both types of responses should
• use a professional tone and language without being obtuse.
  
• use markers of emphasis (all caps, for example) judiciously.
• cite sources with links, author names, and references to pages, sections, or paragraph numbers.
• be carefully composed and take advantage of the affordances of the medium (regardless of the format).
• For writing, it should be a polished version rather than "rough draft." For video, think Jay Smooth (ill doctrine) vs. somebody's rambling vlog.
  

Technical Support:

•  All responses and comments should be posted to your assigned sub-group in the class' Google+ community.  
  

Grading:

Reading responses are part of your participation grade. Primary and secondary responses are weighted equally in determining your grade.

Either Kim or Brianni will read the responses each week, and even periodically respond to them, but will not grade them each week. If you want to know how you are doing, see Kim during office hours.

As a class we decided upon criteria for satisfactory completion of reading responses (see the images of class brainstorming below). Based on that brainstorming, the guidelines in the "specs" section above were developed. See the participation assignment sheet for more info.

Timeline and Due Dates:

Primary responses are due before class begins on Tuesdays.

Secondary responses (comments on primary responses) due by 11:59pm on Fridays.

Groups

(You guys are welcome to pick different names for your groups. Just send Kim an email with your old and new names)

Ravenclaw

A Responder: Andrew C

B Responder: Jesus

C Responder: Shababa

Gryffindor

A Responder: Anna

B Responder: Debi

C Responder: Billy

C Responder: Andrew W

Slytherin

A Responder: Tiffany

B Responder: DJ

C Responder: Eva

Hufflepuff

A Responder: Erika

B Responder: Kristin

C Responder: Carrie

Muggles

A Responder: Bailey

B Responder: Carey

C Responder: Michelle

Order of the Phoenix

A Responder: Angie

B Responder: AJ

C Responder: Allison

Dumbledore's Army

A Responder: Corinne

A Responder: Shab

B Responder: Samia

C Responder: Cintia

Ministry of Magic

A Responder: Jay

B Responder: Christa

C Responder: Morgan

Deatheaters

A Responder: Cameron

B Responder: Aaron

C Responder: Carissa

Dementors

B Responder: Brandt dropped