Course Syllabus

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Reading and Writing Data

This syllabus may be obtained in alternative formats upon request. Please contact the instructor.

Instructor Info

  • Ryan Cordell
  • Office: 614 Daniel St., Room 5147
  • Office Hours: Mondays 12:30-2 (in person) and Tuesdays 11-12 (virtual)
  • Phone: 217-333-2622
  • Email: rcordell@illinois.edu
  • Preferred contact: email

Shadow Syllabus

Really, all I want to write here can be found in Sonya Huber’s Shadow Syllabus. There is a lot of truth in this list for your college careers and beyond. Read it and believe it.

COVID Caveat

I have adapted much of the prose on this page and the linked syllabus pages from other courses offered in very different semesters. I have tried to adjust the course policies and expectations to account for the strangeness of the times. I am certain, however, that I have not imagined every situation that might arise, or fully accounted for the full range or extremity of situations you might find yourselves in this term. Frankly, I will rely on your understanding and grace as I teach this course and I hope to extend the same understanding and grace to you.

Consider this caveat an override switch for everything—yes, literally everything—else on the syllabus. I mean this sincerely: everything on this syllabus and in this class is subject to this one clause. We’re all doing our best to learn together during an unprecedentedly difficult time. We’re working in new ways and in unusual environments. We are caring for others while trying to keep ourselves healthy, sheltered, fed, and sane. We are worried all the time, and some of us are dealing with fear and loss. Among all these challenges, I still want to come together and talk about writing and data because I find these topic fascinating and—dare I say it, given this world we find ourselves in—important. I believe we can learn a lot from each other and even have some fun together in the next months. I will operate from the base assumption that each of you is here in good faith: that you are curious, engaged, and eager to do the best work you can.

Taking all that as given, I also want you to know that your health—both physical and mental—is always more important to me than this class. Your family and friends’ health is always more important to me than this class. You don’t have to apologize to me if attempting to learn during a pandemic forces you to work at a different pace from what’s outlined on this syllabus, or if we need to find an alternative path for you through this class. My primary role as a teacher is to support you however I can. Let me know how I can do that better. I mean all of this, sincerely. Let’s work together to meet the challenges and find the joys of this strange semester.

Course Description

This seminar explores how we tell stories and make arguments in the age of the internet and “big data.” We will study both traditional and electronic literature to see how writers and readers have grappled with the political, social, and expressive implications of computational media and data. In addition, we will explore both creative and scholarly works that experiment with the forms of expression that digital and online media make possible, and others that question the consequences of those new forms. We will analyze historical interplays among technology, new media, and culture in order to better understand the upheavals of our own technological moment. Students will develop skills for making sense of textual data in a variety of media. Students will read data and read critically about data while gaining greater capacity to both write about and with data.

Pre- and Co-requisites

"Reading and Writing Data" presumes no prior experience with computational or data science methods and thus is well suited for students interested for all students from information sciences, as well as interested students from other fields. The class offers all students an opportunity to develop their abilities analyzing, interpreting, and creating texts in a range of media through a blending of humanistic and computational methods. The course's computational elements will presume no prior experience, but students with experience will be able to build on it in our literate programming assignments.

Course Context

This course meets a number of learning outcomes connected to program objectives for the BS/IS program, which in turn connect to larger iSchool and University of Illinois learning goals.

General Education Categories

  • Advanced Composition
  • Literature & the Arts

Student Learning Objectives or Outcomes

Upon successful completion of the course, you will be able to:

  1. Express a critical understanding of how literature in fiction, creative non-fiction, film, and video games helps society grapple with social, cultural, and political implications of data-driven technologies;
  2. Identify how both material material conditions and cultural constructions shape the development and human experience of computational and data-driven systems;
  3. Apply knowledge of primary, literary texts and secondary, scholarly texts to develop research questions and gather evidence;
  4. Improve your writing skills by planning, drafting, and revising a range of written and multi-modal compositions that engage both specialist and public audiences;
  5. Locate, gather, evaluate, critique, and explain data throughout the research and writing processes.

Course Materials

Our readings will be available online through the course Canvas site—there are no materials that will need to be purchased separately.

Assignments and Methods of Assessment

Overview of Major Assignments

The major assignments in this course are of two kinds: ongoing assignments repeat on a regular basis, as with our collaborative annotation of course readings, and will be reflected in the modules as a series of small assignments, while major assignments are writing-focused projects you will compose, workshop, and revise for specific modules. Your course contracts spell out precisely which assignments you must complete during the semester.

This section gives you a quick overview of all assignments, but there are details about each on Canvas.

