Acting Up for Social Change

Course Syllabus

Course Information

Course Description

Facebook and revolution. Theater and political protest. Media activists and anti-globalization. Online Flash movies for sustainable development. Hacktivists and Apps for Democracy. Occupy Wall Street activists using the Internet to educate, communicate and activate. These are just a few of the ways art and social change are coming together. Artists and activists are blending their approaches, strategies and tactics in a creative stew for progressive social change and finding new ways to do civic engagement. This class will examine how social change activists are using creative tools and methods to achieve their change agendas. The class will: (1) Give students a basic understanding of what creativity is and its power to transform, (2) Give students a foundational understanding of the principles and practices of direct action organizing, (3) Expose students to innovative and non-traditional strategies and tactics for mobilizing for social change, (4) Investigate organizations who are engaged in creative social change, and (5) Give students experience in using online tools such as YouTube, WordPress and uploading tools. Proficiency in PowerPoint and ability to learn Internet-based tools required. Students will pick one social change organization in their community and cover it for the duration of this class and each student will set up a web site to document their work.

Course Learning Goals

After completing this course, you will be able to:

Have a basic understanding of creativity and the role it plays in transformation
Appreciate your own approach to creative problem solving
Describe how creativity has played a role in social change movements
Understand the steps involved in organizing for effective social change
Distinguish between various types of social change organizations using a framework that will help you judge how effective such groups are
Understand the work of a variety of creative social change activists
Understand how technology and social media is being used for social change efforts
Navigate Internet-based tools such as a blog, social media and peer-to-peer applications

If you are seeking the A3X competence, you will be able to:

Articulate multiple ways in which creativity impacts society.
Articulate ways in which creativity and the arts can impact social change.

If you are seeking the H1I competence, you will be able to:

Articulate a critical framework for looking at how helping organizations approach social change.
Explain differences in various creative strategies and tactics used in social change.

If you are seeking the H2X competence, you will be able to:

Show how creativity and freedom of expression contributes to a robust democracy and can help advance social change.
Articulate a range of methods and approaches used by creative activists and why they are used.

If you are seeking the FX competence, you will be able to:

Apply creative methods to personal and organizational problem solving.
Apply creativity to social change initiatives.

Course Resources

Required Reading:

"The Creative Person," Michael C. Zilch, Buffalo State International Center for Studies in Creativity.
Chapter 4, "Employ Innovation Styles as Your Compass," from Flash of Brilliance – Inspiring Creativity Where You Work, by William Miller.
Chapter 1, “The Role of the Arts in Transforming Consciousness,” from Arts and the Creation of Mind by Elliot Eisner.
"Innovation Styles Summary" PDF compiled by instructor.
"Ten Lessons the Arts Teach," by Elliot Eisner.
Chapter 2, 3, 4 - "The Fundamentals of Direct Action Organizing," "Choosing an Issue," and "Developing a Strategy" from Organizing for Social Change.
"What Is Community Organizing" from The Neighborhood Funders Group.
"Community Organizing Basics" from The Marin Institute.
"The World's Toughest Problem: Turning Public Policy Into Private Action," by Lydia Howland and Michael Phillips Moskowitz.
"Driving Social Change" by Paul Light.
Chapter 1,"Singing Civil Rights: The Freedom Song Tradition," from The Art of Protest, by T.V. Reed.
"Artists for Human Rights," from Arts and Upheaval by William Cleveland.
"Artists in Time of War" from book of same title, by Howard Zinn.
"Introduction to the Internet" at http://www.unicom.com/pw/web-intro/#14, and from Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet
"Activism On The Web: Doing It Right." by Free Range Studios.
"Working Wikily" by Diana Scearce, Gabriel Kasper & Heather McLeod Grant.
"The WikiLeaks Moment," from WikiLeaks and the Age of Transparency, by Micha Sifry.
"18 Days That Shook the World" from Revolution in the Arab World, by Foreign Policy.
Selections from "Tweets from Tahrir," by Nadia Idle & Alex Nunns.
"Facebook's Secret Role in Egypt" by Mike Giglio.
"While Facebook Plays a Star Role in the Revolts, Its Executives Stay Offstage," by Jennifer Preston.
"Are social networking sites good for our society?" @ socialnetworking,procon.org. http://socialnetworking.procon.org
"Faux Friendship" by William Dereriewicz.
"The Web Shatters Focus, Rewires Brains" by Nicholas Carr.

