Welcome to THE CONCLUSION OF OWT.326 !
We’ve made it! Congratulations to everyone for sticking to the end. I know engaging with online content can be a lot more taxing than ‘traditional’ forms of delivery, and I hope that what you do take away from this module will stay with you for a long time!
The purpose of this concluding week is to take stock of what we’ve learned, assess what we need to improve on and get you ready for the essay due in January. We’ll do all of these with the following tasks:
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- Complete, as early in the week as possible, a quick activity on this Mural (30 min)
- Self-assess your areas for improvement based on existing feedback (1h), then meet up with your group to share ways to improve (1h)
- Watch this video going over important assessment guidelines! (1h)
- Finally make sure to complete the module evaluation form! (30 min)
Let’s go!
First, add your tile on this final Mural
This Mural is shared with all OWT.326 members. In it, you’re invited to share the most memorable fact, idea, example, etc. you take away from this module.
Please do this as early as possible in the week ! You’ll be invited to go back to the Mural at the end of the week for further reflexions.
Then, reflect on your past essay writing performances
Go back on Moodle in the peer-assessment area and collect all the feedback you’ve received in one document.
On Moodle still, go to your past module spaces and look for feedback you received for past essays – copy this in the same document.
Organise the feedback in strengths and weaknesses – try to map them on the feedback grid for OWT.326 assignment.
During your last group meeting on Teams, discuss with your group mates strategies and resources to move from one area where you’d see yourself as ‘poor’ or ‘good’ into an ‘excellent’ one (see more in the Week 10 group meeting details here).
Then watch this recorded video going over important assessment guidelines
Note down questions you still have about the assignment and post them in the dedicated Teams channel. I’ll answer them as fast as I can :).
Finally, make sure you complete the module evaluation survey accessible on your student portal!
Just as you require feedback to progress on your learning, so do I ! It’s important that I know exactly what worked and what didn’t for you this term, given how much of it was new! Please take the time to fill the survey, it’s anonymous and will be of tremendous help :).
… And finally, some concluding remarks!
You will continue to have access to this module and moodle throughout the year, if you want to go back on specific content. As a reminder, all resources are also kept in the ‘content backup‘ space on Moodle for easy access. I’ve also created a playlist of all videos here on Panopto. The teams space will also still be there, so if you continue to find case studies, example, or even just ‘shower thoughts’, you can still share them in the class discussion area when the module is over!
As some of you have already mentioned to me, you may well find that you now can’t stop noticing in discussions, in the media (and on social media), and at work, issues we’ve approached in this module. Just this morning I wrote to Lancaster University’s information governance and data protection officer to seek information on whether the University will switch ‘off’ the new analytical tools developed by Microsoft 365 (cf the twitter thread I shared on Teams, and also this article in the Guardian). A couple of hours later, I was receiving emails from colleagues voicing their concerns about the very same thing.
Those that would accuse critics of unregulated technological change of ludditism are dismissing valid concerns about the evolution of technology and its uses in and out of the workplace. These are grounded in genuine ethical concerns about privacy and agency. As we’ve explored, resisting starts with digital literacy – an understanding of what these artefacts are and what they do. In the case of Microsoft 365 analytics, it is important to note that these changes are pushed by the tech giant itself as something ‘available’ to companies already subscribed to their services… so when you move on, after graduating, into the workforce and find yourself managing people, engaging with tech related projects, questioning how to improve teamwork, etc. I hope you take with you the ideas you’ve learned in this module and ask the questions we’ve been working on all term:
Who is excluded when this technology is implemented?
Where is agency located?
What does it produce?
It’s been a joy to watch you engage with the module content, on Teams, on Mural, in the short essays and in seminars. I know many of you will have found the online delivery of the module challenging. I hope that you’ve received the assistance you needed when you requested it!
I look forward to reading all your essays in January and wish you all a great continuation in your studies.
All the best,
Chloé.