Ongoing Assignments

Ongoing assignments will repeat throughout the semester, and will be evaluated cumulatively rather than individually.

  1. Class Preparation: "Reading and Writing Data" will center on a set of common media—e.g. readings, videos, web pages—we will respond to through discussion, as well as informal and formal writing assignments. In order to help you attend closely to our course texts and prepare for each class discussion, you will prepare 3 observations and/or questions for each day of class with assigned media, which you will post prior to class on the Canvas discussion fora.
  2. Prewriting: Several units and assignments will ask students to do some brief prewriting exercises to brainstorm ideas, test theories, and begin intellectual scaffolding for the major writing assignments listed below. Prewriting will not be assessed for its polish, but for its engagement.

Major Writing Projects

Each unit in "Reading and Writing Data" will feature a central writing project staged through prewriting, workshopping, drafting, and revision. You should expect to revise each assignment at least once following comments from your colleagues and instructor, and you may revise more times if necessary.

  1. Dear (My) Data: You will collect personal data over the course of at least one week and then create a custom data visualization to represent it. You will write a critical paper that helps readers understand the choices made in creating your visualization as context for a broader analysis of the ways data visualizations shape readers'/viewers' interpretation of information, and for considering the affordances and costs of typical data visualizations.
  2. The Universal Encyclopedia: You will identify and either draft or substantially expand a Wikipedia article about a historical figure or group, likely from an underrepresented or minority community, drawing on scholarly sources and following Wikipedia's community guidelines for composition and citation.
  3. Hello World!: You will develop a "literate programming" document in Python or R—or another programming language, by permission—that weaves together prose and code to both demonstrate an analysis of data and interpret the findings of that analysis for a public audience.
  4. The Wondrous Writing Automaton: Using either code or GUI tools introduced in class, you will develop an "automated writing system" to generate a collaboratively-written academic argument. You will also write a scholarly reflection about how working with this "writing automaton" helps you understand the opportunities and challenges of AI and other forms of automation for twenty-first-century writing.

Incomplete grades

Students must initiate an incomplete request by contacting the instructor. The instructor and student must agree on a due date for completion of coursework. The student must fill out the Incomplete Form and get it signed by the student, the instructor, and the student's academic adviser.

An request for an incomplete grade is most often granted to students encountering a medical emergency or other extraordinary circumstances beyond their control. Students must request an incomplete grade from the instructor. The instructor and student will agree on a due date for completion of coursework. The student must submit an Incomplete Form signed by the student, the instructor, and the student's academic advisor to the front office: https://uofi.app.box.com/s/sx7arobhr0gfw12teaetmp1qq32ifdrd

Please see the Student Code for full details: http://studentcode.illinois.edu/article3/part1/3-104/

Grading Scale

This course uses specifications grading. See the page describing this approach for details.

Course Policies

Class Engagement

This course requires active engagement in class activities and discussions. There will be few lectures and we will not be building toward an exam. Instead, we will work together to build our facilities for thinking critically about technology, new media, reading, and writing, as well as to improve our skills writing with and about data across media. You should come to every class having read any required reading, watched any required videos, browsed suggested resources, played any required games, and so forth. You should enter the classroom prepared to discuss these materials with colleagues and complete both individual and group in-class assignments.

Participation

I will not explicitly grade participation in this course (i.e. “participation = 20% of final grade”), but I will take account of your reading and course engagement through your class preparation assignments, discussions, in-class activities, and discussion posts and replies. Everyone must prepare any assigned readings, videos, or other media and participate actively in class discussions and online boards. 

There are many ways to participate in a college class. Just a few of the most valuable contributions are:

  1. Raising ideas from our assigned materials in discussion (or in discussion board threads), including directing our attention to specific moments you found evocative, inspiring, infuriating, or otherwise salient;
  2. Asking questions about materials or ideas you found puzzling or difficult (I cannot overstate how valuable good questions are to a thriving class, and how desperately I wish more students were courageous in asking them);
  3. Posting pertinent materials discovered outside of class for your colleagues to see, or bringing them to our attention during class;
  4. Assisting classmates with lab assignments or other assignments amenable to cooperation;
  5. Visiting during student hours to extend course conversations around subjects or questions you find particularly interesting.

Attendance

The iSchool expects students to attend all classes except in cases of emergency, per the Student Code on Attendance: http://studentcode.illinois.edu/article1/part5/1-501/. Maintaining an active class conversation requires that the class be present, both physically and mentally. “Attendance” does not simply mean that your body can be found in proximity to those of your classmates. You must also be mentally present, which means you must:

  1. Prepare any assigned media before class begins;
  2. Be awake, attentive to the conversation, and responsive to your colleagues;
  3. Have your materials in hand and ready for discussions or other activities.

