Still Looking: Continuities of Knowledge in the Information Age
Library Computing & Media Internships
The Evergreen State College
2004-2005
FALL READING SYLLABUS
FACULTY
Sarah Pedersen, pederses@evergreen.edu
Randy Stilson, stilsonr@evergreen.edu
Jules Unsel, unselj@evergreen.edu
GENERAL INFORMATION
- This program combines six hours of academic classes with ten credit computing and media internships in the library.
- Projects are available for students in all fields of scholarly interest. All levels of computer proficiency are respected and welcome.
- The academic goal is to assess and report on how the web is impacting contemporary practices and philosophies of knowledge.
- The internship goal is to develop advanced skills and work experience in web research, digital imaging, web design and public service.
- Preparatory for graduate school and careers in academic study, information science, education, journalism and the visual arts.
ACADEMIC CLASSES
Schedule
- Monday 9-11 / Reading seminar.
- Tuesday 3-5 / Computer skills practicum.
- Thursday 1-3 / Imaging & web class.
Readings
- Henry Petroski, The Book on the Bookshelf (1999).
- Matthew Battles, Library: An Unquiet History (2003).
- Tomaiuolo & Quint, The Web Library (2004).
- Marge Piercy, He, She and It (1986).
- Selected articles online.
Assignments
- Weekly seminar paper, 1-2 pgs.
- Weekly integration blog.
- Individual web project.
- Mid-term and final presentations.
INTERNSHIP
Schedule
- Up to 6 hrs/wk – library media and computing, TBA.
- Up to 18 hrs/wk – library area work exchange, TBA.
Assignments
- Team web project, TBA.
- Area job duties, TBA.
ASSIGNMENT CATALOG
Seminar Papers – Reading reaction papers 1-2 pages due each week in seminar. This short but serious assignment reviews reading content, focuses thoughts for discussion, and practices formal writing skills. Typewritten, double-spaced, grammar and spelling.
Integration Blog – Short weekend reflections due online each week by 10 am Monday mornings. This assignment encourages students to review academic themes and work experience, practice free writing, and communicate personal insights and ideas.
Individual Web Project – Choose a field of scholarly knowledge and research it on the internet and in print. Assess the current state of knowledge for chosen field. Use digital imaging and web design to build a website reflecting your findings.
Team Web Project – Create an institutional web site for a library special project. Learn concepts of information architecture and graphic design. Teams of 3-5.
Mid-term and Final Presentations – Individuals and teams present initial web project designs and postings in Week 5. Follow-up presentations in Week 10.
Area Job Duties – Specific duties scheduled and assigned with intern field supervisor. All schedules must be kept and all work performed.
First Assignment – Buy Tomaiuolo & Quint, The Web Library (2004), online.
ACADEMIC SYLLABUS
Week 1 / Sept 27-Oct 1
Introductions
Tues 3-5, LC / Introductions.
Thurs 1-3, LC / Web Orientation.
Week 2 / Oct 4-Oct 8
Philosophy of Information (The big questions).
Mon 9-11, LC / Seminar
READINGS: Batson and Bass, “Teaching and Learning in the Computer Age,” Change 28:2 (Mar/Apr 1996), 42-49; Luciano Floridi, “Open Problems in the Philosophy of Information," Metaphilosophy 35:4 (July 2004), 554-582.
Tues 3-5, GCC / Library catalogue review.
READING: Web Library , Forward to Chapter 1.
Thurs 1-3, GCC / Digital imaging & web class.
- intro to the internet, web development and information design
- how to access and post to your Blog
Activity: create a site map of your project web site.
Week 3 / Oct 11-Oct 15
Media Literacy & Research Method (Reading the web critically and well).
Mon 9-11, LC / Seminar
READING: Ladislau Semali, “Ways with Visual Languages,” The Clearinghouse (July/Aug 2003), 271-277; Sonia Livingstone, “Media Literacy and the Challenge of New Information and Communication Technologies,” The Communication Review 7 (2004), 7-14; Jeremy Moss, “Power and the Digital Divide” Ethics and Information Technology 4:2 (2002), 159-165.
Tues 3-5, GCC / Computer skills practicum.
READING: Web Library , Chapter 2.
