Course examination consists of two parts. First, it includes three assignments, which should be completed during the course. They will be graded as Pass / Fail. Second, each students is required to write an individual examination essay ("hemtenta"), graded as Pass with Distinction, Pass, or Fail (VG/G/U) .
The final grade for the course is a Pass (G) if all the assignments and the exam essay earn the grade of Pass (G). The final grade is a Pass with Distinction (VG), if all the assignments earn the grade of Pass (G), and the exam essay earns the grade of Pass with Distinction (VG).
- - - - - - instructions for the individual examination essay - - - - - -
Getting online: Everyday patterns, challenges, and strategies
Nowadays many people spend considerable amount of time in virtual (or physical/ virtual) environments, including online environments. Online environments, such as email, news websites, learning management systems, social networks, etc., are typically accessed in a certain place at a certain time and require certain equipment. Your assignment is to conduct a field study to find out where, when, and how people get access to the web. The overall objective is identifying patterns of use, problems with existing technologies and environments in which the technologies are embedded, as well as possibilities for more advanced technological support. Your study should not be limited to a specific technology. It should have a broad focus on understanding people, their practices, experiences, needs, and problems. Your work should be organized as follows:
1. Conduct a pilot contextual interview by November 20. Choose a person who regularly spends time online and talk to the person about his or her practices and problems regarding online access, and observe how the person uses technology to carry out some of the tasks. Your study should cover -- at least – the following topics (you don’t need to *collect* data in this exact order):
(a) background information (age, gender, occupation, technology skills, mobility, etc)
(b) general uses of the web: why the person needs to get online, and how much time he or she spends online (a week)
(c) a list of online places the person visits (email, new sites, etc), and how often:
(d) the list of devices (PC, laptop, iPhone, etc) and software the person uses;
(e) why each of the devices is being used (e.g., why several web browsers?).
(f)) patterns of use (typical scenarios: working day, weekend, vacation day, travel; unusual scenarios), with a special focus on how the access to multiple online environments is coordinated.
(g) problems – what problems the person experiences (access limitations, time management, etc), how common and severe they are, etc.
(h) use of mobile phones
(i) coordination of digital resources in multiple locations
(j) reflections of the person, not covered by the above section.
You should keep your eyes open and be sensitive to all potentially important issues.
Ethical considerations: Please make sure your study does not cause any physical or psychological damage to your informants, and protect their anonymity.
2. Reflect upon your pilot study and be prepared to discuss it during small group discussions on November 20. Modify your procedure, if necessary.
3. Conduct the main study: Conduct the study, using a modified procedure, with four new participants.
4. Write an exam essay (4000 - 6000 words) with the following structure:
-- Title
-- Author
-- Abstract (about 50 words)
-- Brief introduction (about 200 words)
-- Pilot study: Method (procedure, subject), results, reflections on the procedure.
-- procedure: place, time, phases, etc
-- Main study:
-- Method (procedure, subjects – background information for *each* participant).
procedure: place, time, phases, etc
background information for *each* participant
-- Results: should be presented for *each* participant, illustrating claims by user quotes; sections (e)-(g) transcribed, avoid interpretation (if too long, quotes/ transcribed interviews can be used as an appendix).
-- Discussion of the results of your studies.
-- Discussion of method
-- reflect upon the limitations of your study; discuss how the concepts, approaches, and techniques that you have studied within the course could help develop a more appropriate method for studying how people get online.
-- References