“Information Overload” Day

I do understand that the semester can get hectic. The reading load for this class is often challenging, and you must balance it with work in your other classes or a job. This semester will be especially challenging as you negotiate family, friend, and roommate situations amidst a pandemic. Most likely you will have days when you simply cannot—for whatever reason—complete the assigned reading. Please do not simply skip class, compounding your stresses, when this happens. Instead, you may take “information overload” (IO) days during the semester up to the number specified in your grade contract. On these days you will not be expected to contribute to class discussion and you will receive a pass on class preparation. In order to take an IO day, you must follow these rules:

  1. You must attend class, listen attentively to any lectures or class discussions, and take part in any activities or group work not dependent on the day’s reading. Your IO days cannot be used as additional excused absences.
  2. You must inform me before the beginning of class that you are taking your IO day. You may not wait until I call on you or until you see day’s the in-class assignment. I will deny any IO requests made during class. To that end: take special care to be on time if you plan to request an IO day, as you won’t be allowed to request one if you arrive late.
  3. When you decide to take an IO day, please simply submit "IO Day" to any course preparation assignments listed for that day so that I have a note.
  4. You may not extend an IO day into another class session.
  5. You may not take an IO day to avoid completing a major assignment. If you are unsure whether an assignment is “major,” the syllabus is a good guide. If a particular assignment has its own “assignment” page on the course website, it is a major assignment.

IO days are intended to help you manage the inevitable stresses of your individual semester. Use them wisely.

Digital Etiquette

In-class Devices

Some of this section and much of the rubric below were inspired by and adapted from this cell phone use rubric from Zombie Based Learning.

This should go without saying, but let’s say it anyway: while in class, you should be focused on class. You may think that you are an excellent multi-tasker, but there is a growing body of evidence that argues multitasking is a myth: trying to do multiple things simultaneously means you do all those things worse than if you focused on them serially—the act of multitasking literally drains your brain's energy reserves In an online course like this one, it will be particularly challenging to stay focused on class activities during class.

In your professional lives, people will have their phones and other devices with them at their jobs, in meetings, at conferences, and so on. Adults do not have their devices taken away from them. They are expected to manage their own use. These days professionals are conducing much of their work virtually, in platforms much like we're using for class. During class, please use your laptop and other devices for accessing our readings, class resources, or for finding outside materials pertinent to our discussions and activities. You should not use them to follow a game, message your friends, check your friends’ Tumblrs, commit (non course related) code to Github.

Device Use Rubric

The rubric below outlines my expectations for device use in this classroom. This rubric was developed for in-person classes and so probably doesn't translate perfectly to online delivery, but its general principles still pertain. We can discuss these expectations in our first days together and edit them if the class agrees on amendments. You will assess your device use periodically and include these measures in your grade contract assessments.

1. Unacceptable 2. Below Expectations 3. Meets Expectations 4. Exceeds Expectations
Use is inappropriate. Device is a distraction to others. Examples: A student uses their device to play games, view material unrelated to the course, OR hold social conversations. Use is distracting to the student, their colleagues, and/or the instructor. Student frequently checks devices for information unrelated to the class. Example: A student takes out their phone to look at text messages several times in one class period. Device is not used except during designed times, or device use is limited to quick checks during times of transition. Example: a student receives an important text from a parent, which they check quickly during our transition between group work and full-class discussion, but waits to respond until an appropriate time. Device only used as an efficient academic tool for a direct purpose. Device is not a distraction. but used at appropriate times as an extension of work or learning. Examples: A student uses their phone to do research during a research project, or uses their laptop to create a collaborative document for a group project.

Academic Integrity

The iSchool has the responsibility for maintaining academic integrity so as to protect the quality of education and research in our school and to protect those who depend on our integrity. Consequences of academic integrity infractions may be serious, ranging from a written warning to a failing grade for the course or dismissal from the University.

See the student code for academic integrity requirements: http://studentcode.illinois.edu/article1/part4/1-401/

Statement of Inclusion

https://diversity.illinois.edu/about/senate-diversity-resolution/

As the state's premier public university, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign's core mission is to serve the interests of the diverse people of the state of Illinois and beyond. The institution thus values inclusion and a pluralistic learning and research environment, one which we respect the varied perspectives and lived experiences of a diverse community and global workforce. We support diversity of worldviews, histories, and cultural knowledge across a range of social groups including race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, abilities, economic class, religion, and their intersections.

