scholarly journals Encouraging College Student Democratic Engagement Through a Collaborative Voter

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 143-155
Author(s):  
Angela McGowan-Kirsch
Keyword(s):  
Best Practices ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Political Communication ◽  
Focal Point ◽  
Voter Mobilization ◽  
Communication Course ◽  
Democratic Engagement ◽  
Classroom Conversations ◽  
Upper Level ◽  
Civic Competence

Drawing on challenges I experienced when teaching a political communication course, I designed an upper-level undergraduate course with the objective of developing students’ civic competence and democratic engagement. The major class assignment, which is the focal point of this best practices essay, was a four-step collaborative voter mobilization project designed and executed by undergraduate students. I use research, classroom conversations, and student observations to discuss four best practices for encouraging students to participate in electoral politics: (a) fostering political efficacy, (b) peer-to-peer learning, (c) experiential learning, and (d) learning through reflection. This essay breaks a four-step collaborative voting mobilization project down into easily implementable steps for those seeking to inculcate attitudes and behaviors that foster democratic engagement whether that be in schools, universities, or within the broader community.

Teaching Political Communications as a Skill

1982 ◽  
Vol 33 ◽  
pp. 2-3
Author(s):  
Lynda Lee Kaid
Keyword(s):  
Mass Media ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Political Communication ◽  
Practical Experience ◽  
Political Campaigns ◽  
Electoral Process ◽  
Communication Course ◽  
Political Communications ◽  
University Of Oklahoma ◽  
Television Film

Undergraduate students in most disciplines hope to gain some practical experience in applying the principles they learn in the classroom. It is sometimes difficult to provide students with such opportunities for practical experience, but courses in political communication offer abundant possibilities of this type.The political communication course described here is entitled “Mass Media and Politics,” and it seeks to blend both theory and research in political campaigns with mass media skills. Although this particular course is taught in the Radio-Television-Film sequence at the University of Oklahoma, it could easily be adapted to political science courses at any university. In addition to providing an integration of political theory and practical experience in politics, the course has several subsidiary goals: (1) to give students a broader understanding of the modern electoral process, (2) to make students better consumers of political information, (3) to make students more aware of the problems and responsibilities involved in direct participation in the electoral process, and (4) to give students an opportunity to apply political organizational and communication skills in a realistic setting.

scholarly journals Investigating prototyping approaches of Ghanaian novice designers

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Deininger ◽  
Shanna R. Daly ◽  
Kathleen H. Sienko ◽  
Jennifer C. Lee ◽  
Elsie Effah Kaufmann
Keyword(s):  
Best Practices ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Best Practice ◽  
Middle Income Country ◽  
Global Markets ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Practice Behaviors ◽  
Front End ◽  
Novice Designers ◽  
Upper Level

Increasingly, products are designed for global markets, yet studies of design practices primarily investigate designers from high-income countries. Specifically, the use of prototypes during design is likely affected by the background of the designer and the environment in which they are designing. To broaden our understanding of the extent to which prototyping best practices are used beyond Western designers, in this study, we conducted interviews with novice designers from Ghana, a middle-income country (MIC), to examine how Ghanaian novice designers (upper-level undergraduate students) used prototypes throughout their design courses. We compared the reported use of prototypes to best practice behaviors and analyzed the types of prototypes used. We found evidence that these Ghanaian novice designers used some critical prototyping best practice behaviors, while other behaviors were underutilized, specifically during the front-end phases of design and for the purpose of engaging with stakeholders. Additionally, virtual models dominated their prototyping choices. We discuss likely reasons for these trends based on participants’ design experiences and design contexts.

scholarly journals UTILIZING UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH TO INFORM COMMUNITY RESOURCES FOR OLDER ADULTS: A SERVICE-LEARNING PROJECT