Watch videos:

Watch videocast presentations by instructor:

Introductions to the class
"What is Creativity?"
"Introduction to Community Organizing"

Documentary on Saul Alinsky, "The Democratic Promise."
Various assigned YouTube videos

Online Resources for Creativity Organizing:

The Community Arts Network - http://www.communityarts.net/index.php

The Laboratory of Insurrectionary Imagination - http://www.labofii.net/home

The Animating Democracy Project at Americans for the Arts -
http://www.artsusa.org/animatingdemocracy

Online Resources for Community Organizing:

Online community organizing manual - http://www.nfg.org/cotb

The Community Organizing site - http://comm-org.wisc.edu

The Industrial Areas Foundation - http://www.industrialareasfoundation.org

The Nonprofit Technology Network - http://www.nten.org

The New Organizing Institute - http://home.techsoup.org

Networked For Good - http://www.salsalabs.com

Course Competences

In this course, you will develop the following competences:

Competence	Competence Statement and Facets
A3X	Can identify the social and historical context of a particular artist/social activist and explain his/her point of view.
H1I	Can understand change methodology, plan change within a community, and assess its likely impact.
H2X	Understands cultural activism and can identify and analyze the strengths and weaknesses of social change groups who use creative, non-traditional methods of organizing.
FX	Can apply a creative process to accelerate the effectiveness of a social change organization.

How the Competences will be Demonstrated in this Course

Students will prepare a paper and a presentation based on the competence(s) they seek:

A3X: Can identify the social and historical context of a particular artist/social activist and explain his/her point of view.

Students seeking this competence will prepare a profile of an artist or activist who has been effective or powerful in social justice, political organizing or community change. Share a sample of this artist's work and explain it to the class. Students will prepare a biographical sketch of the artist and explain their work and political goals. What impact did this activist have on his/her society? The student should present examples of the person’s CREATIVE work and present critiques and comments on the work. Finally, the student should express their own opinion of the artist and his/her work. This is NOT a standard biography – the paper MUST focus on the CREATIVE work of the artist or activist that you are profiling. If the person you are profiling is NOT an artist then you must take extra efforts to lift up and explain the CREATIVE methods and tactics this person has used in their work.

H1I: Can understand change methodology, plan change within a community, and assess its likely impact.

Students seeking this competence will research a creative organizing tool or tactic and discuss the pros and cons of this tool and tell us how it is being used to advance social change. Some of the tools and tactics we'll be covering include: culture jamming, YouTube, email advocacy, Facebook, video advocacy and street theater. Students will focus on one tool or tactic and explain what it is, how it works and what are the strengths and weaknesses of this tool in social change work.

H2X: Understands cultural activism and can identify and analyze the strengths and weaknesses of social change groups who use creative, non-traditional methods of organizing.

Students seeking this competence will analyze a group that is using non-traditional, creative or theatrical tactics for social change and prepare a short report describing their methods and philosophy and discuss their strengths and weaknesses. Students will prepare an overview of their selected group and give a summary of their history, organizational makeup and activities, including images of the group's work and Internet home page. Students will use the framework from class on assessing social change effectiveness to discuss the work of their selected group. Finally, students will offer their opinion of the group's methods and effectiveness.

FX: Can apply a creative process to accelerate the effectiveness of a social change organization.

