Andrew Battista at the Ask Here Desk, Carmichael Library
Over the course of the semester, each person participating in the class is expected to earn badges. How many badges, you might ask? This depends on how much you want to learn. Fortunately, there are several ways to earn badges, so there’s almost no limit to what you can do to show your achievements in this class.
Blog Post Application
Use the “Badge Application” category for your blog post when you apply. Badge application posts should be about 1000 words and should use multiple forms of media to demonstrate a working knowledge of a social media platform. The point of Badge Application posts is to think out loud and show others how you organize information online. You are encouraged to make your posts as entertaining, personal, and interactive as possible. You are also encouraged to engaged with the ideas of others on their Badge Application posts. For instance, why not include a poll on Poll Everywhere that solicits ideas from other readers in the class? Why not springboard off of one person’s ideas and write about how you learned from them, or how you found their method useful (or not useful) to you. Many platforms will all but require you to take screen shots or upload screencasts (use something like Jing to do this). You can get help with doing that at the Digital Media Lab if you’re stuck.
Near the beginning of the class, Hunter Tinsley sat down with me and recorded a guided tour of Reddit. Laurel Hitchcock wrote about her experience with Twitter. These are not the only models for what a badge application post can look like, but they are a good start. Almost all badges will be earned via Badge Application blog posts of some form, and they will include screencasts, audio recordings, images, and links to created products (or embedded products, when applicable).
In-class Presentation
Periodically, you will have the opportunity to share your curation strategies in front of the class. If you make arrangements ahead of time, I will carve out space in class for you to rise to the podium, show your networks on the big screen, and talk with others. Whether or not you earn a badge in this setting depends on how well you engage the rest of the class in discussions and get them to ask questions about your social media skills.
Small-group Presentation in Class
We will spend many class sessions doing hands-on activities in small groups. These moments are good chances for you to show others what you’ve been learning. When the opportunity arises, call me over to your group and share with us what you’ve come up with. If I’m there and I see that you’ve been thinking outside the box, I will award you with a badge on the spot! If I’m not there, other members of the group can vouch for your case to have earned a badge.
Office Hours or Ask Here Desk Visit
I keep frequent office hours all semester in the Carmichael Library. You are free to make an appointment with me at any time and come present your social media curation work. All you need to do is let me know in advance, or stop in when I’m sitting at the Ask Here desk on the main floor, and I’d be happy to talk with you.
By Nomination
Did you build or accomplish something that you feel is worthy of a badge? Have you noticed a college from class who has done something badge-worthy? If so, nominate them, and we can bring it to a class vote.
Other Methods
I am open to accepting ideas for other ways of earning badges. Perhaps you’ve done something interesting with social media and/or information literacy that doesn’t quite fit into any of the above categories. Pitch the idea to me, and you could earn a badge!
