Other Communication Commons^™

Teaching Girls Online Skills: Results Of The Wikid Grrls Intervention, Stine Eckert, Jade Metzger-Riftkin, Joanna Nurmis

Journal of Media Literacy Education

In 2013-2016 we designed and implemented Wikid Grrls, a 10-week after-school workshop series to teach online skills to middle school girls in U.S. schools. We interviewed and surveyed 80 participants before and after the workshops. Girls’ online skills and confidence in them increased measurably for the duration of the workshop series. Participants expressed great interest in learning more, but media literacy programs at their schools regarding online skills were lacking. Using feminist theories and the reader-to-leader framework, we argue that such media literacy interventions bring immediate learning rewards for participants. Yet, we conclude that to narrow gender gaps in digital …

Agriculture Ambassador State Conference, James Andrew Broaddus, Quincie A. Gourley

Agricultural Education and Communication

The Agriculture Ambassador organization at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo focuses on promotion of higher education, agriculture, and professional development among its members and community contacts. In 2018, the organization hosted the Agriculture Ambassador State Conference to bring together Californian Agriculture Ambassadors and industry professionals for workshops and advocacy planning. “Exposure to the different forms of leadership through out-of-classroom involvement offers concrete experiences and background knowledge upon which students can draw as they integrate leadership theories and skills,” (Fritz, S., 1998, p.58). Industry professionals have cited the need to emphasize soft skill development through college level education (Robles, …

Media Literacy Policy In Flanders – Belgium: From Parliamentary Discussions To Public Policy, Leo Van Audenhove, Hadewijch Vanwynsberghe, Ilse Mariën

Journal of Media Literacy Education

The discussion on media literacy in Flanders starts in the Flemish Parliament in 2006. It will take until 2013 before the Flemish Government will set up the Knowledge Center for Media Literacy—Mediawijs. Flanders is therefore rather late in establishing a dedicated institute for media literacy. The same can be said for developing a formal policy framework in relation to media literacy. This article starts with a theoretical discussion of three major trends in the current media literacy debate. The article moves on to describe and analyze Flanders media literacy policy debates and policy formulation. It highlights the development and remit …

Teaching Social Justice: Intergenerational Service-Learning In Digital Media Course, Margaret O. Finucane, Linda M. Seiter, Nathan C. Gehlert

Journal of Media Literacy Education

Digital media play an increasingly dominant role in reinforcing and challenging power inequality in social and institutional relationships. This paper describes how a service-learning component engaged students in community-based interactions that not only deepened their understanding of course content but also increased their commitment to diversity, community issues, and personal development. A close look at three case studies shows that integrating service learning into a first year seminar on digital media and social justice had positive outcomes for students when intentionally paired with community partners offering course-related projects.

Youth And The City: Reflective Photography As A Tool Of Urban Voice, Roman Gerodimos

Journal of Media Literacy Education

YYoung people’s engagement with urban public space has been facing a number of obstacles that reflect a lack of understanding of their needs, values and priorities. The emergence of digital devices and social media as integral elements of youth culture adds further urgency to the need to understand how young people themselves visually articulate their perceptions of life in the city. Bringing together elements from urban studies, youth studies and digital media literacy, this paper puts forward a pedagogic and research approach that aims to facilitate youth engagement with urban landscapes and the community. Participatory photography was used a tool …

The Promises, Challenges, And Futures Of Media Literacy, Monica Bulger, Patrick Davison

Journal of Media Literacy Education

Media literacy has become a center of gravity for countering fake news, and a diverse array of stakeholders – from educators to legislators, philanthropists to technologists – have pushed significant resources toward media literacy programs. Media literacy, however, cannot be treated as a panacea. This paper provides a foundation for evaluating media literacy efforts and contextualizing them relative to the current media landscape. Media literacy is traditionally conceived as a process or set of skills based on critical thinking. It has a long history of development aligned along the dialectic between protection and participation. Contemporary media literacy tends to organize …

Radio Waves And Curriculum Pathways: Jamaican “At Risk” Learners Construct Media, Paulette J. Feraria

Journal of Media Literacy Education

This paper explores radio play as an alternative space for learning language and literacy for Jamaican students labelled as ‘at-risk’ learners. Through the creation of a make-believe radio station in the classroom, students developed oral language skills as a necessary precursor for social literacy. They connected reading and writing activities and the simulated classroom radio station promoted the development of learners’ self-efficacy. The students’ use of the learning space as newscasters, hosts, writers and reporters revealed that those who took risks in learning language and literacy in these spaces subverted the label of ‘at-risk-learners’ and repositioned themselves as risk-takers in …

Research Benefits For Scholarly Authors Being Published On A Public Forum, Hunter M. Watson, Brent D. Bowen, Timothy B. Holt, Jacqueline R. Luedtke

Publications

The previous construct of research was focused on social media platforms as a benefactor in broadcasting towards a global audience with non-academic professions. Following along the same ideology, this research directs the attention to a pertained audience in academic profession.

