Module Identifier | TF33220 | ||
Module Title | COMMUNITY, IDENTITY, CYBERSPACE | ||
Academic Year | 2001/2002 | ||
Co-ordinator | Dr Daniel Chandler | ||
Semester | Intended for use in future years | ||
Next year offered | N/A | ||
Next semester offered | N/A | ||
Course delivery | Workshop | 10 Hours 10 x 2 hour workshops in a workstation room | |
Assessment | Course work | A project published on the Web and assessed in this form. Students will be required to provide evidence of feedback regarding their project from other Internet users. | 100% |
''Cyberspace'' has been deliberately chosen as a label since it is broader and more social than the technological label ''the Internet'' and thus reflects our concern with everyday social issues of identity and communication in the light of new communication technologies. The Internet is not only the ''information'' system which it is sometimes described as - it is also a communication system. The module will consider a variety of forms and functions of the Internet: for instance, the genre of the ''personal home page''. Personal home pages are online multi-media texts which address the question, ''Who Am I?'' and thus enable us to consider issues of personal identity and self-presentation. In such sites, what are visibly ''under construction'' are not only the pages but the authors themselves. Other asynchronous modes of communication which will explore are e-mail, listserv E-Mail Discussion Lists and USENET Newsgroups; Bulletin Boards (BBS) and Forums. We will also explore issues of communication and identity in relation to some of the synchronous ''chat systems''.
In my own research, I am currently exploring male identity practices in webcam and chatroom environments and I will introduce students on this module to some of the findings.