MAKING CONNECTIONS: FACEBOOK AND BEYOND :: FYE 1220 :: SUMMER 2010

Georgia Southern University |College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences | Communication Arts

Professor: Barbara B. Nixon, Ph.D. (ABD)

Office: Lakeland, FL 
Office Hours: TBA (via Skype or Wimba Live Classroom in GeorgiaVIEW)
Phone: 901-BNIXON4 (Google Voice, for text or voice mail) or barbara.b.nixon on Skype
Blog: http://fye1220summer.wordpress.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/barbaranixon
E-mail: bnixon@georgiasouthern.edu

Peer Leader: Haley Higgs (haley_j_higgs@georgiasouthern.edu)

From Facebook to text messages to blogs, we are an intimately connected society. In this highly
interactive FYE course, you will create your own blog, contribute to a social network, learn how
corporations are using the Internet to connect with consumers, and become proficient in at
least one type of social media. Additionally, we will discuss how to create and protect your
online reputation.

Required Text
None, but there will be many required readings online

Course Blog
http://fye1220summer.wordpress.com

Required Equipment
Reliable Internet access

Headset/mic (for interaction in class discussions)

Catalog Description
Thematic seminar designed to promote information literacy skills and support students’
cognitive and affective integration into the University community. Required during the first
semester for all students new to the University (except for transfer students with 30 hours or
more); students may not withdraw.

Student Learning Outcomes for FYE 1220

Students will be able to . . .
1. Critically evaluate print and electronic information for its currency, relevancy, authority,
accuracy and purpose.
2. Apply documentation guidelines for print and electronic information used in
assignments.
3. Articulate what constitutes plagiarism and avoid representing the work of others as
their own.
4. Examine societal rationales for supporting college education and their own personal
motivations for attending college.

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 5. Locate Georgia Southern resources and services necessary for their academic and
personal success.
6. Analyze their use of time in relation to their goals and either: 1) develop a plan to align
their use of time more closely with their goals; or, 2) defend their use of time as
appropriate for achieving their goals.
7. Describe and explain academic expectations in relation to their course of study.
8. Identify different learning styles, evaluate which learning styles are most effective for
their academic success, and develop personal strategies for learning that take into
account their preferred learning styles.
9. Examine common college-student choices and relate them to their academic and
personal circumstances.

Special Needs
If you have a special need (a physical or learning disability) that requires special assistance,
please let your professor know during the first week of class. We will work with the SDRC
(Student Disability Resource Center) to meet your needs.

Agreement with Syllabus

By remaining a student in this class, you agree to this contract (syllabus). Please contact me
with any questions.

Classroom Decorum
As a member of the University community you are expected to treat faculty, staff and other
students with respect. You are expected to be engaged in the class discussions. It is
disrespectful for you to sleep, read a newspaper or book, or to work on another course project
during scheduled class time. If you do so, we will ask you to leave. During discussions, if you
disagree with an issue, you may express your disagreement but you may not attack the person
expressing the opinions.

Georgia Southern University Honor Code and Honor Pledge

“I will be academically honest in all of my course work and will not tolerate the academic
dishonesty of others.”

The Georgia Southern University Honor Code was proposed and jointly adopted by the
Student Government Association and the Faculty Senate in 1998 to enhance the
University’s academic integrity standards.

“On my honor, I will be academically honest in all of my course work and will not tolerate the
academic dishonesty of others. I also pledge to engage in ethical behavior on-campus and off-
campus, to live an honorable lifestyle, and to create a campus environment that is characterized
by individual responsibility, civility, and integrity.”

Georgia Southern University Campus Honor Pledge, an expansion of the Honor Code,
approved by the Student Government Association in Spring 2006

Understand that we will treat cases of academic dishonesty seriously.

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E-mail
E-mail is an official means of communication from the University. You are required to use your
Georgia Southern e-mail address when submitting assignments or requesting assistance. It is
your responsibility to check your Georgia Southern e-mail address regularly and open e-mails
the University sends. It is not an excuse to say you did not receive the e-mail in time because
you do not check your account. Although we will use GeorgiaVIEW extensively, when emailing
us, use the Georgia Southern email address, not the email function in GeorgiaVIEW.

Engagement and Participation

The nature of this class makes participation essential. Since this is an online course, how will I
know if you are participating? I will know through the quality and quantity of the ways you
engage with me and others in this class via our class blog and in GeorgiaVIEW.

Grades

GeorgiaVIEW Modules
Your Academic Future 150
Time Management 100
Learning Styles 100
Evaluating Information 50
Academic Research 50
Citing Sources 50
Blog Entries: 8 @ 50 pts each 400
Final Exam 100
1000 points total

Blog Entries & Campus Events

For each of the eight assignments, you’ll create a 250-word (minimum) blog posting after a
class discussion, reading assignment or participating in a specific campus event. See our class
blog for specifics on due dates for each entry. It will be impossible to pass this class without
completing the blog entries.

GeorgiaVIEW Modules
The balance of the orientation assessment is comprised of several GeorgiaVIEW Modules that
contain a combination of reflection exercises, quizzes and other assignments. See GeorgiaVIEW
for details on the modules.

