Adam W. Tyma

Connecting with What Is Out There!: Using Twitter in the Large Lecture.

Objectives: Students and teachers will develop both practical skills and theoretical/cultural understanding with regards to how Twitter can be used to present ideas and create dialogue between individuals and communities within and outside the classroom. Course(s): Primarily, this student engagement method can be used in any large lecture class (e.g., Introduction to Mass Communication, Introduction to Communication Studies). However, such methods can be used for any course where frequent and short communications are required and/or encouraged between members of the class.

This is Sparta! Mediated Mythology as Pedagogy in 300

Popular films continue to replace history courses as the source of truth with regard to important events or eras. 300, in its interpretation of the Battle of Thermopylae, based on the graphic novel by Frank Miller, is an example of this trend. Rather than adhering to the presented historical facts of the event, 300 offers a hyperreal interpretation of the battle and the societies that surrounded it, infusing contemporary hegemonic ideologies regarding sexuality, classism, and race into a mediated discourse that presents the spectacle of the film as reality. This essay examines the narratives that are presented within the film, paying particular attention to how each narrative moves away from historical documentation and toward a hyperreality that glorifies violence, misogyny, and domination. How these narratives can potentially become the historical reality that individuals internalize is of particular concern here.

Digital Democratic Voices: Intersecting Student Research, Twitter, and Presidential Debates.

Courses: Mass Communication and Public Opinion, Political Communication Objectives: Often, there are media events (e.g., local and national elections, the Super Bowl) that match up with what we hope to accomplish in a particular class. The purpose of this semester-length project for students was threefold: (1) to read and comprehend literature related to communication studies, media, and political strategy; (2) to collect and analyze data; and (3) to participate in civic engagement by taking part in Presidential DebateWatch events, both as an audience member and through the use of Twitter.

“The Gallery”: An Experiential Approach to Visual Aid Construction and Analysis in the Classroom

Objective(s): Students will create ballots based on established criteria and critique visual aids Course(s): Public Speaking, Introduction to Human Communication, Business and Professional Communication, Persuasive Speaking