Students seeking this competence will prepare a report as if they have just been appointed the new director of a real social change organization. You must apply creative strategies and tactics to achieve the mission of the organization. If you know of or have worked with a real group, you can propose that as the subject for your paper - if you need help choosing, let the instructor know. The student will explain how they will bring creativity to the organization and what creative methods to accomplish its mission.

The papers are due as follows:

If you are seeking one competence – by end of Module 7
If you are seeking two competences – first by end of Module 7
If you are seeking two competences – second by end of Module 9

Expectations for Final Papers

These papers must be at least seven pages in length, double spaced, 12 pt. type, excluding citations or addendum. They must contain at least one page of illustrations/images that illustrate your topic. You must use at least 3 different references from printed sources, e.g., books, journal articles, etc. Do not simply rely on the Internet for references. If you do NOT have the 3 required offline references, your paper will be marked down one grade level.

You will submit via the assignment submission tool a proposal for your paper(s) by the end of Module 4. Your topic must be approved by the instructor. The proposal is simply a short statement of the proposed topic or subject of your paper.

Expectations for Final Presentations

Each student will compose a PowerPoint presentation based on their research paper. The presentation is due when the paper is due. If you are seeking two competences, you will be submitting two papers and preparing two presentations. You will use the 7.12 and 9.12 submission tool inside Desire2Learn to upload these documents.

Your presentation should communicate the key learnings of your research. Each presentation must include at least 10 slides, have at least one image on every slide, contain a link to relevant web sites (including homepage of subject/organization if there is one) and links to any relevant YouTube videos (e.g. performance, documentary, commentary, etc.).

Please use your presentations to TELL THE STORY of your subject and communicate the TOP LINE learning and insights. PLEASE BE CREATIVE!

THE INSTRUCTOR WILL PLACE ALL PRESENTATIONS IN A DEDICATED FORUM WHERE EACH PRESENTATION WILL BE EASILY VIEWABLE IN AN EMBEDDED VIEWER USING THE FREE TOOL FROM SLIDESHARE.NET. EACH STUDENT IS ENCOURAGED TO REVIEW AND COMMENT ON THE WORK OF THEIR COLLEAGUES.

For tutorials on producing PowerPoint work, please go to http://www.itd.depaul.edu/website/media/viewlets/ppmenu.html. For tips on making clear and easy to read presentations, go to http://net.educause.edu/content.asp?page_id=2501&bhcp=1 .

Course Grading Scale

A = 95 to 100	A- = 91 to 94	B+ = 88 to 90
B = 85 to 87	B- = 81 to 84	C+ = 77 to 80
C = 73 to 76	C- = 69 to 72	D+ = 65 to 68
D = 61 to 64	F = 60 or below	INC

Please note: Grades lower than a C- do not earn credit or competence in the School for New Learning.

Course Structure

This course consists of 10 modules. The estimated time to complete each module is one week.

To view the course schedule, click on the Schedule link on the left-hand navigation bar. This page contains the most recently updated listing of the topics and assignments due for each week of the course.

Assessment of Learning

You will participate consistently and constructively by completing the activities listed below by their due dates. You will

Watch the assigned videos and discuss them online
Read the assignments and discuss them online
Take the assigned online assessments
Upload material as required
Create a blog or web site to document chosen social change organization
Prepare and hand in your assigned paper, depending on which competence(s) you are seeking
Prepare and present a PowerPoint presentation for each competence(s) you are seeking

Percentage distribution of Assessments

Participation	60 points maximum. Actively participate in online discussion, engage other students, show mastery of readings and uploading of assignments. Posts are expected to go into detail, use examples from the readings, show examples and use links to external sites. MAKE TEXT references to articles, web sites and people referenced in your post LIVE.
Activist Organization Research on Blog	10 points maximum Each student will select one social change organization located near them. Students will document this organization and post their work on a publically accessible web site such as a blog or dedicated web site.
Research Papers	25 points maximum
Presentation that accompanies research paper	5 points maximum