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OTHER ESSENTIAL INFORMATION:

• Read the description of all assignments very carefully. Some will be submitted via
GeorgiaVIEW’s Assignments area, while others will be posted to your blog. Assignments
turned in using “the wrong method” will have points deducted for failure to follow
instructions, if they are even accepted at all. I do not accept e-mailed assignments.
• Deadlines are given to provide each student adequate and equal time for completion.
Hence, NO LATE ASSIGNMENTS WILL BE ACCEPTED.
• Unless otherwise specified, all assignments must be submitted using either a Microsoft
Office product (Word, PowerPoint, etc.) or Adobe PDF; if I cannot open an assignment
or the file is corrupt, you cannot earn credit on the assignment.
• To do well in this course, you need to attend class regularly, read the material, complete
assignments, study and prepare to adequately discuss the information and issues in the
course.
• Materials for exams will come from lectures, textbooks, virtual guest speakers,
handouts, websites and podcasts.
• All written assignments must be typed, double-spaced, using 12-point font, with one-
inch margins all around, unless otherwise specified. Give attention to spelling, grammar,
punctuation, and general appearance.
• For deadlines for assignments, check GeorgiaVIEW and my blog. I will also send out
occasional reminders and helpful information via Twitter.
• Failing to not attend class without officially withdrawing will result in an F for the
course: Last day to withdraw without penalty is June 16, 2010. The last day of class for
Summer Semester is July 13, 2010.
• FINAL EXAM: The Final Exam is due in GeorgiaVIEW no later than Wednesday, July 14, at
11:59 pm.

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BARBARA B. NIXON’S TEACHING & LEARNING PHILOSOPHY
Several years ago, a colleague shared with me this quotation by longshoreman and philosopher Eric
Hoffer:

“In times of change, learners inherit the earth, while the learned find themselves beautifully
equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.”

This quotation struck a chord with me. Put simply, my overarching goal in teaching is to ensure that our
world has more learners than learned. I am fortunate to be in a role in life where I can have an impact
on our future world leaders.

What do I expect from my students?

• Students should be fully read on all of the chapters (or other reading assignments) and to be
ready to discuss any part of the readings.
• Students should raise questions when they are uncertain of the material we are discussing,
including questions that I will have no easy (“pat”) answer for.
• Students should make every effort to gain the most value that they can from the class. They
should want to become independent learners.
• Students should become aware of not only how what happens in the world (current events)
impacts them, but also how what they do impacts the world. Campus is not a cocoon.

And what can my students expect from me?

• Because I am aware that students learn in many different ways, I will not lecture at my students
daily from behind a raised podium. Instead, I will provide instruction to them in an interactive
manner, even in online courses. In a typical week, students will experience partner discussions,
small group discussions, Internet scavenger hunts, and even crossword puzzles, in addition to
short (less than 20 minute) lecturettes. “Death by PowerPoint” will not happen in my class.
• I will provide them with the most current information I have available. I stay current on topics
and trends in the industry.
• I will stay abreast of current technology and apply it in the classroom whenever it adds to the
learning experience. (Examples include current software, podcasts and blogging, to name a few.)
• I will make every effort to help guide students through the issues that they raise, and we will seek
resolution together.
• I will make every effort I can to make sure that students understand the issues and concepts my
courses present.
• When I have positive feedback to share, I will share it openly in the classroom and call attention
to students by name in the process. My goal in this is to enhance or maintain the students’ self-
esteem, not to break it down. There are plenty of other places in the world where their self-
esteem may be diminished. Constructive criticism will still be provided to students, but not by
name in front of a whole class.
• I expect for us to have fun in class. Laughter and learning go hand in hand in my book. If we are
not enjoying ourselves in class, there’s something amiss.
• And perhaps most importantly, I will listen to my students so that I can learn from them, too.

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 FYE 1220 Tentative Schedule of Topics and Assignments
WEEK # WEEK OF
1 May 17, 2010
2 May 24, 2010
3 May 31, 2010
4 June 7, 2010
5 June 14, 2010
6 June 21, 2010
7 June 28, 2010
8 July 5, 2010
9 July 12, 2010
FINAL EXAM
TOPICS ASSIGNMENT(S) – Due Fridays by 4:45 pm
Welcome to Making Connections [Blog #1] Response to BBN blog post
Syllabus Scavenger Hunt
What is Social Media?
Blogging 101 [Blog #2] Set up own blog @ WordPress
Time Management (discussion)
GeorgiaVIEW 101 [GV] Time Management Assignment due
Classroom Success Strategies
Twitter 101 [Blog #3] Blog Review
Preparing for Academic Advising
Library Skills [Blog #4] One Week of Twitter
Cite Sources: Avoid Plagiarism [GV] Your Academic Future module due
Podcasts 101 [GV] Evaluating Info Quiz
[GV] Citing Sources Quiz
Your Personal Brand / Digital Dirt
[GV] Academic Research Assignment
Learning Styles [Blog #5] Podcast Review
[Blog #6] Digital Dirt
TBA [GV] Learning Styles module due
[Blog #7] Campus Event Reaction
[Blog #8] Social Media Policy
Evaluation / Wrap Up
The Final Exam is due in GeorgiaVIEW no later than Wednesday, July 14, at 11:59 pm.
NOTE 1: The above schedule and procedures are subject to change in the event of extenuating
circumstances. When possible, you will be provided at least one class day of advance notice of
any changes. It’s always smart to check your e-mail before coming to class each day.
NOTE 2: This schedule may not contain every assignment due date for the semester. Other short
assignments will be discussed in class & listed either in the class blog or GeorgiaVIEW)