Proposal for Communication 205: History of Modern Communication

Proposal for Communication 205: History of Modern

Communication
Ali Alawami

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Contents
Proposal for Communication 205: History of Modern Communication.1
Abstract....3
Introduction..4
Course Goals and Introduction5
Justification..5
Implementation6
Content Specifications.....8
Budget.10
Communication and Coordination..10
Instructor Qualifications..11
References...11
Appendix12

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Abstract
The world is very connected today. The demand for quick and easy communication is
very high. People travel more and social site and apps only get better. Before the creation of the
cellphone, people were not mobile and home phones made communication harder. (International
calls are not cheap). Personal mobile phones are not just used for communication. They are used
for entertainment. The cell phone made people socially immobile. They do not communicate
papery that much these days

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Introduction
In this proposal we will be discussing the possible implementation of Communication
205: The History of Modern Communication. This is a class for Communication majors
discussing how in recent years modern communication has changed and continues to do so at a
rapid pace. The course is worth 3 credit hours and will meet at least 3 times a week, either in
person or online. As this would be an elective class for Communication majors it would be
offered every semester with at least 1-2 different classes at varying times. At the end of the class
students will receive a letter grade and if necessary they may repeat the course for them to pass.
Though this is a 200 level course if the student elects to take it, English 101 and Com 181 are
necessary prerequisites.
This course will cover in detail the modern communication era, starting at approximately
the first cellphone in 1973, with a very brief discussion about mobile devices present before
then, and going through to the modern devices that are seen everywhere today. After covering
this material, the course advance to discussing the direction of technology and how this might
affect human communication over all. Finally, at the end of the course, we will close the year out
with a brief discussion of how communication has affected many various historical events and
how it has helped to shape society in recent years.

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Course Goals and Outcomes

In this course students will learn how technology has changed since the landline era of
communication and how it continues to grow.
The goals of this course are:

To increase students understanding of modern mobile devices

To develop the students awareness of how modern communication has changed

society
To foster an understanding of how quickly technology is changing/evolving

Through covering all of the above material, at the end of the course student will be able
to:

Demonstrate that they have thorough knowledge of mobile device history

Have an understanding as to how mobile devices help to shape our lives
Discuss major changes that have occurred to cellphones, and how that has changed
the cellphone as we know it

Justification
Communication 205: History of Modern Communication is a course that is very useful
for multiple reasons, though somewhat specific in the target audience it is also very useful for the
general population of students. Though it will be mostly communication majors that will be
taking this course there is also a chance that a decent number of technology students interested in
mobile devices will be attending as well. Students interested in this course might have a broad,
general knowledge of the course subject, but this class is interested in taking their knowledge and
expanding it as to make them better understand what they are interested in. There are many

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communication courses currently on the roster of classes, but they mostly focus on the
presentation of interpersonal communication. This course focuses on the implementation of
technology into the world of communication, and how it has changed how people as a whole
communicate. This is necessary both for the students and the college as a whole because
technology is a huge part of our society and it is necessary to teach students about it so they
might have a better grasp as to how it might affect them and their jobs later in life. Though there
are few career opportunities specifically for this field of study it serves as extremely good
supplementary material in any number of careers, such as mobile developer or possibly even
public speaking as it helps with both technology and noticing the changes in speech that have
occurred due to mobile devices.

Implementation
In this section of the proposal for Communication 205 we will be discussing how best to
start and include the course in terms of curriculum and what to expect in terms of classes and
materials. We will start by discussing how best to get students to enroll and what might be the
best number of students in the class. Following that we will be talking about managing the class
resources, in terms of the actual material needs of the classroom and how best to use them.
Lastly we will discuss possible problems that might arise and simple solutions to each.
Alright so the most basic problem first and thats how best to get students to take this
class. As this is not a core class we might have a bit more trouble than we might usually, but
seeing as how this affects many people and is a large factor of most life I dont particularly think
there will be much trouble getting a decent size class going. If there is a problem however, it
might be best to start the class only online if there are too few people. Finally it might be decent

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to talk about the class to communication majors that are going into similar fields, and technology
majors that need electives as this suits both of those students needs.
Alright so to start lets talk about how to manage the resources, specifically how to make
sure that the classroom is not overcrowded and the students are comfortable in the classroom. In
line with the last paragraph we talked about having class application problems, the best kind of
class for things like this would be a relatively normal size class (20-30 students) as that way if
they have a problem with the material there is a much better chance that the professor will be
able to help. If there are too any people that apply but not enough to make a second class of
decent size, it might be nice to push some of the students that are able to into an online class.
Finally in terms of physical resource management fortunately there is not much that the
class requires. Other than the textbooks that the student will be bringing and access to a
computer (both of which will be the students responsibility), there should be very little that the
class actually requires to run. The only equipment necessary would be a projector and that the
professor has a laptop. The textbooks that will be required for this class are; The Cellphone: The
History and Technology of the Gadget That Changed the World by Guy Klemens, and The
Mobile Connection: The Cell phones Impact on Society by Rich Ling, both of which are
available for online purchase for the student to acquire.

