Summer Session planning
So I finally got the first steps accomplished and setting up my online course, so it looks like the foundation layer is there. The course in Canvas has been published, students have been added, and there's a link to the syllabus inside the Canvas course. And, last but not least I sent a nice email out to the students enrolled in the class, tasking them with logging into Canvas accessing the syllabus and so forth.
So now I'm ready to roll in terms of designing the actual instruction for this iteration of the Impact of New Media course.
I think I'm going to start with the building of a narrative that begins with Jacques Lacan. The last time I taught this class I started with Paul Watzlawick and George Lakoff to capture the notion of "framing" --in other words, the idea that the Internet is whatever we make it. Or, alternately, new media is whatever we think it is. But this time around I think I want to try making that point at the end of the narrative rather than at the beginning.
By starting with Lacan, I get to introduce right at the front end the great divide between the representational side of new media and the physical/visceral side. From this starting point I can then branch into Baudrillard's notion of hyperreality, which is more or less about the replacement of reality with representations thereof. And from that same starting point I can also branch into McLuhan's implied emphasis on the feeling self, or the visceral side of the Lacanian in divide.
So now I'm ready to roll in terms of designing the actual instruction for this iteration of the Impact of New Media course.
I think I'm going to start with the building of a narrative that begins with Jacques Lacan. The last time I taught this class I started with Paul Watzlawick and George Lakoff to capture the notion of "framing" --in other words, the idea that the Internet is whatever we make it. Or, alternately, new media is whatever we think it is. But this time around I think I want to try making that point at the end of the narrative rather than at the beginning.
By starting with Lacan, I get to introduce right at the front end the great divide between the representational side of new media and the physical/visceral side. From this starting point I can then branch into Baudrillard's notion of hyperreality, which is more or less about the replacement of reality with representations thereof. And from that same starting point I can also branch into McLuhan's implied emphasis on the feeling self, or the visceral side of the Lacanian in divide.
And then I could follow the Lacan-McLuhan-Baudrillard trio of 'ontological' framers of new media with a cultural anthropological perspective from Wengao Huang (on the nondualistic Tao of new media) and a physical anthropological perspective from Bruce Mazlish (on the co-evolution of humans and tools). These two chunks of narrative --the ontological framers and the anthropological framers-- would establish the pervasiveness and depth of the changes brought about by new media. This would help us get a firm foundation on taking on the question "What is new media?" In this regard George Gilder's idea that new media is basically the second-wave of the industrial revolution would deserve a mention (the first wave industrialized physical labor, the second is industrializing mental labor). This of course connects back nicely to McLuhan's idea that technologies represent "extensions" of human physiology --first wave industrial rev extends musculature, second wave extends the nervous system.
So to reiterate in the first part of the narrative, the ontological part, New media is seen as something up at very expensive and also deep phenomenon. I think the pack of the con, Boulder yard, McLuhan make his point very well. Then in the second part of the narrative new media is looked at in more of a traditional way as "technology", with the difference that is placed in long-term historical context via Maza lash and 10 deep anthropological context via gilder of the history of technology.
So in week one of the course the first day is devoted to introducing the course itself and ourselves. The second day is devoted to it introducing the main question for the first unit, which is "what is new media?" with an overview of the 'pantheonic' approach and the introduction of Lacan. On the third day, I think it might make sense to introduce Baudrillard and McLuhan. And then on the fourth day Huang and Mazlish.
So basically what I want to do here is creates a very tightly focused weeks of instruction that begin with an overview and the placing of the week in a narrative context, then some exploring through reading and so forth of big theorists, and then a wrap up. So this is kind of in the category and ethos of teaching less and teaching it better. So since it's summer school this "less" is not a minor amount of work, but then again it shouldn't be a minor amount given the time compression of summer school.
So to reiterate in the first part of the narrative, the ontological part, New media is seen as something up at very expensive and also deep phenomenon. I think the pack of the con, Boulder yard, McLuhan make his point very well. Then in the second part of the narrative new media is looked at in more of a traditional way as "technology", with the difference that is placed in long-term historical context via Maza lash and 10 deep anthropological context via gilder of the history of technology.
So in week one of the course the first day is devoted to introducing the course itself and ourselves. The second day is devoted to it introducing the main question for the first unit, which is "what is new media?" with an overview of the 'pantheonic' approach and the introduction of Lacan. On the third day, I think it might make sense to introduce Baudrillard and McLuhan. And then on the fourth day Huang and Mazlish.
So basically what I want to do here is creates a very tightly focused weeks of instruction that begin with an overview and the placing of the week in a narrative context, then some exploring through reading and so forth of big theorists, and then a wrap up. So this is kind of in the category and ethos of teaching less and teaching it better. So since it's summer school this "less" is not a minor amount of work, but then again it shouldn't be a minor amount given the time compression of summer school.
