IMED 1401 - Introduction to Digital Media

IMED 1401:

Description
This course is a survey of the theories, elements, and hardware/software components of digital media. Emphasis is on conceptualizing and producing digital media presentations.
Credits 4 Lecture Hours 3 Lab Hours 3
Extended Hours
0
Contact Hours
96
State Approval Code
11.0801
Alternate Operations During Campus Closure

In the event of an emergency or announced campus closure due to a natural disaster or pandemic, it may be necessary for Panola College to move to altered operations. During this time, Panola College may opt to continue delivery of instruction through methods that include, but are not limited to: online learning management system (CANVAS), online conferencing, email messaging, and/or an alternate schedule. It is the responsibility of the student to monitor Panola College's website (www.panola.edu) for instructions about continuing courses remotely, CANVAS for each class for course-specific communication, and Panola College email for important general information.

Class Attendance

Regular and punctual attendance of classes and laboratories is required of all students. When a student has been ill or absent from class for approved extracurricular activities, he or she should be allowed, as far as possible, to make up for the missed work. If a student has not actively participated by the census date, they will be dropped by the instructor for non-attendance. This policy applies to courses that are in-person, online, hybrid, and hyflex.

Attendance in online courses is determined by submission of an assignment or participation in an activity. According to federal guidelines, simply logging into a distance learning course without participating in an academic assignment does not constitute attendance. Distance learning is defined as when a majority (more than 50%) of instruction occurs when the instructor and students are in separate physical locations. Students must engage in an academic activity prior to the course census date. 

When an instructor feels that a student has been absent to such a degree as to invalidate the learning experience, the instructor may recommend to the Vice President of Instruction that the student be withdrawn from the course. Instructors may seek to withdraw students for non-attendance after they have accumulated the following number of absences: 

Fall or spring semesters: 

3 or more class meeting times per week - 5 absences

2 class meeting times per week - 3 absences

1 class meeting per week -  2 absences

The student is responsible for seeing that he or she has been officially withdrawn from a class. A student who stops attendance in a class without officially withdrawing from that class will be given a failing grade; consequently, the student must follow official withdrawal procedures in the Admissions/Records Office.

Please note: Health Science and Cosmetology courses may require more stringent attendance policies based on their accreditation agencies. Please see the addendum and/or program handbook for further information concerning attendance.  

Pregnant/Parenting Policy

Panola College welcomes pregnant and parenting students as a part of the student body. This institution is committed to providing support and adaptations for a successful educational experience for pregnant and parenting students. Students experiencing a need for accommodations related to pregnancy or parenting will find a Pregnancy and Parenting Accommodations Request form in the Student Handbook or may request the form from the course instructor.

Instructional Goals and Purposes
The purpose of this course is to familiarize the student with the elements involved in digital media. A variety of software products will be used to introduce the fundamentals of creating and modifying digital audio, video, graphics, and images.
Learning Outcomes
  1. Produce a digital media presentation
  2. Select optimal digital media strategies for various delivery systems
  3. Examine digital media industry career opportunities
Specific Course Objectives (includes SCANS)

After studying all materials and resources presented in the course, the student will be able to:

  1. Define and Identify Digital Literacy (1ai, 1aii, 1aiv, 1bii, 1biii, 1bv, 1bvi,1cv, 2ci, 2cii, 2ci, 2cii, 2ciii,2civ)
    1. Demonstrate knowledge of proper digital literacy
    2. Identify yellow journalism and fake news
    3. Examine the influence and persuasion of digital media in our daily lives
  2. Understand Copyright and Creative Commons Rules (1ai, 1aii, 1aiv, 1cv, 2ci, 2cii, 2cii, 2civ)
    1. Explain the difference between copyright and creative commons
    2. Demonstrate knowledge of their importance
    3. Demonstrate how they are properly used in digital media
  3. Identify Design Elements When Preparing Digital Media (1ai, 1aii, 1aiv, 1b, 1c, 2ai, 2aiii, 2biii, 2biv, 2bv, 2bvi, 2c, 2di)
    1. Demonstrate knowledge of image resolution, image size, and image file format for web, video, and print.
    2. Demonstrate knowledge of design principles, elements, and image composition.
    3. Demonstrate knowledge of typography.
    4. Demonstrate knowledge of digital media related software.
    5. Demonstrate knowledge of digital media related devices, their resulting image types, and how to access the results
  4. Research Software Available for Producing digital audio, video, graphics, and images (1ai,1aii, 1aiv, 1b, 1c, 2ai, 2aiii, 2biii, 2biv, 2bv, 2bvi, 2c, 2di)
    1. Understand key terminology of digital media. software research.
    2. Use search engines to locate open source/free digital media related software.
  5. Create and Modify Digital Media (1ai, 1aii, 1aiv, 1b, 1c, 2ai, 2aiii, 2biii, 2biv, 2bv, 2bvi, 2c, 2di)
    1. Identify elements of digital media software user interfaces and demonstrate knowledge of their functions.
    2. Demonstrate knowledge of manipulating digital images, audio, video, and graphics.
    3. Demonstrate knowledge of working with selections.
    4. Adjust or correct the tonal range, color, or distortions of an image.
    5. Demonstrate knowledge of retouching and blending images.
    6. Demonstrate knowledge of drawing and painting.
Course Content

A general description of lecture/discussion topics included in this course are listed in the Learning Outcomes / Specific Course Objectives sections of this syllabus.