•Embry-Riddle is the host of Scholarly Commons which collects the research of authors (faculty members), and assists in developing a digital portfolio. This portfolio creates metric measurements on a dashboard to indicate where downloads are occurring, and aids in providing current information pertaining to the authors’ publication. •In this case, the publication of the National Airline Quality Rating (AQR) ( …

Call For Manuscripts

Basic Communication Course Annual

Submissions are invited for publication consideration in Volume 31 (2019) of the Basic Communication Course Annual. Managed by the Basic Course Division of the National Communication Association and published by the University of Dayton, the Annual publishes the best scholarship available on topics related to the basic course and is distributed nationally to scholars and educators interested in the basic communication course. Each article will be published online at http://ecommons.udayton.edu/bcca/ and indexed on the journal’s website. All manuscripts submitted to the Annual will undergo blind peer review. Two or three members of the editorial board read and review each manuscript. …

The Impact Of Class Size On The Speech/Time Ratio In The Public Speaking Course, Brent Kice

Basic Communication Course Annual

Authors were asked to prepare an essay as if they were writing a letter to their dean (whose academic training was in another discipline) who (1) asked that enrollment in each basic course section be increased to a level that compromises the pedagogy of the basic course or (2) proposed that the required basic communication course be eliminated from the university’s general education program.

Here, the author discusses the pressures of increased class sizes. The nature of public speaking requires that class time be divided between instruction and graded student speeches. An increase in allotted time in one area results …

Class Size For The Basic Communication Course: A Recommendation For The Dean, Delia O'Steen, Luke Lefebvre, Brian Ott

Basic Communication Course Annual

Authors were asked to prepare an essay as if they were writing a letter to their dean (whose academic training was in another discipline) who (1) asked that enrollment in each basic course section be increased to a level that compromises the pedagogy of the basic course or (2) proposed that the required basic communication course be eliminated from the university’s general education program.

Making The Case For The Basic Communication Course In General Education, Kristina Ruiz-Mesa, Melissa A. Broeckelman-Post

Basic Communication Course Annual

Authors were asked to prepare an essay as if they were writing a letter to their dean (whose academic training was in another discipline) who (1) asked that enrollment in each basic course section be increased to a level that compromises the pedagogy of the basic course or (2) proposed that the required basic communication course be eliminated from the university’s general education program.

In this essay, the authors discuss the academic, career, and social benefits stemming from strong effective communication skills.

Basic Course Forum: Section Introduction

Basic Communication Course Annual

Volume 30 highlights advocating for the basic course. Authors were asked to prepare an essay as if they were writing a letter to their dean (whose academic training was in another discipline) who (1) asked that enrollment in each basic course section be increased to a level that compromises the pedagogy of the basic course or (2) proposed that the required basic communication course be eliminated from the university’s general education program. The essays featured here provide strong arguments against such a move and, as you might expect, strongly defend the basic course.

Communication Apprehension: Understanding Communication Skills And Cultural Identity In The Basic Communication Course, Stevie M. Munz, Janet Colvin

Basic Communication Course Annual

Students enrolled in a basic communication course are required to self-examine their communication apprehension by means of the PRPSA (McCroskey 1970). The present study qualitatively examined pretest and posttest responses from 793 students enrolled in a basic communication course to assess their understanding of their communication apprehension. Our findings reveal that students articulate their communication apprehension in relationship to their public speaking skills (e.g., writing/outlining, audience analysis, and argumentation skills) and cultural identity (e.g., ESL, peer relationship, and religious identity). Our findings contribute to previous understanding of communication apprehension and are discussed in great detail alongside implications and future directions.