General Assessment Criteria for All Writing Assignments

All written assignments will be evaluated on the basis of their accuracy of representation of course concepts; accuracy of application of course concepts; depth of analysis and application; and breadth of analysis and application; and writing style (as below).
All writing assignments are to be submitted according to APA standards. Citation guides are available at: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01.
It is strongly suggested that if you are using word processing software that you use spell-and grammar-check tools before submitting any draft or final project. In any case, proofreading is essential.
Be sure to avoid plagiarism. Read the information on this page:
http://academicintegrity.depaul.edu/Resources/Students/index.html. Papers will submitted to "Turnitln.com" in order to ensure that the work is the student's own creation and not in violation of the University's Academic Integrity Policy. Submission of work in this course constitutes a pledge that the work is original and consent to have the work submitted to verify that fact.
The previous cautions also apply to email and discussion postings. While daily postings on the discussion may be less formal than submitted assignments, under no circumstances should correct punctuation, correct spelling or the division of posted material into paragraphs be considered optional. If you use someone else's words, use quotation marks; if you use someone else's ideas, cite them.

Discussion Forums

Discussion forums are an important component of your online experience. This course contains discussion forums related to the topics you are studying each week. For requirements on your participation in the Discussion Forums, please see "Course Expectations" in the syllabus.

A Course Q & A discussion forum has also been established to manage necessary, ongoing social and administrative activities. This is where the management and administrative tasks of the course are conducted, and where you can ask "process" questions and receive answers throughout the course. Please feel free to answer any question if you feel you know the answer, this sharing of information is valuable to other students.

Assessment Criteria for Online Discussion Participation

In online discussions, you will clearly and consistently link what you are learning in the course, including course readings, to your real life experiences. These discussions are a place for you to exchange reflections with others in the class.
Specifically, in order to receive credit for participation in the online discussion parts of the course it is important that:
- you actively contribute substantive work (as defined below) at least 3-4 times per week in all discussion forums and in a range of topics in each forum.
- If you are the original poster in a discussion or thread, and someone comments on that post, you will always reply to that comment.
- you accurately integrate information from multiple sources, particularly class readings. (Be sure to cite your sources appropriately).
- you provide both depth and breadth of comments and analysis.
- you actively contribute to the online discussions in a collegial fashion, maintaining a respectful tone toward other participants, greeting others by name and closing with a signature.
- you contribute original ideas to the online discussion in ways that facilitates learning for other people, relating personal ideas to course ideas.
- you demonstrate good "listening" skills and active inquiry skills in the online discussions. This means that you should pay attention, address the commentary of others with openness, and offer constructive and interested commentary, whether in the form of questions or statements

Use of Tools and Online Technology

During this course you will be expected to work with several computer-based tools and online tools:

PowerPoint (or similar presentation software)

You will be expected to produce several presentations. We've supplied links to tutorials and reference resources. You will be expected to:

Produce a presentation that is legible and which responds to the assignment
Contains images
Contain live links to web sites

Here's an online PowerPoint tutorial: https://eee.uci.edu/help/ppt/basic/index.php?topic=start.

Please let the instructor know if you're having difficulty with this.

Blog or Web Site Creation

You will be expected to create a publicly accessible web site using a blog or other web tool. It must dedicated to the organization and not be a page on some already existing web site. WordPress is a free and easy to use blogging tool that is essentially a web site creator. Say you are covering an organization fighting hunger called Feed The Folks, you could set up a site using WordPress called www.wordpress.feedthefolks.com. See Module 2 for complete instructions on this assignment.