Thurs 1-3, GCC / Digital imaging & web class.
- Photoshop for the Web: preparing images and designing page layouts
Activity: analyze design of a site you like and come up w/ a design for your site.
Week 4 / Oct 18-Oct 22
Virtual Communities/Virtual Worlds (Cyber-ethnography).
Mon 9-11, LC / Seminar
READING: Katie J. Ward, “Cyber-Ethnography and the Emergence of the Virtually New Community,” Journal of Information Technology 14 (1999), 95-105; Miriam Catterall and Pauline Maclaran, "Researching Consumers in Virtual Worlds," Journal of Consumer Behavior 1:3 (Feb 2002), 228-237; Julian Dibble, "A Rape in Cyberspace," Village Voice (Dec 21, 1993), 36-42; Thomas M. Powers, "Real Wrongs in Virtual Communities," Ethics and Information Technology 5:4 (2003), 191-198;
Tues 3-5, GCC / Computer skills practicum.
READING: Web Library , Chapter 3.
Thurs 1-3, GCC / Digital imaging & web class.
- Introduction to HTML
- Intro to Dreamweaver: site definitions, create new pages, links and publishing
Activity: Create the navigational structure and link up the pages of your site.
Week 5 / Oct 25-Oct 29
Computers & Computer Language (Structure and semiotics).
Mon 9-11, LC / Seminar
READING: David M. Levy, "From Documents to Information: A Historical Perspective," UC Berkeley Document Academy ; Codognet, “Ancient Images and New Technologies,” Leonardo 35:1 ( 2002), 41-50 ; Martin G. Brodwin, Tristen Star, Elizabeth Cardoso, "Computer Assistive Technology for People who Have Disabilities: Computer Adaptations and Modifications," Journal of Rehabilitation 70:3 (2004), 28-33.
Tues 3-5, GCC / Computer skills practicum.
READING: Web Library , Chapter 4.
Thurs 1-3, GCC / Mid-term presentations.
Week 6 / Nov 1-Nov 5
Where Does Knowledge Reside? (Libraries as hosts to information).
Mon 9-11, LC / Seminar
READING: Henry Petroski, The Book on the Bookshelf (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1999).
Tues 3-5, GCC / Computer skills practicum.
READING: Web Library , Chapter 5.
Thurs 1-3, GCC / Digital imaging & web class.
- Dreamweaver: inserting images and tables, formatting with CSS.
Week 7 / Nov 8-Nov 12
How Does Knowledge Survive? (Politics and importance of preservation).
Mon 9-11, LC / Seminar
READING: Matthew Battles, Library: An Unquiet History (New York: W.W. Norton, 2003).
Tues 3-5, GCC / Computer skills practicum.
READING: Web Library , 6.
Thurs 1-3, GCC / Digital imaging & web class.
- Dreamweaver: Review and putting it all together
- Common web scripting techniques.
Week 8 / Nov 15-Nov 19
The Digital Turn (Institutional philosophies of change).
Mon 9-11, LC / Seminar
READING: Pace, “Bearing with Old and New Standards,” TBA.
Tues 3-5, GCC / Computer skills practicum.
READING: Web Library , Chapter 7
Thurs 1-3, GCC / Digital imaging & web class.
-Photoshop: image manipulation and retouching techniques.
Thanksgiving Break / Nov 22-26
Week 9 / Nov 29-Dec 3
Is the Internet Emancipatory? (The politics of the web).
Mon 9-11, LC / Seminar
READING: Andrew Boyd, “The Web Rewires the Movement,” Nation Online (17 Jul 2003); Donna Haraway, "A Cyborg Manifesto: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the Late Twentieth Century," in Simians, Cyborgs and Women: The Reinvention of Nature (New York; Routledge, 1991), pp.149-181.
Tues 3-5, GCC / Independent work.
READING: Web Library , Chapters 8 & 9.
Thurs 1-3, GCC / Independent work.
- Photoshop/Dreamweaver Assisted Work Session.
Week 10 / Dec 6-Dec 10
Information Fiction (The future is now).
Mon 9-11, LC / Seminar
READING: Marge Piercy, He, She and It (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1991).
Tues 3-5, GCC / Independent work.
Thurs 1-3, LC / Final presentations – Potluck
