233135 SE Engaging with Covid-19: A studio class examining Coronavirus through STS tools (2020S)
Continuous assessment of course work
Labels
Registration/Deregistration
Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).
- Registration is open from Tu 05.05.2020 09:00 to Su 17.05.2020 23:59
- Deregistration possible until Mo 15.06.2020 23:59
Details
max. 25 participants
Language: English
Lecturers
Classes
The whole seminar will be carried out online, via e-learning.
Seminar Schedule:
08.06.2020, 13-15:30, Ulrike Felt
10.06.2020, 14-16:30, Ingrid Metzler
15.06.2020, 10-12:30, Erik Aarden
19.06.2020, 10-12:30, Erik Aarden
23.06.2020, 10-12:30, Katja Mayer
26.06.2020, 10-12:30, Katja Mayer
29.06.2020, 10-12:30, Sarah Davies
01.07.2020, 14-16:30, Ulrike Felt
Information
Aims, contents and method of the course
The Covid-19 pandemic has affected all of our lives. Across the world, more than 2 million have been infected (at the time of writing, and given huge problems with confirming infection rates), more than 100.000 people have died, and over 100 countries have instituted lockdown measures. Here in Vienna we have experienced restrictions on movement previously unheard of in peacetime and adapted our bodies to mask-wearing, distance-keeping, and extended periods at home.To say that the last months have felt tumultuous is an understatement. Our teaching and learning have been disrupted and, for many of us, it has been hard to make sense of what is happening from one day to the next. This course is predicated on the notion that STS offers important tools to help in such sensemaking and reflection, even as events continue to unfold. Together we will discuss: what concepts and resources does STS offer that are relevant to the current crisis? How can we think Covid-19 using these resources? And how does this moment of crisis and pandemic itself trigger new modes of STS reflection and research?As a studio course, teaching is practical and experimental in orientation. The course is team-taught and offers the opportunity to start mobilising STS to map and critically reflect on Covid-19, the technologies and policies that have sprung up around it, and what the crisis reveals about science and democracy. Students should therefore anticipate not getting ‘the final word’ on the pandemic, but having the chance to start engaging with it alongside their instructors and colleagues.
Assessment and permitted materials
To pass the seminar, students are expected to complete the following tasks, which relate to their reading and engagement with set texts and to their participation in class activities. It is thus essential that everyone reads the texts carefully, prepares for each class as requested, and demonstrates this through participation in online fora. The grade is based on three elements:
(1) Demonstration of preparation and critical engagement with the set texts or activities by participation in online fora for each class.
(2) Each session, one team of three students will be expected to trigger and moderate online discussion of the reading. Students may choose to do this in different ways: options include preparing a short text, asking questions based on their understanding of the reading, preparing a video summary of the key ideas, or designing an activity for other students to participate in. We encourage creativity: the ultimate aim is to facilitate thorough discussion and understanding of the set text(s).
(3) Completion of exercises set by the teachers as part of each class. Each teacher will grade the exercise(s) for their part of the course. The grades will be combined at the end of the course to produce the final grade.
This course uses the plagiarism-detection service Turnitin for larger assignments.Grading Scheme:
The grading scheme is based on a total of 100 points. These points will be awarded in relation to students’ performance in meeting the course learning aims in the different obligatory tasks.
The maximum number of points to be acquired for each task is:- Online participation, 20 points, assessed individually, feedback on request
- Critical commentary on the reading(s) and discussion moderation, 20 points, assessed as a group, feedback on request
- Completion of in-class exercises and activities, 60 points, assessed as a group or individually, feedback on request
(1) Demonstration of preparation and critical engagement with the set texts or activities by participation in online fora for each class.
(2) Each session, one team of three students will be expected to trigger and moderate online discussion of the reading. Students may choose to do this in different ways: options include preparing a short text, asking questions based on their understanding of the reading, preparing a video summary of the key ideas, or designing an activity for other students to participate in. We encourage creativity: the ultimate aim is to facilitate thorough discussion and understanding of the set text(s).
(3) Completion of exercises set by the teachers as part of each class. Each teacher will grade the exercise(s) for their part of the course. The grades will be combined at the end of the course to produce the final grade.
This course uses the plagiarism-detection service Turnitin for larger assignments.Grading Scheme:
The grading scheme is based on a total of 100 points. These points will be awarded in relation to students’ performance in meeting the course learning aims in the different obligatory tasks.