You will be expected to:

Home page with the logo of the organization you are covering and a link to its web site, and a brief explanation of what this organization does
An "About Us" page that explains who you are and why you are doing this project (you need not give your full name, first name will do)
An "About the Organization" page that contains images and a more detailed explanation about this organization
A "News" page that contains updates and other material about the organization that you will add as the class progresses
A form tool or function that allows the viewer to contact you

Resources

http://minutebio.com/blog/free-cloud-apps - A great list of free cloud-based tools and programs
http://www.techsupportalert.com/view/educational - List of free educational software
http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/how_to_use_social_media_for_social_change.php - How to use social media for social change

Techniques

You are expected to know how to strategically surf the web using Google and other search engines
You are expected to know how to capture images from the web and save them to your desktop for use in your presentations Here's one tip sheet on this:
http://www.uwec.edu/help/PPoint07/capturing.htm . Here's a tutorial on capturing screenshots from your PC: http://graphicssoft.about.com/cs/general/ht/winscreenshot.htm.
If you have a digital camera and opt to shoot a video of yourself for one of the assignments and images of graffiti for another assignment, then you must know how to transfer those files from your camera to your computer and name those files appropriately.
For the creation of a blog, there are a number of web sites that offer instructions and tips:

Course Expectations

Time Management and Attendance

SNL's online courses are not self-paced and require a regular time commitment EACH week throughout the quarter.

You are required to log in to your course at least four times a week so that you can participate in the ongoing course discussions.

Online courses are no less time consuming than "face to face" courses. You will have to dedicate some time every day or at least every second day to your studies. A typical four credit hour "face to face" course at SNL involves three hours of classroom meeting per week, plus at least three to six hours of study and homework per week.

This course will require at least the same time commitment, but your learning activities will be spread out through the week. If you have any problems with your technology, or if you need to improve your reading or writing skills, it may take even longer.

The instructor should be notified if your life events do not allow you to participate in the course and the online discussions for more than one week. This is particularly important when there are group discussions or you are working as part of a team.

If you find yourself getting behind, please contact the instructor immediately.

Your Instructor's Role

Your instructor's role in this course is that of a discussion facilitator and learning advisor. It is not their responsibility to make sure you log in regularly and submit your assignments. As instructor, s/he will read all postings to the general discussion forums on a daily basis but may not choose to respond to each posting. You will receive feedback to assignments.

The instructor may choose to designate "office hours" when s/he will be online and available and will immediately respond to questions. Depending on the instructor, this response may be by e-mail, instant messenger or telephone. Otherwise, you will generally receive a response to emailed or posted queries within 48 hours.

Your Role as a Student

As an online student, you will be taking a proactive approach to your learning. As the course instructor's role is that of a learning guide, your role is that of the leader in your own learning.

You will be managing your own time so that you can complete the readings, activities and assignments for the course, and you will also be expected to take a more active role in peer learning.

Please also note that this is a course offered by DePaul University's School for New Learning (SNL), a college for undergraduate and graduate degree-seeking students 24 years and older. SNL welcomes the perspectives and encourages the participation of all DePaul students, and students who take this course should respect and be mindful of SNL's mission in supporting a diverse and inclusive environment. More information about SNL can be found here.

View this brief demo Taking SNL Online courses in D2L to learn how to navigate through your course.

If you’re new to SNL Online see additional resources on the course home page under Student Resources/Getting Started.

Course Netiquette

Online discussions are an important part of your course experience. To ensure a positive learning environment, please follow the following minimum expectations. Use your common sense, as not all situations can be covered:

Be polite
Respect other participants’ views or opinions
Think before you write, and ask yourself if you would say the same thing in person
Use positive phrases (i.e., "Good idea!" or "Thanks for the suggestions," etc.)
Be sensitive to cultural differences
Avoid hostile, curt or sarcastic comments
No objectionable, sexist, or racist language will be tolerated
Create a positive online community by offering assistance and support to other participants.
Use correct grammar and syntax

Policies

Academic Integrity

DePaul University is a learning community that fosters the pursuit of knowledge and the transmission of ideas within a context that emphasizes a sense of responsibility for oneself, for others and for society at large. Violations of academic integrity, in any of their forms, are, therefore, detrimental to the values of DePaul, to the students' own development as responsible members of society, and to the pursuit of knowledge and the transmission of ideas.