Conceptualizing Positive And Negative Experiences And Responses In The Basic Communication Course, Angela Hosek, Caroline Waldbuesser, Eric Mishne, Brandi Frisby

Basic Communication Course Annual

The present study used qualitative analysis of 259 students’ positive and negative experiences in the basic course and the ways in which they responded to these events. Students described four negative experiences: poor academic performance, time management, communication apprehension, and teacher driven challenges and four positive experiences: relational, growth, and presentation success. Students responded to these negative experiences using behavioral change, support seeking, doing nothing, and responded to positive experiences using emotive responses, communication with others, engaging in celebrating activities, applying skills, and lacking celebration.

“I Didn’T Even Think Of This”: Examining The Influence Of Student Disability Accommodation Training On Basic Course Instructors’ Attitudes And Self-Efficacy, Jillian A. Joyce

Basic Communication Course Annual

Despite the growing number of students with disabilities in the university setting, few resources are offered to teach instructors about specific disabilities or provide direction for how to accommodate these students. This study used quantitative and qualitative methods to examine the influence of accommodation training on basic communication course graduate teaching assistants’ attitudes and self-efficacy regarding students with disabilities. The training used attribution theory as a lens to examine stuttering, a stigmatized disability that can uniquely affect the basic course classroom, and explore the logistical requirements for accommodating students in postsecondary education. This study used pretest and posttest data from …

Assessing Markers Of Student Development For Dually And Non-Dually Enrolled Students In An Online Basic Public Speaking Course, Joshua N. Westwick, Karla M. Hunter, Kelli J. Chromey

Basic Communication Course Annual

Critics of college dual enrollment programs suggest that online courses could pose significant challenges for dually enrolled students due to the online learning environment structure, concerns of academic achievement, and limited access to academic support. These concerns call into question the merits of online instruction for institutions who offer the basic public speaking course online to provide access to a broader base of students (e.g., in inner cities and rural areas). Dual enrollment continues to increase in popularity, especially within the general education curriculum, which includes the basic public speaking course at many institutions. Research shows these students excel academically, …

Engaging Students In The Basic Course By Asking Big Questions, Bryan Abendschein, Grace Giorgio, Adam D. Roth, Jennifer Bender

Basic Communication Course Annual

This paper advocates for the inclusion of big questions into the basic course curriculum. It begins by exploring the nature of big questions as those that engage pressing and perennial civic and global issues, and details their effectiveness in encouraging students and faculty to think about interpersonal responsibility and social space as dynamically interfacing and mutually reflexive, thus challenging us to negotiate the civic call of engaging in democratic processes. The basic course, whether public speaking or hybrid, offers a crucial opportunity for big questions to emerge because it brings people together to critically question and produce messages about the …

Teaching Talk: An Exploration Of The Content And Implementation Of The Common Core State Standards, Anna Wright, Brian Rohman, Dakota Horn, Barbara Meyer, Cheri J. Simonds

Basic Communication Course Annual

The implementation of the Common Core State Standards has brought about a renewed inspiration for exploring the role of communication in K-12 schools as they include a speaking and listening strand. Communication education in K-12 schools had been sparsely researched; however, a handful of scholars have made calls to increase the research and advocacy done in this arena. There is a need to understand the K-12 context as a means to inform practices at the college level. This study breaks down the speaking and listening strand of the standards to create a better understanding of the content addressed and applies …

Research Articles: Section Introduction

Basic Communication Course Annual

The Basic Communication Course Annual publishes the best scholarship available on topics related to the basic course and is distributed nationally to scholars and educators interested in the basic communication course. Each article is indexed in its entirety in the Education Resources Information Center (ERIC), an authoritative database of educational literature and resources. Essential for education researchers of all kinds, it features journals included in the Current Index of Journals in Education and Resources in Education Index. Manuscripts published in the Basic Communication Course Annual are not restricted to any particular methodology or approach. They address issues that are significant …

Editor's Page, Joseph P. Mazer

Basic Communication Course Annual

Publication of Volume 30 of the Basic Communication Course Annual marks 30 since the journal’s official launch. In those decades, the Annual has featured the best scholarship on topics pertaining to our discipline’s “bread-and-butter” course, “front porch” class, or whatever metaphor you would like to use to characterize the great work that happens here. Although 30 years have elapsed, our scholarship is more important now than ever before; it is mission-critical to our country and our democracy.

