COMM 399

COURSE CODE: COMM 399

COURSE TITLE: ONLINE COLLOQUIUM IN COMMUNICATION RESEARCH

COURSE DESCRIPTION: Student-managed online colloquium focused on selected topics related to or tools useful in the systematic study of communication phenomena and best practices in the profession

PREREQUISITES: COMM 390 and COMM 391

COURSE GOAL: The colloquium is designed to give the student an opportunity to manage an online colloquium in as professional a manner as possible in order to gain:

  • Insights into the design, organization, management, and evaluation of online discussions as tools for teaching and training communication practitioners; and
  • Skills and experience in the conduct of online discussions as a tool for teaching and training.

The objectives of this course are:

  •  To enable the student to plan and host a one-week online seminar on a specific topic that has been pre-determined at the start of the semester;
  • To enable the student to document and write a report on how he/she planned and implemented an online seminar. 

COURSE REQUIREMENTS: 

Each student at the beginning of the semester shall select a specific seminar topic that he/she shall plan and implement during the rest of the semester. As this is intended to be a colloquium on communication research, selected colloquium topics are expected to focus on research tools, research methods, research approaches, research issues and practices that are of relevance to and use in researching communication phenomena (such as your dissertation topic). 

The student shall, on the first day of the seminar, make a presentation on the selected topic and thereon facilitate the discussions that shall follow. Student shall also document the events that shall transpire during the seminar that he/she is facilitating and write a report on it. Such report shall be submitted to the FIC two weeks after the close of the colloquium block. 

Colloquium Mechanics: 

  • As a student-managed colloquium, this course requires the student to conceptualize and run the colloquium. All the topics in the colloquium are related to communication research. 
  • A student shall manage a one-week colloquium of which he/she is moderator and the main resource person. This one-week period is one colloquium block. It will run for one week even if a new colloquium will be started in the middle of the week. This is to accommodate all members of the class. For this reason, it is important that strict adherence to the schedule be complied with. 
  • The FIC shall open the block on the first day and close it on the 7th day to signal the end of the block. The colloquium coordinator-cum-speaker typically begins the colloquium block by making a presentation on the topic; the rest of the colloquium block shall be devoted to interaction among participants, which the student moderator shall manage. As the expert on the topic of his/her presentation, the student coordinator-cum-speaker is expected to respond to questions raised by colloquium participants.