Violations include but are not limited to the following categories: cheating; plagiarism; fabrication; falsification or sabotage of research data; destruction or misuse of the university's academic resources; alteration or falsification of academic records; and academic misconduct. Conduct that is punishable under the Academic Integrity Policy could result in additional disciplinary actions by other university officials and possible civil or criminal prosecution. Please refer to your Student Handbook for further details.

Plagiarism

Plagiarism is a major form of academic dishonesty involving the presentation of the work of another as one's own. Plagiarism includes but is not limited to the following:

The direct copying of any source, such as written and verbal material, computer files, audio disks, video programs or musical scores, whether published or unpublished, in whole or part, without proper acknowledgement that it is someone else's.
Copying of any source in whole or part with only minor changes in wording or syntax, even with acknowledgement.
Submitting as one's own work a report, examination paper, computer file, lab report or other assignment that has been prepared by someone else. This includes research papers purchased from any other person or agency.
The paraphrasing of another's work or ideas without proper acknowledgement.
Resubmitting one's own previous work from a different course or college, without the permission of the current instructor.

Plagiarism, like other forms of academic dishonesty, is always a serious matter. If an instructor finds that a student has plagiarized, the appropriate penalty is at the instructor's discretion.

DePaul University Incomplete Policy

The intent of the Incomplete grade is to allow students extra time to complete their final assignments. This need arises because, in the closing weeks of the course, they have an event of significant magnitude that adversely affects their ability to complete the course, e.g. serious illness, death in the family, overseas deployment, or natural disaster.

You must request an incomplete grade in writing two weeks before the end of the quarter. Incomplete grades will be considered only after you have satisfactorily completed at least 75 percent of the coursework, and you have such an unexpected, uncontrollable event that prevents you from completing your course. Do not assume that you will qualify for an incomplete. Students who are failing the course at the point where they request an incomplete will not receive one, nor will they be granted after the end of the quarter. Incomplete grades are given at the discretion of the instructor.

If you do receive permission from the instructor to take an incomplete in the course, you will be required to complete a contract with the instructor, specifying how you will finish the missing work within the next two quarters (excluding summer). See the Incomplete Grade Contract Form.

Undergraduate and graduate students will have up to two quarters to complete an incomplete. At the end of the second quarter (excluding summer) following the term in which the incomplete grade was assigned, remaining incompletes will automatically convert to "F" grades. Ordinarily no incomplete grade may be completed after the grace period has expired. Instructors may not change incomplete grades after the end of the grace period without the permission of a college-based Exceptions Committee. This policy applies to undergraduate, graduate and professional programs. NOTE: In the case of a student who has applied for graduation and who has been approved for an Incomplete in his or her final term, the incomplete must be resolved within the four-week grace period before final degree certification.

Description of Pass/Fail Grading Options

Students have the option of taking all SNL undergraduate courses as Pass/Fail even if a class is initially structured for a letter grade assessment. In these cases a Pass is awarded when competence is demonstrated at a level that would otherwise earn a grade of C- or higher.

In deciding to select Pass/Fail grading students should be aware that competencies assessed in a course as Pass will earn credit hours toward degree completion but will not be included in computing grade point averages. Attempted competence demonstration assessed within a class as Fail will not only be recorded as credit hours attempted but will also be included in computing a student's grade point average.

For SNL students, competencies awarded for Independent Learning Pursuits and in the Lifelong Learning Domain do not count toward the university's specification that only twenty credit hours may be earned through the Pass/Fail assessment option.

Please note:There are three SNL courses within the BA curriculum that are always assessed on a Pass/Fail basis: Foundations of Adult Learning (course number LL 250; competences L-2 and F-1), Advanced Project (course number FA 303; competences F-11 and F-12) and Summit Seminar (course number LL 390; competence L-12). These classes may not be taken for a letter grade assessment. Therefore, work that might otherwise be assessed at grades A through C- will earn a Pass in these classes.