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Content Specifications
To help increase the students awareness we will begin with talking about the various
ways that cellphones are used in current times. This will start with common uses, such as texts
and calling (we will not be teaching students how to do either), and moving on to the more
advanced uses, such as the recent gang of hackers using cellphones (though obviously we will
not be teaching students how to hack from their cellphones). Finally we will discuss the various
mobile devices, other than a cellphone, and will discuss various aspects of each, both how they
are similar and different than the cellphone.
Moving on to developing the awareness of how modern communication has changed
society we will be looking at one of our textbooks to help with this. Specifically we will looking
at The Mobile Connection: The Cell phones Impact on Society by Rich Ling, the title is rather
self-explanatory but this will be a huge help in terms of what we will be talking about.
Throughout we will be reading about the various impacts on society as a whole in terms of
communicating with one another, we will not be focusing especially hard on other mobile
devices in this section, the reason for this is that the cell phone has had one of the biggest
impacts on this specific subject, as Gerard Goggins (another author on the subject) wrote Since
its invention in the second half of the nineteenth century, the telephone has become a part of the
everyday lives of billions of people around the world.
Lastly we will be discussing how technology has changed and
continues to do so in recent years, once again focusing on the cellphone in
particular. We will be looking at the other of our two textbooks for this
matter, The Cellphone: The History and Technology of the Gadget That

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Changed the World by Guy Klemens. Through this we will start of in the early
days of radio and steadily moving towards the modern devices we now hold.
Though a bit out of date in terms of modern phones the historical information
that is contained within is quite useful, some of the many changes that have
occurred in just the last year have been recorded at many different websites
just one of which is mobileday.com (2014).
For the next section of the course students will make a presentation concerning how our
devices have changed society as a whole. Note that this does not have to be specifically about
how they have changed communication, they can focus more on the various uses of cellphones
and how they change how we do thing in our everyday live if the student chooses to. For
example they might talk about how they use it to make plans with their friends or instead they
might talk about using their phone for listening to music.
To demonstrate their knowledge of the course material, students will be expected to write
a 10 page paper discussing what they think is the most crucial development in modern devices.
They will elaborate by speaking about what specifically changed, and what brought about this
change. Finally they will talk about how they think modern devices might be different if that
development had never happened, and how that might impact our lives today. If they dont think
it would have changed anything at all they must also explain as to why they think that.
Students will be expected to demonstrate their grasp of the material through various tests
that will occur throughout the semester. This will culminate into an end of term final reviewing
all of the various thing that the class has talked about throughout the class. The test will focus

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more on the technology part of the curriculum, though there will questions concerning the other
aspects of what has been discussed.

Budget
Table 1: Course material Budget
Item

Supplier

Catalog Number

Quantity

Price

Total

Textbook

McFarland

0786458674

$40.00

$40.00

Textbook

Morgan Kaufmann

1558609369

$20.00

$20.00

Total

$60.00

Communications and Coordination

Because this course is focusing on a specific subject I doubt that there will be much
interaction with other classes though it may in some incidental way help to supplement some
other courses. On a case to case method if another professor somehow coincides they are more
than welcome to communicate however they may wish to. It would be extremely easy to
communicate with the head of the department in their preferred way. Unfortunately as this class
is rather specific there will probably not much interaction though, if there is, the professor (after
verifying if it is ok through the department head) any supplementary education they wish to add

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from experience would be welcome and indeed encouraged for the curriculum if it is relevant
and helpful.

Instructor Qualifications
The instructor should be able to apply if they have a degree in communication and a
decent grasp of the material provided before the course. They could take any supplemental
course they think might help (after verification from the department) and as said before they may
add special material if relevant and approved beforehand, as long as it doesnt mess with the
schedule for the class too much. They will have to keep relatively up to date in terms of new
things happening in the world of mobile devices, possibly even talk to the class about the new
developments and discuss how they think it might affect things in the future.

References
Gerard Goggins (2006) Cell Phone Culture: Mobile Technology in
Everyday Life. New York, NY: Routledge
Jodi Cerretani (2014, December 29) Top 7 Advancements in Mobile Technology from
2014. Retrieved from http://mobileday.com/enterprise-mobility-2/top-7-advancements-inmobile-tech-from-2014/.

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Appendix A
The following is part of the prompt that the students will receive for their paper that they
will be required to type before they are allowed to pass the class.
End of Term Paper
For this assignment you will discuss in what ways the advancement you have chosen
affected the cellphone and mobile technology as a whole. You will be expected to discuss both
the short and long term effects of said advancement and how mobile devices might be different if
it had never been discovered or implemented. Use what we have talked about in class as well as
whatever information you may be able to find on your subject online (remember to provide
sources for said information). The minimum requirement for this paper is at least 10 pages
though you may go up to 15 if you wish. You will be expected to turn this paper into the teacher
at least two weeks before the final is weighted and scored. You will be graded on your insight
and how valid your information and argument is in relation to the subject you have chosen. The
more in-depth that you go and the more proof that you might be able to provide as to how pivotal
this development was will guarantee you the shot at a higher grade. If you have any questions
feel free to email me at [teachers email], or feel free to show up during office hours to discuss
ideas or questions that you might have.