Religious Observances

In keeping with our Statement of Inclusion and Illinois law, the University is required to reasonably accommodate its students' religious beliefs, observances, and practices in regard to admissions, class attendance, and the scheduling of examinations and work requirements.

Religious Observance Accommodation Request form: https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?UnivofIllinois&layout_id=19

Other accommodations may be available.

Accessibility Statement

To insure disability-related concerns are properly addressed from the beginning of the semester, I request that students with disabilities who require assistance to participate in this class contact me as soon as possible to discuss your needs and any concerns you may have. The University of Illinois may be able to provide additional resources to assist you in your studies through the office of Disability Resources and Educational Services (DRES). This office can assist you with disability-related academic adjustments and/or auxiliary aids. Please contact them as soon as possible by visiting the office in person: 1207 S. Oak St., Champaign; visiting the website: http://disability.illinois.edu; calling (217) 333-4603 (V/TTY); or via e-mail disability@illinois.edu. NOTE: I do not require a letter from DRES in order to discuss your requested accommodations.

Land Acknowledgment

Suggested by Native American House:

I recognize and acknowledge that we are on the lands of the Peoria, Kaskaskia, Piankashaw, Wea, Miami, Mascoutin, Odawa, Sauk, Mesquaki, Kickapoo, Potawatomi, Ojibwe, and Chickasaw Nations. These lands were the traditional territory of these Native Nations prior to their forced removal; these lands continue to carry the stories of these Nations and their struggles for survival and identity.

As a land-grant institution, the University of Illinois has a particular responsibility to acknowledge the peoples of these lands, as well as the histories of dispossession that have allowed for the growth of this institution for the past 150 years. We are also obligated to reflect on and actively address these histories and the role that this university has played in shaping them. This acknowledgment and the centering of Native peoples is a start as we move forward for the next 150 years.

Student Resources

Mental Health Resources

Diminished mental health, including significant stress, mood changes, excessive worry, substance/alcohol abuse, or problems with eating and/or sleeping can interfere with optimal academic performance, social development, and emotional wellbeing. The University of Illinois offers a variety of confidential services including individual and group counseling, crisis intervention, psychiatric services, and specialized screenings at no additional cost. If you or someone you know experiences any of the above mental health concerns, it is strongly encouraged to contact or visit any of the University's resources provided below. Getting help is a smart and courageous thing to do – for yourself and for those who care about you.

Counseling Center: 217-333-3704, 610 East John Street Champaign, IL 61820
McKinley Health Center: 217-333-2700, 1109 South Lincoln Avenue, Urbana, Illinois 61801. The counseling center has resources for all students even if they are not located in Illinois.

Other Resources

Students experiencing economic hardships resulting in food insecurity, housing insecurity, homelessness, or other issues that may affect the quality of their work, are encouraged to reach out to iSchool Assistant Dean for Student Affairs, Meg Edwards at mbedward@illinois.edu or call 217–244–3776."

Sexual Misconduct Reporting Obligation

The University of Illinois is committed to combating sexual misconduct. Faculty and staff members are required to report any instances of sexual misconduct to the University's Title IX Office. In turn, an individual with the Title IX Office will provide information about rights and options, including accommodations, support services, the campus disciplinary process, and law enforcement options.

A list of the designated University employees who, as counselors, confidential advisors, and medical professionals, do not have this reporting responsibility and can maintain confidentiality, can be found here: https://wecare.illinois.edu/resources/students/#confidential.

Other information about resources and reporting is available here: wecare.illinois.edu.

Library Resources

https://www.library.illinois.edu/infosci/

Undergraduate Academic Support & Tutoring

https://go.ischool.illinois.edu/BSIStutoring

Students will find a variety of Academic and Support Services on-campus and within the community. We encourage you to engage with these resources early and often. Most of these services are of no charge. Our iSchool offices are always happy to help connect you with the correct resources to ensure you are receiving support (ischool-is@illinois.edu). Your academic career, professional development, and your physical and mental health is very important to us.

The Writers Workshop (https://writersworkshop.illinois.edu/) provides writing support to students, including individual consultations, workshops, and resources. In response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, all Writers Workshop consultations are currently offered online (https://writersworkshop.illinois.edu/services/consultations/online/).

To request disability-related accommodations for our services, please contact Dr. Carolyn Wisniewski at wow@illinois.edu or call 217-333-8796.

Week-by-Week Topic and Assignment Schedule

See Canvas Modules

Course Summary:

Date Details Due