Overview: Learning outcomes
Everything you need to know about the learning outcomes for Digital Society
If you engage fully with Digital Society, you can expect to achieve five outcomes by the end of the unit:
- Understand the key concepts of a ‘digital society’, the ethics of online information use and the skills needed to be effective and successful digital scholars and citizens
- Think critically about information, practice self-reflection and collaborate across disciplines
- Make use of your existing knowledge and that of peers to solve and confront new challenges
- Find, evaluate and share information online, understand issues of intellectual property and apply learning to other aspects of academic, personal and professional life
- Use the internet and social media to develop your communication skills, share information and develop your online profile
The aim of the unit is to help you to meet these outcomes, and the aim of the assessment is to measure the extent to which you have done this, based on your ability to demonstrate it through coursework. We hope that you will learn beyond the five outcomes, but you will only be assessed on these.
We have designed the learning materials, sessions, assessment, feedback and activities to help you achieve these outcomes. See below for a full explanation of each outcome, including a summary of opportunities you will have to develop in each area, and how the outcome will be assessed.
1. Understand the key concepts of a ‘digital society’, the ethics of online information use and the skills needed to be effective and successful digital scholars and citizens
This is the most significant learning outcome. You can develop in this area by reading, considering and commenting on each Topic in advance, then joining the discussion and activities in the sessions. Additionally, you will be partially assessed on this in the first two pieces coursework. In the first assessment, digisoc1, you will discuss the ‘skills needed to be effective digital citizens [or organisations]’. You will receive feedback, which you can act on over the unit. The second assessment, digisoc2, is a chance to do this again and receive feedback. The Individual, Identity and Ethics theme takes a close look at the ethics of information use. All of this will help you to develop your understanding before the final submission, digisoc3, in which this learning outcome will be fully assessed.
2. Think critically about information, practice self-reflection and collaborate across disciplines
The unit will help you to practise critical thinking, self-reflection and interdisciplinary collaboration. Over this unit, you will read and engage with lots of information from online articles, your peers, tutors and more.
It is important that you know what it means to ‘think critically’ and practising thinking critically will help you form your own understanding of what this means. Throughout the course you will have opportunities to think about your ideas, abilities and experience and how they are relevant to this unit. When reading each topic, consider what your ideas are and why, and whether they have changed or been challenged in the module. Think about your skills and abilities and how they may be developing. Think about anything relevant you have done and experienced, and what this means to you.
Finally, University College is interdisciplinary. You will cover ‘digital society’ through a range of different topics, and learn among students from a range of disciplines and backgrounds. Share with them, read their comments and listen to them; engaging with medium gives you the opportunity to practise these critical skills
The first assessment, digisoc1, is an opportunity to gain feedback, which you can act on before the final assessment, digisoc3, when this outcome will be more fully assessed.
We recommend the My Learning Essentials tutorial, Being Critical: Thinking, reading and writing critically to develop your ‘critical skills’.
3. Make use of your existing knowledge and that of peers to solve and confront new challenges
Society is increasingly digital, and you live in it. Your experience and existing knowledge is valuable in your learning and your peers. From the start, share your experience, knowledge and views with other students, and respectfully listen to theirs. Do this in discussion and activities in the sessions, and through commenting on Topics ahead of sessions. Everyone’s experience of ‘digital society’ will be different, and you can learn from this. You will develop in this area from the very start of this unit, you will share knowledge with peers on the topic of ‘how organisations engage online’ in the Engagement topic, and you will be assessed on your ability to use this knowledge to address challenges faced by organisations in digisoc2.
4. Find, evaluate and share information online, understand issues of intellectual property and apply learning to other aspects of academic, personal and professional life
You can develop in this area throughout the course. Finding information online is an important starting point for all three assessments. Equally important is evaluating this information, drawing on critical thinking (Learning Objective 2) and summarising. Each time you read and comment on a Topic, you can practise evaluating and sharing information online. Discussing Topics in sessions, you can reflect on how well you did this, and by thinking about how you are developing (Learning Objective 2), you can reflect on how these skills may be useful outside of this course. It is important that you understand copyright and intellectual property issues for this course — we will discuss this from the first session, and you should work through this page:
You will receive feedback on the first part of this learning outcome after digisoc1. You will be assessed on the ‘intellectual property’ aspect in a safe environment by attributing all images and text appropriately in your Pecha Kucha style presentation for digisoc2. Finally, the ‘find, evaluate and share’ aspect of the learning outcome will be assessed in digisoc3.
5. Use the internet and social media to develop your communication skills, share information and develop your online profile
A big part of this unit is writing online to share your views on ‘digital society’. This is valuable for your learning and your peers, but it will also help you to develop communication skills, and to add to your online profile. You can start to practice this from the start of the course by reading, considering and commenting on each Topic ahead of the sessions. This outcome is initially assessed in digisoc1, after which you will receive feedback, and opportunities to develop through: acting on your feedback, continuing to read and comment on Topics and reflecting on the content of Topics across the course. Finally, the learning outcome will be assessed more fully in digisoc3.