There are an additional five SNL courses within the Lifelong Learning Area of the BA curriculum for which instructors regularly use a Pass/Fail grading system that may instead be taken for a letter grade assessment if this is a student's preference. These classes are: Independent Learning Seminar (course number LL 103; competence L1); Writing for Competence (course number LL 260; competence L-4), Critical Thinking (course number LL 270; competence L-5), Research Seminar (course number LL 300; competences L-8 and L-9), and Externship (course number LL 302; competences L-10 and L-11). In addition, SNL's undergraduate Writing Workshop (course number LL 140; competence H-3-J) regularly uses Pass/Fail, although students may request a letter grade assessment. In these instances SNL offers undergraduate students the opportunity to request a letter grade assessment from their instructor. Students who need a letter grade for tuition reimbursement may wish to consider this option, as well as those who wish to raise their GPA. Students planning to attend graduate school may also prefer letter grades to Pass/Fail assessments.

If a student wants to switch the method of assessment, either to or from the Pass/Fail option, this must be requested from the instructor in writing by the beginning of the third week of the quarter. For courses that meet fewer than ten weeks of the quarter, this request must be made by the beginning of the third week of the course. The grading basis may not be changed after these deadlines, with no exceptions.

For Students Who Need Accommodations Based on the Impact of a Disability

Students seeking disability-related accommodations are required to register with DePaul's Center for Students with Disabilities (CSD) enabling you to access accommodations and support services to assist your success. There are two office locations:

Center for Students with Disabilities (CSD)
Loop Campus: Lewis Center 1420. (312) 362-8002
Lincoln Park Campus: Student Center 370. (773) 325-1677
csd@depaul.edu

Students are also invited to contact their instructor privately to discuss your challenges and how the instructor may assist in facilitating the accommodations you will use in this course. This is best done early in the term and the conversation will remain confidential.

Dean of Students Office

The Dean of Students Office (DOS) helps students in navigating the university, particularly during difficult situations, such as personal, financial, medical, and/or family crises. Absence Notifications to faculty, Late Withdrawals, and Community Resource Referrals, support students both in and outside of the classroom. Additionally we have resources and programs to support health and wellness, violence prevention, substance abuse and drug prevention, and LGBTQ student services. We are committed to your success as a DePaul student. Please feel free to contact us.

Protection of Human Subjects

For more information see: http://research.depaul.edu/

Demonstrating the acquisition of competencies in this course can involve "interactions"—interviewing and or observing other people—discussing those interviews or observations with other class members and writing them up in one or more final report(s). As such, these activities qualify as "research" with "human subjects" and are subject to University and Federal guidelines. Because it takes place in the context of this course, your research is exempt from approval by the School for New Learning's Local Review Board only under the following conditions:

The information you collect is EXCLUSIVELY for the purpose of classroom discussion and will NOT be used after the term is over. If there is any possibility that you will EVER use it in further research or for publication, you must obtain approval from the Local Review Board before you begin.
You assess and ensure that no "harm"—physical, mental, or social—does or could result from either your interviews and/or observations or your discussion and/or reports.
The privacy and confidentiality of those that you interview or observe must be protected. Unless you receive specific permission, in writing, from the person(s) you interview or observe, please change their names, and make sure that their identity cannot be readily ascertained from the information you provide.
If you want to use real names and relationships, they must sign an "informed consent" document. For information on creating an "informed consent document" see, for example, http://www.research.umn.edu/consent.

Copyright and Student Privacy

In accordance with DePaul’s Acceptable Use Policy, commentary and materials within SNL Online classes shall not be copied, reproduced or published elsewhere without the express written consent of individuals involved.

Credits

This course was designed and produced by Thomas Tresser and staff of SNL Online at DePaul University.