Cohort April 2024: Faculty of Arts – Andrew Owen, Berta Bailos, Daisy Hoskins, Jacob Sablan, Emma Zhong
Project description
This project brings together a partnership of four students and one instructor to develop a new course on media and politics.
Mediated communication of political information is critical to understanding how government works. In diverse societies with complex governance, media is the primary means through which citizens learn about politics and policy. Information acquired via media provides context and political relevance for one’s own experiences, and informs about the consequences government policies have for people within and beyond a person’s immediate world. Media can either reinforce or challenge the status quo. It can promote, undermine, or re-envision democracy. In the last decade, however, the Department of Political Science has not offered a course on media and politics.
In addition to the well-established benefits of these partnerships, the course topic is particularly well suited for deep student engagement in course design as younger generations tend to engage with political media quite differently than researchers and instructors who tend to be older and have rather different media habits. In particular, the rapid and ongoing development of social media has created a significant divergence in the nature, form, and content of politically relevant information communicated via media channels.
Project details
Our goal is to develop a course that acknowledges and accounts for the diverse experiences and interests of students who will soon enroll and participate in it. We will achieve this outcome via a reciprocal and equal partnership that combines the faculty member’s area expertise with students’ knowledge and experiences (including, especially, their perspectives as learners, their interests and experiences with mediated political information, and the lived experience regarding the impact that course design features can have on learning).
The project output will be a detailed and comprehensive syllabus that includes:
- Course learning objectives
- All course readings/materials (e.g. videos or podcasts)
- A schedule of the topics covered including learning objectives for each topic
- Comprehensive explanations of all course assessments (i.e., everything a student needs to know to complete an assessment will be included in the syllabus)
- Explanation of how each topic, assessment, and “reading” link to course learning objectives, and
- A thorough explanation of the course’s modes of in-class learning.
Our team is committed to ensuring that student perspectives and voices directly and substantially influence all of these elements of the new course.
Testimonials
Being part of SaP and working on a project team designing a course has allowed me to apply some of my ideas regarding classroom format and design. As a student, I have had a variety of classroom experience leading me to better understand what works and what doesn’t and the SaP program allowed me to explore these ideas in a more collaborative and research-based space. Lastly, I enjoyed the freedom of working independently while also having frequent opportunities to share research findings with my fellow team members in a collaborative space allowing me to receive insightful feedback that can be applied beyond this project.
— Berta Bailos
This project has given me the opportunity to engage in academia outside of the traditional student role at a university. It is rewarding and challenging to get a perspective of a professor’s experience and role when building a course, including all the troubleshooting that goes along with it. I have a newfound respect for the amount of work that goes into developing a UBC course, which I will carry with me throughout the rest of my time at school. It has also exercised the practical skills of researching, developing key concepts, as well as collaborating and evaluating others’ work.
— Daisy Hoskins
When I first heard about the Students as Partners idea, it immediately made sense to me and I knew a new course would benefit from student perspectives. But I dramatically underestimated the value of student perspectives, conversations, and work. Student team members have raised topic ideas I would not have thought of, suggested unique course design elements grounded in their direct experience as learners at UBC these past few years, and have fundamentally changed my perspective on my teaching. I’ve always tried to take a ‘student-centered’ approach, but my past efforts in that regard have been much more limited and constrained than how I think about now. Also, it’s just really fun and interesting to work with students without the hierarchy of the usual faculty-student dynamic.
— Andrew Owen
This project has been one of the most refreshing and enriching experiences of my time at UBC thus far. I never realized how challenging it would be to design a course from scratch, but it has prompted me to think about several important questions. I am grateful for the opportunity to develop a course from the ground up and explore topics ranging from student learning to building collaborative classroom environments. It has been rewarding to engage with these topics alongside the team and work in a partnership which centres student voices, mutual participation and reciprocal relationships at its heart.
— Jacob Sablan
Being part of the SaP project has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my university journey. I’m deeply grateful for the opportunity to contribute my perspective as a student, helping to shape a course that is more inclusive and accessible for my peers. Through this process, I’ve gained a profound appreciation for the many considerations an instructor must navigate to accommodate students from diverse cultural backgrounds, academic levels, and faculties. Collaborating with the team to design a course that truly welcomes and supports all students has been a privilege and a humbling learning experience.
— Emma Zhong