EPN-V2

STKD6600 Technology and Society I Course description

Course name in Norwegian
Technology and Society I
Study programme
Bachelor’s Programme in Electrical Engineering
International Summer School - Faculty of Technology, Art and Design
Weight
5.0 ECTS
Year of study
2019/2020
Course history

Introduction

Through work with the literature and the course work requirements, the student should gain knowledge, skills and competence so that they recognize different genres of multimodal design for the Internet, consider what genres that suit different needs, can process texts of different genres and facilitate composite texts for universal design. The course provides competence to teach in the main theme Nettsteder og multimedier and Multimedieutvikling in the programme topic Informasjonsteknologi I1 in the Norwegian secondary school. The tuition is in English if English speaking students attend the course.

Required preliminary courses

No prerequsites required.

Learning outcomes

After completing this course, the student should have the following learning outcome:

Knowledge

On successful completion of this course the student understands:

  • the role of technological innovation with regards to consumption, economic growth and sustainable development
  • the idea of digital citizenship, including digital rights and responsibilities, from a local, national and global perspective, both in general and in relation with their field of study
  • the democratic principles behind e-inclusion and a universally designed society, both in general and with regards to their future professional practice
  • the basics of information security, including precautions to guarantee safety and privacy
  • the basic ideas behind algorithms, machine learning and artificial intelligence, how they are used in organizational and societal governance, and how their use may constrain or enable work processes and other aspects of everyday life
  • the role that technology plays in professional practice within their profession or field of study.

Skills

On successful completion of this course the student can:

  • understand the technological and societal aspects of a case in a specific domain
  • discuss and present an overview of ethical challenges at the intersection of technology and society, including issues of integration, participation and multiculturalism
  • give examples of how technology is used in the profession(s) related to their field of study, both at the national and the international level
  • identify, respond to and limit the negative impact of unethical and harmful online behavior
  • evaluate the possibilities and challenges of technological solutions used in the profession(s) relevant to their field of study and present those in a structured form
  • retrieve information effectively and efficiently from a variety of online sources, critically assess its quality and credibility.

General Competence

On successful completion of this course the student can:

  • be a valuable contributor to the design, planning and implementation of new technology
  • be a positive agent of change in their own profession and field of study with regards to leveraging the potential of technology
  • participate in innovative processes involving new and emerging technologies and build skills in anticipating and adapting to technological change
  • reflect on technology use both within their field and from an interdisciplinary perspective
  • actively engage with social, ethical and moral issues related to the development and implementation of technology
  • communicate concepts and models related to technology use in a structured manner, both orally and in written form.

Teaching and learning methods

The course uses a blended learning approach, with a combination of attendance-based teaching or guidance, and use of online material. The students will be working on interdisciplinary cases of direct relevance to their field of study.

The Spring/Autumn variant of the course involves weekly seminars throughout the semester, in addition to the online material.

The Summer School variant involves four weeks attendance-based teaching, in addition to the online material.

Course requirements

A minimum of three out of a possible eight individual assignments. The assignments consists of reflection tasks, such as mini-essays or opinion pieces of approximately two pages each.

Assessment

The final assessment will be an oral group presentation of a relevant case, which counts for 100% of the grade. The oral presentation will last 20 minutes and all the members of the group must contribute actively to the presentation. The presentation can be given in either English, Norwegian or a combination of the two languages.

Each group may consist of 2-5 candidates.

The oral presentation cannot be appealed.

Permitted exam materials and equipment

The exam consists of a product (multimodal educational resource) together with an individual written report (1500 words +/-10 %). The evaluation of the report will emphasise on the students' ability to reflect on theory and practice linked to the planning and making of the multimodal educational resource.

New/postponed exam

New/postponed exam will be conducted in the same way as the ordinary exam. A revised version of the exam can be submitted.

Grading scale

The final assessment will be graded on a grading scale from A to E (A is the highest grade and E the lowest) and F for fail.

Examiners

Examination support material is permitted.

Overlapping courses

A scale from A-F, with E being the lowest pass grade.