Minor in Digital Media and Composition

The Minor in Digital Media and Composition enables students in the sciences and engineering with both the technical skills and critical awareness to communicate effectively in digital media environments. The minor has two focus areas: 1) digital composition; and 2) media literacy. All courses are reading and writing intensive.

Courses focusing on digital composition will introduce and then develop competence in the design of a range of formats, including webpages, video, 3D modeling and animation, and podcasting, using standard professional tools (e.g., Adobe Creative Cloud, Adobe Spark) and open-source equivalents (e.g., Shotcut, Audacity, Blender).

Courses focusing on media literacy will address ethical issues in social media, digital marketing, and advertising, and consider the implications of technological innovation in human society individually, locally, and globally. A problem-solving approach will be used throughout.

Goals

The Minor in Digital Media and Composition will produce graduates who are able to:

• Design and create texts in a broad range of formats (e.g., webpages, podcasts, videos) and modes (narrative, informational, persuasive) that are accurate, technically sound, and professional in appearance;
• Evaluate the informational, ethical, and aesthetic quality of a wide range of digital texts on the Internet;
• Communicate effectively about technology for commercial and social purposes;
• Use spoken and written English to communicate through media with advanced proficiency;
• Develop an integrated use of science and technology, human and social awareness, and digital composition

Student Learning Outcomes

Learning Outcomes for the Minor are divided into two areas of focus:

Composition Focus

• Demonstrate knowledge of principles of digital composition in relation to aesthetics, functionality, audience, and writing
• Demonstrate uses of professional-level software in composition and communications research
• Write professional-quality English texts for use in a variety of digital formats
• Produce professional-quality spoken/video recordings for use in a variety of formats

Media Literacy Focus

• Model ethical and appropriate standards of behavior in socially mediated environments
• Evaluate digital media for ethical standards in messaging, for potential audience engagement, and for informational accuracy
• Describe relationships among business, technology, and communications in the development of successful projects
• Evaluate the relationship between technology and human culture and society
• Demonstrate intercultural awareness in evaluating and creating digital content