Students in all sections of this course will be required to do the following:

  1. Become media literate by learning to access, analyze, evaluate and create all forms of digital media
  2. Be introduced to and practice good design elements and principles.
  3. Create and modify digital images, web pages, videos, and multimedia presentations.
Methods of Instruction/Course Format/Delivery

This course is offered totally online. The students are required to complete all readings, discussions, quizzes, assigned projects posted in Canvas. They are also expected to view all videos and tutorials found within the Canvas course. The students will submit a weekly Learning Journal which includes their digital creations.

Course Grade

The grading scale for this course is as follows:

  • Major Exams 30%
  • Portfolio 40%
  • Daily Assessments 30%
Other
SCANS Criteria
  1. Foundation skills are defined in three areas: basic skills, thinking skills, and personal qualities.
    1. Basic Skills: A worker must read, write, perform arithmetic and mathematical operations, listen, and speak effectively. These skills include:
      1. Reading: locate, understand, and interpret written information in prose and in documents such as manuals, graphs, and schedules.
      2. Writing: communicate thoughts, ideas, information, and messages in writing, and create documents such as letters, directions, manuals, reports, graphs, and flow charts. 
      3. Arithmetic and Mathematical Operations: perform basic computations and approach practical problems by choosing appropriately from a variety of mathematical techniques.
      4. Listening: receive, attend to, interpret, and respond to verbal messages and other cues.
      5. Speaking: Organize ideas and communicate orally.
    2. Thinking Skills: A worker must think creatively, make decisions, solve problems, visualize, know how to learn, and reason effectively. These skills include:
      1. Creative Thinking: generate new ideas.
      2. Decision Making: specify goals and constraints, generate alternatives, consider risks, and evaluate and choose the best alternative.
      3. Problem Solving: recognize problems and devise and implement plan of action.
      4. Visualize ("Seeing Things in the Mind's Eye"): organize and process symbols, pictures, graphs, objects, and other information.
      5. Knowing How to Learn: use efficient learning techniques to acquire and apply new knowledge and skills.
      6. Reasoning: discover a rule or principle underlying the relationship between two or more objects and apply it when solving a problem.
    3. Personal Qualities: A worker must display responsibility, self-esteem, sociability, self management, integrity, and honesty.
      1. Responsibility: exert a high level of effort and persevere toward goal attainment.
      2. Self-Esteem: believe in one's own self-worth and maintain a positive view of oneself.
      3. Sociability: demonstrate understanding, friendliness, adaptability, empathy, and politeness in group settings.
      4. Self-Management: assess oneself accurately, set personal goals, monitor progress, and exhibit self-control.
      5. Integrity and Honesty: choose ethical courses of action.
  2. Workplace competencies are defined in five areas: resources, interpersonal skills, information, systems, and technology.
    1. Resources: A worker must identify, organize, plan, and allocate resources effectively.
      1. Time: select goal-relevant activities, rank them, allocate time, and prepare and follow schedules.
      2. Money: Use or prepare budgets, make forecasts, keep records, and make adjustments to meet objectives.
      3. Material and Facilities: Acquire, store, allocate, and use materials or space efficiently. Examples: construct a decision timeline chart; use computer software to plan a project; prepare a budget; conduct a cost/benefits analysis; design an RFP process; write a job description; develop a staffing plan.
    2. Interpersonal Skills: A worker must work with others effectively.
      1. Participate as a Member of a Team: contribute to group effort.
      2. Teach Others New Skills.
      3. Serve Clients/Customers: work to satisfy customer's expectations.
      4. Exercise Leadership: communicate ideas to justify position, persuade and convince others, responsibly challenge existing procedures and policies.
      5. Negotiate: work toward agreements involving exchange of resources, resolve divergent interests.
      6. Work with Diversity: work well with men and women from diverse backgrounds. Examples: collaborate with a group member to solve a problem; work through a group conflict situation, train a colleague; deal with a dissatisfied customer in person; select and use appropriate leadership styles; use effective delegation techniques; conduct an individual or team negotiation; demonstrate an understanding of how people from different cultural backgrounds might behave in various situations.
    3. Information: A worker must be able to acquire and use information.
      1. Acquire and Evaluate Information.
      2. Organize and Maintain Information.
      3. Interpret and Communicate Information.
      4. Use Computers to Process Information. Examples: research and collect data from various sources; develop a form to collect data; develop an inventory record-keeping system; produce a report using graphics; make an oral presentation using various media; use on-line computer databases to research a report; use a computer spreadsheet to develop a budget.
    4. Systems: A worker must understand complex interrelationships.
      1. Understand Systems: know how social, organizational, and technological systems work and operate effectively with them.
      2. Monitor and Correct Performance: distinguish trends, predict impacts on system operations, diagnose deviations in systems' performance and correct malfunctions.
      3. Improve or Design Systems: suggest modifications to existing systems and develop new or alternative systems to improve performance. Examples: draw and interpret an organizational chart; develop a monitoring process; choose a situation needing improvement, break it down, examine it, propose an improvement, and implement it.
    5. Technology: A worker must be able to work with a variety of technologies.
      1. Select Technology: choose procedures, tools or equipment including computers and related technologies.
      2. Apply Technologies to Task: understand overall intent and proper procedures for setup and operation of equipment.
      3. Maintain and Troubleshoot Equipment: Prevent, identify, or solve problems with equipment, including computers and other technologies. Examples: read equipment descriptions and technical specifications to select equipment to meet needs; set up and assemble appropriate equipment from instructions; read and follow directions for troubleshooting and repairing equipment.