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S537-S538
Author(s):  
Amanda E Barnett ◽  
Sara Olinger
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Service Learning ◽  
Best Practices ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Undergraduate Research ◽  
Community Resources ◽  
Home Visitor ◽  
Aging Societies ◽  
Theory Research ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Engaging undergraduate students with aging-focused community resources is critical for preparing students to work with older adults and make positive contributions to aging societies. During the fall, 2018 semester, undergraduate students in a human development course on middle and late adulthood partnered with a county aging and disability resource center (ADRC) in Wisconsin to evaluate and update several of their existing programs and resources using empirical research. Upon completion of this project, students synthesized course material to meet all course learning objectives such as: (1) critically analyze physical, psychological, and sociological processes of aging across categories of difference (e.g. cultural, ethnic, class); (2) evaluate social policies and their multigenerational implications for midlife and older adults; and (3) construct a personal position on aging that integrates theory, research, and policy to demonstrate a sensitive and competent approach to working with midlife and older adults. Students researched, wrote reports, and presented to ADRC staff on the impact of social isolation on older adults, best practices for home visitor and transportation programs serving older adults, cognitive competency tools and best practices for utilizing memory assessments, grief supports and groups for family caregivers, and best practices for supporting veterans as they age. The outcome of these projects are research-based recommendations for any ADRC to consider when developing and implementing related programs. All stakeholders (students, professor, and ADRC staff) were satisfied with the process and outcomes of the project. Strengths and challenges of carrying out such a collaborative project will be reviewed.

Trends in Political Communication in Hungary

2012 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 480-496 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriella Szabó ◽  
Balázs Kiss
Keyword(s):  
Popular Culture ◽  
Web 2.0 ◽  
Political Communication ◽  
Focal Point ◽  
Communist Regime ◽  
Objective Reality ◽  
Political Communications ◽  
Strong Focus

The paper highlights the trends of political communications (PC) that have arisen in Hungary after the collapse of communist regime (1989). The authors have identified four main trends in the field of PC: fragmentation, the multiplication of PC channels and means, endless amount of PC arenas, Internet, Web 2.0, fragmentation of content, amateurism in PC; post-objectivity, the end of the requirement of unbiased and balanced coverage, more emphasis on the rise of opinion, on media as community focal point rather than window to the objective reality; the performative turn, the representation of self, a strong focus on act, dramaturgy, and aesthetics in PC; and popularization, the convergence of popular culture and politics, fan democracy, entertaining politics, involvement of citizens, etc.

scholarly journals Abstracts Writing : A Path for Understanding Academic Text of Mathematics

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 109
Author(s):  
Misdi Misdi
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Best Practices ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Classroom Observation ◽  
Group Discussion ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Small Group Discussion ◽  
Class Discussion ◽  
Proof Reading ◽  
Abstract Feature

This is a qualitative study to explore the students' competence in pursuing ofabstract writing among the undergraduate students of Mathematics department. The data were collected through classroom observation and self report. By applying self assignment, small group discussion, and presentation, the students' writing experiences were employed in order to discuss the weaknesses and strengths of the mathematic articles given during class discussion; whereas proof-reading, revising, and supervising were also critically provided. As the results, five classes that were involved in the investigation as the sample shows their abilities in applying their best practices based on the suggested method. The results indicate that the undergraduate students of Mathematics were able to reconstruct their ideas in the form of abstract feature, while the abstract writing method was possibly applied in the course of Mathematics.

scholarly journals Snowflake Selfies: A Low-Cost, High-Impact Approach toward Student Engagement in Scientific Research (with Their Smartphones)

2020 ◽  
Vol 101 (6) ◽  
pp. E917-E935
Author(s):  
Matthew R. Kumjian ◽  
Kevin A. Bowley ◽  
Paul M. Markowski ◽  
Kelly Lombardo ◽  
Zachary J. Lebo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
State University ◽  
Engaged Scholarship ◽  
Mesoscale Meteorology ◽  
Penn State ◽  
Atmospheric Thermodynamics ◽  
Term Paper ◽  
Upper Level ◽  
Intensive Course

