Just in time for registration, students in the School of Communication have new options to consider when selecting their classes for Spring Quarter. Communication students can choose to work on any of the twelve new modules, the most that have been available to date, as the program begins to expand its presence in the curriculum.
The School of Communication's module system offers students a variety of programs or “modules” that allow in-depth, interdisciplinary study in an area. Each module has different requirements, but all require a set of relevant courses and a capstone project. The courses and capstone project are complemented by discussion outside the classroom using the Facebook-like SoC Learning Communities online system that debuted last quarter.
As the module program has been available only since last quarter, it is still “very new and very exciting,” said John Haas, Radio/TV/Film lecturer and undergraduate adviser, who recently hosted an information session on the "Directing for the Screen" module. While he acknowledges that the modules have remained under the radar so far, he think the program has a lot to offer.
Haas stresses that the modules are “excellent tools for students,” as they “create ways for students to get the programs they're looking for.” Haas notes that the modules can fill gaps in the curriculum, such as the one left by the end of the Animate Arts program, which may soon be filled by an interactive media module.
For spring quarter, twelve modules are available across the departments of the School of Communication, including five in the Department of Theatre. Students interested in completing a module can already go on the SoC Learning Communities website to view requirements for each and to fill out a declaration of intent. Some modules limit their enrollment, while others are open to any interested student.
Some departments have already begun to make schedule changes to better accommodate the program. Communication Sciences and Disorders will offer "CSD 342: Typical and Atypical Development in Infants and Toddlers," usually taught in the fall, as a spring course this year. The course is the one of those required for the Children and Communication Module, which also includes courses in Theatre and Communication Studies.
Other module courses being taught in the spring include THEATRE 330: "Devising for Performers" for the Devising and Adaptation Module, RTVF 392: "Documentary Production" for the Media and Civic Engagement Module, and GEN_CMN 102: "Public Speaking" for the Public Advocacy Module.
Although these modules required only slight changes in the School of Communication departmental infrastructure, adding others will likely require new faculty and equipment. Despite this, Haas thinks a widespread rollout of the program, including around twenty-five modules, will come within the next year and could “change the culture of the School of Communication.”