Instructional Resources for Psychology Teaching Communication and Scientific Literacy through Digital and Social Media Kameko Halfmann1 & Jake C. Kurczek2 1University of Wisconsin - Platteville; 2Loras College Author Note 1Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin - Platteville, Platteville, WI 53818 2Departments of Neuroscience and Psychology, Loras College, Dubuque, IA 52003 Supported by a 2017 Instructional Resource Award to Kameko Halfmann and Jake C. Kurczek. Correspondence may be addressed to Kameko Halfmann, Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin - Platteville, One University Plaza, Platteville, WI 53818. Tel: (608)342-1695. Email: halfmannk@uwplatt.edu Copyright 2018 by Kameko Halfmann & Jake C. Kurczek. All rights reserved. You may reproduce multiple copies of this material for your own personal use, including use in your classes and/or sharing with individual colleagues as long as the author’s name and institution and the Office of Teaching Resources in Psychology heading or other identifying information appear on the copied document. No other permission is implied or granted to print, copy, reproduce, or distribute additional copies of this material. Anyone who wishes to produce copies for purposes other than those specified above must obtain the permission of the authors.
course. However, it could also stand alone as an activity in a course that covers identity, personality, or social cognition/behavior. APA Learning By completing this activity students will develop communication skills and awareness of communication tools, consistent with the following APA learning goals: “Describe what of additional information beyond personal experience are acceptable in developing behavioral explanations (i.e., popular press reports vs. scientific findings)” (2.2b) “Articulate criteria for identifying objective sources of psychology information” (2.2d) “Recognize writing content and format differ based on purpose and audience” (4.1b) Directions for the instructor Once students have discussed the questions in small groups, the instructor should follow-up and discuss the activity as a class. Key points to address are: Audience: Effective communication is audience-focused. When students write a paper for class, their audience is often times the instructor or their peers. When they post on social media, they may have a much broader audience. Ask students how their writing style changes if they wanted to explain a psychological concept to you (the instructor), compared to another student or compared to their social network. Students should indicate that they may use a more professional tone to explain a concept to the instructor compared to their social network, where they may emphasize the big picture. Information literacy: Navigating social and digital media requires information literacy. Take time to discuss key features of credible sources, such as a reference list, depth of information, source reputation (non-biased web site or peer reviewed scholarly journal),
Instructions to students are provided in Appendix D. Assignment 2: Electronic Portfolio APA learning goals After completing this assignment, students will be able to “Describe the characteristics and relative of different information sources (e.g., primary vs. secondary, peer reviewed vs. non reviewed, empirical vs. nonempirical)” (2.2B) “Craft clear and concise written communications to address specific audiences (e.g., lay, peer, professional)” (4.1B) “Use social media responsibly” (4.3E) Directions to the instructor Electronic Portfolios (E-portfolios) are indicated as a high impact practice by the Association of American Colleges & Universities (AACU). Portfolios require students to manage time effectively, organize information, and reflect on learning. Portfolios are “renewable” assignments meaning that their usefulness can extend beyond the course (Wiley, 2016). For example, the Hart Research Associates 2014 survey indicates that employers view of students work as very useful (38%) or fairly useful (44%). This is notable in relation to employer’s indication of college transcript usefulness in job applications, where only 9% of employers find transcripts very useful and 36% find transcripts fairly useful. We recommend specifically discussing the potential for future use of the E-portfolio in job or graduate application materials with students.
Appendix A Student Activity: Visitor and Resident Mapping Goal Create a personal visitor-resident map and reflect on communication tools and skills Materials Writing utensil (or whiteboard) Suggested Time 30 minutes Instructions to the students Draw a horizontal line across your paper and label the left side “visitor” and the right side “resident” (Figure 1) Think of visiting as logging onto and off of social media without leaving much of a trace (no posts, no likes, no interaction) Think of being as resident as leaving a trace on social media through a post or some other form of creation or interaction Draw a vertical line through the center of your paper (splitting your paper into four equal quadrants) and label the top “personal” and the bottom “professional” Personal encompasses your personal social media use Professional is any social use related to your career, academics, or professional interests/development