COMM11112 - The Internet Never Lies?: Social Media and Society

General Information

Unit Synopsis

Claims of misinformation and fake news frequently dominate media headlines- so how do we critically consume information in our current world? How can we produce information that is accurate and evidence-based? In this unit, you will build your media literacy skills to become a critical consumer and creator of information. You will reflect on how technology influences personal and professional information creation and consumption. You will learn how information is created, distorted, and shared in online environments and then interpret texts for information which could be misleading. By engaging with a range of contemporary topics you will build the skills you'll need to manage information on behalf of organisations. Finally, you will cumulate your learning by creating a media product suitable for disseminating accurate information in online media environments.

Details

Level Undergraduate
Unit Level 1
Credit Points 6
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 4
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.125
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites There are no pre-requisites for the unit.

Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).

Class Timetable View Unit Timetable
Residential School No Residential School

Unit Availabilities from Term 1 - 2023

Term 2 - 2023 Profile
Jakarta
Online
Rockhampton

Attendance Requirements

All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes – in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).

Assessment Overview

Recommended Student Time Commitment

Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.

Assessment Tasks

Assessment Task Weighting
1. Reflective Practice Assignment 15%
2. Written Assessment 40%
3. Portfolio 45%

This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%).

Consult the University’s Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades

Past Exams

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Previous Feedback

Term 2 - 2022 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 100.00% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 12.90% response rate.

Feedback, Recommendations and Responses

Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.

Source: Student Unit Evaluations T2 2021
Feedback
Ease of navigation for concise, self-paced and interactive content layout, including topic summary videos.
Recommendation
Retain current content layout. Update as needed.
Action Taken
The current content layout was retained and is continually updated as needed.
Source: Student Unit Evaluations T2 2021
Feedback
Assessment-related feedback to be returned faster.
Recommendation
On-demand, self-paced content delivery may create a desire for faster feedback. The unit coordinator will more clearly communicate expected assessment return timeframes while also attempting to adhere to a faster turnaround time where possible.
Action Taken
The unit coordinator clearly communicated expected assessment return timeframes, while also attempting to adhere to faster turnaround times where possible (less than 2 weeks).
Source: Student Unit Evaluations T2 2021
Feedback
Assessments were engaging, however the assessments briefs were unclear at times.
Recommendation
Update assessment briefs to clarify requirements.
Action Taken
Assessment briefs were updated to clarify requirements.
Source: Teaching Staff Review
Feedback
Some assistance may be required to structure written assessments.
Recommendation
Provide a template for students for written assessments, as well as exemplars where possible.
Action Taken
Templates and exemplars were provided for written assessments.
Source: Verbal Student feedback
Feedback
Students noted that while interactive learning elements are engaging, it can be challenging to find where materials are located for revision purposes.
Recommendation
Create a downloadable Unit Navigation guide which provides students with guidance about where to access particular topics and learning materials.
Action Taken
Nil.
Source: Verbal Student feedback
Feedback
Students noted they would find a glossary of unit key terms valuable.
Recommendation
Create a unit glossary which outlines key terms, with assistance from previous students who have kindly provided their own personal glossaries.
Action Taken
Nil.
Source: Student Unit Evaluations T2 2022
Feedback
Students felt comfortable and supported to engage in contemporary debates about unit learning materials.
Recommendation
Continue developing a learning community which encourages respectful and robust debates.
Action Taken
Nil.
Unit learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  1. Reflect on how technology can influence personal information consumption
  2. Analyse information from the perspective of a content consumer, moderator and producer
  3. Use media literacy and critical thinking skills to assess how information can be created, shared and distorted
  4. Interpret texts for information which could misinform or mislead
  5. Create a media product which promotes accurate information dissemination in online environments.

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5
1 - Reflective Practice Assignment •
2 - Written Assessment • •
3 - Portfolio • •
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5
1 - Communication • • • • •
2 - Problem Solving • • •
3 - Critical Thinking • • • •
4 - Information Literacy •
6 - Information Technology Competence • • • •
7 - Cross Cultural Competence • •
8 - Ethical practice • • • •
9 - Social Innovation • •
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
Assessment Tasks Graduate Attributes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
1 - Reflective Practice Assignment • • • •
2 - Written Assessment • • • • • • •
3 - Portfolio • • • • • • •