As we know, the basic communication course equips students with the knowledge and skills necessary to succeed as communicatively competent citizens prepared to …

Front Cover, Title Page, Contents, Editorial Board

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Debris, Diatoms, And Dolphins: Tracking Child Engagement At A Public Science Festival, Kaya Van Beynen, Theresa G. Burress

USF St. Petersburg Campus Faculty Publications

Visitors to public science festivals have a tremendous amount of free choice to decide how to navigate through the festival, as well as when, where, and how long to stop at an exhibit. This study examines how elementary-aged children individually or collaboratively engaged with festival exhibits at a public science festival in St. Petersburg, Florida. Although many exhibit activities are designed to appeal to children, no research has been done with regard to child engagement with one-day, outdoor science festivals, such as this one. Engagement can be measured by unobtrusive observation of the behavior and interactions of children. Factors that …

Complete Issue, Volume 37, Issue 1

Journal of the Association for Communication Administration

This is the complete issue for Volume 37, Issue 1 of the Journal of the Association for Communication Administration.

Fostering Organizational Integrity Through Departmental Program Reviews, James T. Petre, David S. Heineman, Angela G. La Valley

Journal of the Association for Communication Administration

Conducting a departmental program review can be a stressful and arduous process. At the same time, the final report can provide valuable insights. The challenges and benefits of program reviews have been well noted by scholars. We seek to add to this conversation by arguing that program reviews can prove beneficial by fostering and maintaining organizational integrity. In our essay, we review relevant literature on program reviews, provide an explanation of organizational integrity, present a narrative of our program review process, and explain how this process fostered organizational integrity.

“Field” Research: Letting Corporate Communication Professionals’ Stories Inform Curriculum Development, Mary Stairs Vaughn, Jimmy Davis, Jeremy Fyke, Nathan Webb

Journal of the Association for Communication Administration

We interviewed 25 corporate communication professionals to learn the competencies they see as necessary for entering and succeeding in their field. We then used what we learned to inform course-level and program-level changes to our corporate communication major. Our results detail: (1) the range of tactical, strategic, and dispositional competencies the interviewees identified as necessary for a career in corporate communication, (2) three categories of strategies for transitioning into the field, and (3) the subsequent curricular and course-level changes that resulted from our interviews. Our study concludes that students need broad training for a wide-ranging and rapidly-changing field, and they …

Editor's Note, Janie M. H. Fritz

Journal of the Association for Communication Administration

This is the Editor’s Note to Volume 37, Issue 1 of the Journal of the Association for Communication Administration.

Building Bridges On Local Soil: Locality And Community-Engaged Research And Pedagogy, Craig T. Maier

Journal of the Association for Communication Administration

Over a decade ago, Oster-Aaland, Sellnow, Nelson, and Pearson (2004), following up an earlier survey published in JACA (Sellnow and Oster, 1999), found that communityengaged research and pedagogy had become an established part of the communication curriculum. As a special issue of Peer Review has suggested (Carey, 2017), interest in service learning has only grown, and the increasing emphasis on civic engagement and community development has clear implications for the communication discipline. Courses and projects that address pressing or emerging social problems not only raise students’ ethical awareness but also allow students to build research and professional skills that build …

Building Bridges Between Communication Studies And Community: A Praxis-Approach, Jill K. Burk

Journal of the Association for Communication Administration

In an effort to demonstrate the field’s usefulness and essentiality to our world, communication studies’ praxis orientation needs to be clearly pursued and publicized. Implementing service-learning into the communication studies classroom could achieve this goal. Through extending the scholarship of Britt (2012) and Pollack (1999), this article proposes that communication educators ground and articulate their service-learning pedagogy from three different paradigmatic lenses; the experiential paradigm, the social change paradigm, and the citizenship paradigm. Moreover, communication administrators ought to understand the different paradigmatic foundations, which drive service-learning enactment, in an effort to not privilege one perspective over another. The service-learning literature …

Accepting The Challenge: A Case Study In Pedagogical Inquiry, Sarah C. Worley

Journal of the Association for Communication Administration

Higher education has been criticized for not fulfilling its democratic purpose—that is, to prepare students for citizenship, not just careers. Longo and Gibson (2016) argue that “as access to higher education has increased, many colleges and universities ironically have become more detached from their public missions,” leading to the increasing separation between learning and social purpose (p. 61). Many schools and departments have already begun the hard work of reevaluation and critical reflection in response to such criticism and are helping to reinvent American higher education (Hartley & Hollander, 2005). Three such examples are communication programs featured as case studies …