GSD3DDD Diversity Democracy Dissent

Assessment Task One: 25%

NB: THERE WILL BE FLEXIBILITY WITH DUE DATES DUE TO DISRUPTION IN FACE TO FACE LEARNING/TEACHING

THINKING DEMOCRACY: MOCK TWEETING for engaging with social media debates13 March (pick issue and post own tweet), 27March, 10April, 25April, (post own tweet and respond to two others).Collate own tweets and own responses, inclusive of dates (but cut and pasting into word document) and upload as assignment to turnitin by 11.59pm 1 May

SUBMISSION DETAILS

You will pick a topic (see below) by 13 March and post a 280 character tweet, abiding by twitter protocols and upload onto padlet (link directly under News and forums on LMS). Ideas for what you can pick are listed below in the description of task. You must make sure your topic connects to course content in some way. You can change your focus as you go, as long as you show you are engaging with the course’s learning objectives. Keep copies of your posts in a word document also. After all tweets and responses are completed you will collate them into a word document. You will then upload the entire word document (your own tweets and your responses to others, inclusive of dates) to turnitin for Assessment titled Tweets.

DESCRIPTION OF TASK

Rationale for assessment

An effective way to develop critical thinking, promote time management and build excellent communication skills is to keep a log or journal of your reflections on the course on a regular basis. It is also good to keep an eye on how social media deals with issues connected to what we study. To encourage you to develop this habit throughout your student life, and through your lifelong learning, you are required to post a fortnightly mock tweet in the first half  of the course through the Learning Management System (LMS).
Learning Objectives
•To develop a writing habit that engages your curiosity and learning process
•To establish a reading habit connecting academic work to public debates
•To assess different types of evidence and argument governing the terms of a debate/articulation of a concept/significance of an issue.
•To identify the conditions that prompts the need for research
Choosing a topic
By the beginning of week 2, you must pick an issue that trends on social media from time to time.This will form the basis for your fortnightly mock tweets; you can also use this assignment to provide a base from which you can develop a tutorial presentation in a group of three or by yourself (see Assessment task two). You might want to look at essay questions for assignment two and three to help with your decision for your tweets.Your tutorial presentations or opinion piece(assessment two) do not have to be on topics written in your tweets.It is just a way of finding other students with similar interests. The purpose of the assignment is to hone your skills in reading, thinking, researching and developing forms of inquiry to  navigate the divide between public discussion and academic work.You will be marked on the process more than the product. It is OK for you to choose an area of interest in tweets and presentation that overlaps with your other assignment questions.

Use the list below as a guide for choosing your area of study for the formulation of your question:
➢a social movement (eg.feminism, socialism, LGBTIQ, disability, asylum seekers, etc)
➢a public debate (eg. immigration, 'religious freedom/expression’, ‘borders’ domestic violence).
 ➢a key concept (eg. equality, justice,tolerance, sovereignty, violence, political correctness etc.)
➢academic curriculum (eg. 'Western civilisation’, decolonial methods’, gender studies/’idoelogy’)
➢a current campaign/protest and/or lobbying (eg. 'pay the rent’, Climate change, #metoo, #blacklivesmatter)
You will submit your first mock tweet online by the beginning of weekTWO. Students are welcome to discuss this assignment with Carol during consultation hours, by appointment, or email. You are allowed to change your topic at any time.
 NB: DO NOT USE YOUR OWN TWITTER ACCOUNT FOR THIS ASSIGNMENT
First tweet is only your own. From second tweet on, also post mock tweet replies  to TWO other students’ tweets.Your own postings must abide by twitter protocols,and they are expected to demonstrate that you have genuinely engaged with the course material and subject matter in relation to your chosen area of study (if you want to write more, keep it in your own word document, but please do not post online). It is better to set yourself up a word document and then cut and paste your entry online –that way you can stick to Twitter protocols. You can find instructions for how to tweet here: https://help.twitter.com/en/using-twitter/how-to-tweet ;
Note, you can include up to 4 photos, a gif or video. You will also gain marks if you link an article to your mock tweet. The point of these posts is to engage with one another and an imagined public rather than your lecturer. The postings will be read and moderated by Carol, the Course Coordinator, in the unexpected event of online intimidation or offensive behaviour. To post your tweet each due date, all you have to do is log into LMS, and click on padlet link under news and forums.Make sure you label your message with a label for your topic.It is as simple as that!