Readings are subject to change. Please always check the online syllabus.

CS 6470: Design of Online Communities

Instructor: Amy Bruckman
Email: asb at cc.gatech.edu
Student Hours: Talk to me after class, or email for an appointment.
TA: Ciabhan Connelly
Email: ciabhanconnelly at gatech.edu
Student Hours: Find me after class, or email for an appointment.
TA: Princess Empel
Email: mempel3 at gatech.edu
Student Hours: Find me after class, or email for an appointment.
Location: J. Erskine Love Manufacturing 183
Time: Tuesday, Thursday 12:30-1:45
Class Schedule: Calendar

Learning Objectives

Online communities are becoming an increasing part of how we work, play, and learn. But how are they designed? What are they really good for? Why are some communities more successful than others? What are the key issues in this field of research?

At the completion of this course, students will be able to:


Texts

Required:

Additional readings are online and on Canvas.


Assignments and Grading

Your grade is based on:

Assignments will be graded on a list of criteria (specified on the assignment) such as quality of writing, completeness, insight into design issues, insight into social issues, etc. For each criterion, you will receive either a check plus, check, or check minus. Most criterion will receive a check. A plus means "you impressed me." A minus means the assignment is incomplete, incorrect, or sloppy in some fashion with respect to that criterion. Your grade on an assignment starts at a 90 and goes up about 3 points for each plus and down about 3 points for each minus. This is not exact--it may be adjusted more. Generally, a 90 means your work satisifed what was expected and more than that means you impressed us; less means this not what we expected.

Extra credit towards the community study paper and design assignment are offered for giving an in-class presentation.

Late Policy

Assignments are due fifteen minutes before the start of class on the day they are due. Over the course of the term, you have three "late days" where work may be late with no explanation needed. Once you have used up your late days, late assignments will be penalized at a rate of 3 pts (one grade step: A becomes A-) per day. Assignments more than one week late will not be accepted. Presentations may not be late. I suggest you save your late days for your larger assignments. We can't transfer them if you have used them and then are late on a later assignment worth more points.

Attendance

The single best thing you can do to do well in this class (and learn useful things from it) is to make sure to attend all the lectures. There are things you need to know about how to do your project that you will miss if you don't attend.

If you feel ill or have another legitimate excuse, you may do a makeup assignment if you missed a quiz. Legitimate excuses include things like illness, a job interview, or attending a professional conference. Things that are not legitimate include having furniture delivered, picking someone up at the airport, or having a presentation in another class (please tell your other professor to not schedule during someone else's class.)

Stay home if you are sick

Stay home if you are sick. If you have any symptoms of illness of any kind, please don't come in. You do not need a doctor's note to be excused for illness. Please get notes from a classmate.

English as a Second Language

If Engish is not your first language, you may request to not be graded on your writing for a particular individual assignment. This means you won't be penalized for bad writing, but you also won't get credit for good writing. To take advantage of this option, you must mark "ESL" (English as a Second Language) on the first page of your assignment/paper. This option is not available for group assignments. We still of course expect you to try to write in correct English, and will do our best to offer useful feedback on your writing.

Reference format

Please use APA format for all references. APA format is described here.

Honor Code

This class abides by the Georgia Tech Honor Code. All assigned work is expected to be individual, except where explicitly written otherwise. You are encouraged to discuss the assignments with your classmates; however, what you hand in should be your own work.

Policy on use of AI

If you choose to use generative AI, you must do so responsibly. Please consider the following risks:

No Laptop or Cell Phone Use in Class

Please do not use your laptop or cell phone in class, unless specifically asked to do so. The reason is that you will end up not paying attention, and may distract others around you. Please take notes on paper. You may ask for an exception to this policy if needed.

You will need either your phone or laptop in class to take quizzes.