Abstract An engaged scholarship project called “Snowflake Selfies” was developed and implemented in an upper-level undergraduate course at The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State). During the project, students conducted research on snow using low-cost, low-tech instrumentation that may be readily implemented broadly and scaled as needed, particularly at institutions with limited resources. During intensive observing periods (IOPs), students measured snowfall accumulations, snow-to-liquid ratios, and took microscopic photographs of snow using their smartphones. These observations were placed in meteorological context using radar observations and thermodynamic soundings, helping to reinforce concepts from atmospheric thermodynamics, cloud physics, radar, and mesoscale meteorology courses. Students also prepared a term paper and presentation using their datasets/photographs to hone communication skills. Examples from IOPs are presented. The Snowflake Selfies project was well received by undergraduate students as part of the writing-intensive course at Penn State. Responses to survey questions highlight the project’s effectiveness at engaging students and increasing their enthusiasm for the semester-long project. The natural link to social media broadened engagement to the community level. Given the successes at Penn State, we encourage Snowflake Selfies or similar projects to be adapted or implemented at other institutions.

scholarly journals An Upper-Level Biology Course Designed to Develop Science Communication in STEM Majors by Examining the Biotechnology Industry

2020 ◽  
Vol 82 (6) ◽  
pp. 389-393
Author(s):  
Laura T. Laranjo ◽  
Chloe C. Greppi ◽  
Melissa S. Kosinski-Collins
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Science Communication ◽  
Journal Club ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Career Pathways ◽  
Science Careers ◽  
Stem Majors ◽  
Biology Students ◽  
Course Material ◽  
Upper Level

Many undergraduate students pursuing life science majors are not aware of job options outside of medicine and academic research, because many departments stress these as the only primary career pathways. In addition, biology students often do not have many opportunities to develop their science communication and presentation skills due to the rigorous course requirements inherent in these fields that would make them more competitive for careers in biotechnology. We developed a course using diverse pedagogies designed to introduce students to new careers in biotechnology, to help them understand the role of ethics in the drug development pipeline, and to incorporate more communication assignments, such as student presentations and journal-club-style paper discussions to more effectively prepare them for many STEM-based career possibilities. By the end of the course, students had broader knowledge of previously unknown science careers, had improved their scientific communication skills, and reported a greater understanding of course material as a result of the science communication assignments.

scholarly journals “When I saw my peers annotating”

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeremiah Holden Kalir ◽  
Esteban Morales ◽  
Alice Fleerackers ◽  
Juan Pablo Alperin
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Student Perception ◽  
Perceived Value ◽  
Learning Technology ◽  
Digital Resources ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Course Content ◽  
Social Annotation ◽  
Upper Level ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose Social annotation (SA) is a genre of learning technology that enables the annotation of digital resources for information sharing, social interaction and knowledge production. This study aims to examine the perceived value of SA as contributing to learning in multiple undergraduate courses. Design/methodology/approach In total, 59 students in 3 upper-level undergraduate courses at a Canadian university participated in SA-enabled learning activities during the winter 2019 semester. A survey was administered to measure how SA contributed to students’ perceptions of learning and sense of community. Findings A majority of students reported that SA supported their learning despite differences in course subject, how SA was incorporated and encouraged and how widely SA was used during course activities. While findings of the perceived value of SA as contributing to the course community were mixed, students reported that peer annotations aided comprehension of course content, confirmation of ideas and engagement with diverse perspectives. Research limitations/implications Studies about the relationships among SA, learning and student perception should continue to engage learners from multiple courses and from multiple disciplines, with indicators of perception measured using reliable instrumentation. Practical implications Researchers and faculty should carefully consider how the technical, instructional and social aspects of SA may be used to enable course-specific, personal and peer-supported learning. Originality/value This study found a greater variance in how undergraduate students perceived SA as contributing to the course community. Most students also perceived their own and peer annotations as productively contributing to learning. This study offers a more complete view of social factors that affect how SA is perceived by undergraduate students.

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