The maximum number of points to be acquired for each task is:- Online participation, 20 points, assessed individually, feedback on request
- Critical commentary on the reading(s) and discussion moderation, 20 points, assessed as a group, feedback on request
- Completion of in-class exercises and activities, 60 points, assessed as a group or individually, feedback on request
Minimum requirements and assessment criteria
A minimum of 50 points is necessary to successfully complete the course. Failure to meet the attendance regulations, to deliver course assignments on time or to adhere to standards of academic work may result in a deduction of points.Grades:
100-87 points, Excellent (1)
86-75 points, Good (2)
74-63 points, Satisfactory (3)
62-50 points, Sufficient (4)
49-0 points, Unsatisfactory (5) (fail)Attendance:
Participation and engagement in online teaching activities is compulsory. Absences - in the form of non-involvement in one of the units - may be compensated by either a deduction of grading points or/and extra work agreed with the lecturer. Whether compensation is possible is decided by the lecturer.
Absences of more than eight hours in total cannot be compensated. In this case, the course cannot be completed and is graded as a ‘fail’ (5), unless there is a major and unpredictable reason for not being able to fulfil the attendance requirements on the student’s side (e.g. a longer illness). In such a case, the student may be de-registered from the course without grading. It is the student’s responsibility to communicate this in a timely manner, and to provide relevant evidence to their claims if necessary. Whether this exception applies is decided by the lecturer.Important Grading Information:
If not explicitly noted otherwise, all requirements mentioned in the grading scheme and the attendance regulations must be met. If a required task is not fulfilled, e.g. a required assignment is not handed in or if the student does not meet the attendance requirements, this will be considered as a discontinuation of the course. In that case, the course will be graded as ‘fail’ (5), unless there is a major and unpredictable reason for not being able to fulfill the task on the student's side (e.g. a longer illness). In such a case, the student may be de-registered from the course without grading. It is the student’s responsibility to communicate this in a timely manner, and to provide relevant evidence to their claims if necessary. Whether this exception applies is decided by the lecturer.
If any requirement of the course has been fulfilled by fraudulent means, be it for example by cheating at an exam, plagiarizing parts of a written assignment or by faking signatures on an attendance sheet, the student's participation in the course will be discontinued, the entire course will be graded as ‘not assessed’ and will be entered into the electronic exam record as ‘fraudulently obtained’. Self-plagiarism, particularly re-using own work handed in for other courses, will be treated likewise.
100-87 points, Excellent (1)
86-75 points, Good (2)
74-63 points, Satisfactory (3)
62-50 points, Sufficient (4)
49-0 points, Unsatisfactory (5) (fail)Attendance:
Participation and engagement in online teaching activities is compulsory. Absences - in the form of non-involvement in one of the units - may be compensated by either a deduction of grading points or/and extra work agreed with the lecturer. Whether compensation is possible is decided by the lecturer.
Absences of more than eight hours in total cannot be compensated. In this case, the course cannot be completed and is graded as a ‘fail’ (5), unless there is a major and unpredictable reason for not being able to fulfil the attendance requirements on the student’s side (e.g. a longer illness). In such a case, the student may be de-registered from the course without grading. It is the student’s responsibility to communicate this in a timely manner, and to provide relevant evidence to their claims if necessary. Whether this exception applies is decided by the lecturer.Important Grading Information:
If not explicitly noted otherwise, all requirements mentioned in the grading scheme and the attendance regulations must be met. If a required task is not fulfilled, e.g. a required assignment is not handed in or if the student does not meet the attendance requirements, this will be considered as a discontinuation of the course. In that case, the course will be graded as ‘fail’ (5), unless there is a major and unpredictable reason for not being able to fulfill the task on the student's side (e.g. a longer illness). In such a case, the student may be de-registered from the course without grading. It is the student’s responsibility to communicate this in a timely manner, and to provide relevant evidence to their claims if necessary. Whether this exception applies is decided by the lecturer.
If any requirement of the course has been fulfilled by fraudulent means, be it for example by cheating at an exam, plagiarizing parts of a written assignment or by faking signatures on an attendance sheet, the student's participation in the course will be discontinued, the entire course will be graded as ‘not assessed’ and will be entered into the electronic exam record as ‘fraudulently obtained’. Self-plagiarism, particularly re-using own work handed in for other courses, will be treated likewise.
Examination topics
Reading list
Association in the course directory
Last modified: Mo 25.05.2020 16:49