This course is designed to quite literally ‘make a science’ out of something at the heart of society: social networks. Humans are natural network scientists, as we compute new network configurations all the time, almost unaware, when thinking about friends and family (which are particular forms of social networks), about colleagues and organizational relations (other, overlapping network structures), and about how to navigate delicate or opportunistic network configurations to save guard or advance in our social standing (with society being one big social network itself). While such network structures always existed, computational social science has helped to reveal and to study them more systematically. In the first part of the course we focus on network structure. This looks as static snapshots of networks, which can be intricate and reveal important aspects of social systems. In our hands-on lab, you will also visualize and analyze a network with a software yourself, which will help to appreciate the complexity social networks can take on. During the second part of the course, we will look at how networks evolve in time. We ask how we can predict what kind of network will form and if and how we could influence network dynamics.

In this project, you will learn how to create a visually appealing course syllabus in Libre Writer. The key components of a course syllabus will be discussed. While adding these components to your document, you will use various features in Writer. You will apply styles, insert a bulleted list and a table to organize information, insert an image, and modify a table and image. Included Universal design formatting tips will describe options to help make your document accessible to all learners.

By the end of this project, you will be ready to use Edpuzzle to make video learning content more interactive to improve student learning. Technology plays an ever-increasing role in education, both in the classroom and when moving to online learning. With Edpuzzle, you will begin with videos they have created or found on YouTube, Khan Academy, and other websites. You can then adjust the length, add your own narration, and add comprehension checks to ensure that your videos are not just being watched - they are effective instructional tools. If you are looking for ways to improve your flipped classroom, hybrid learning, or online learning environment, Edpuzzle is an essential tool to add to your Teacher’s Toolkit. *You will need a free Edpuzzle account for this project.

Are you ready for the new, COVID-forced, online learning paradigm? This competency-based, skill-building course will help non-U.S. students, first-generation immigrants, and foreign-born professionals better understand and master American online learning, as well as other U.S. virtual environments, for college and career success. In the post-COVID era, the course can also be very instrumental in assisting U.S.-based institutions in organizing remote learning activities for their current or prospective international students. The current pandemic has disrupted the world of higher education and work as we know it. Many thousands of international students and professionals can no longer travel internationally at will and must now learn how to effectively study and work remotely. To excel in American online learning and work environments, international students and foreign-born professionals need to know how American universities and companies use the Internet to organize study and work, develop and execute projects, communicate ideas, collaborate, and solve organizational and technical problems. By taking this course, you will learn how to enhance your cultural knowledge and assess potential skill gaps that may hinder your online experience or negatively impact your performance in U.S. virtual learning and work environments. Throughout the course you will systematically review competencies required for online work, come to better understand common barriers for non-native students and professionals, learn how to detect and overcome competency gaps, and develop plans for self-improvement and success. We believe that you will find the course useful and gain new knowledge and skills to become more successful in your remote study/work in the U.S. The course was previously offered as iMOOC101 and iMOOC102 "Mastering American e-Learning". We have updated it to reflect the new realities of the Post (well, not yet!)-COVID era. We will be glad if you could share your own experiences in navigating the new world of remote teaching, learning, and work.

The convergence of different crises pressuring the world today is probably one of the most complex human-made phenomena we can observe. From biodiversity loss to the threat to democracy, all of these crises are deeply intertwined. Therefore, tools from the complexity and systems-thinking toolsets become very relevant for anyone seeking to have a slight grasp of what is going on and what is probably going to happen. This project is about using two of these tools to have a minimal understanding of how all of these crises are interconnected and to simulate possible future scenarios. The aforementioned tools are Loopy and Mental Modeler, which combine provide a insightful framework for the study of the current Human Predicament and other highly complex situations. Moreover, in this project you will have the opportunity to participate in an experiment that tries to touch on the collective intelligence permeating us all in order to have a better understanding of our current situation - and maybe find more suitable paths. Are you ready? Note: This project works best for learners who are based in the North America region. We’re currently working on providing the same experience in other regions.

Have you ever wondered what is behind different cultural traits and attitudes towards the status quo? Or more broadly, what influences the Zeitgeist of a society? Generally speaking, when it comes to changing (or not) the current spirit and state of affairs of a given society or community, some people show themselves as idealists, and they can even inspire others. At the same time, some other people are traditionalists, and some are just neutral about how things are. In this guided-project you will develop an agent-based model using NetLogo that tries to use these personas to touch and generate insights around theses questions. And while doing so, you will gain some hands-on knowledge on model building and debugging. Note: This project works best for learners who are based in the North America region. We’re currently working on providing the same experience in other regions.

Performance Studies: An Introduction explores the wide world of performance--from theatre, dance, and music to ritual, play, political campaigns, social media, and the performances of everyday life. Performance studies also ranges across cultures--Asia, Africa, the Caribbean, Europe, the Americas. And it spans historical periods from the art of the paleolithic caves to YouTube and the avantgarde. This course is devised by Richard Schechner, one of the pioneers of performance studies, in dialogue with more than a dozen expert scholars and artists. Performance Studies: An Introduction puts students in dialogue with the most important ideas, approaches, theories, and questions of this dynamic, new academic field. Learning Objectives By the end of this course, you should be able to: Articulate and analyze the major concepts of performance studies Identify and analyze performances within the “broad spectrum of performance”--from everyday life and social media to performance art and global spectacles such as the Olympics Comprehend key terms of performance studies, including is/as performance, restored behavior, ritual, play, make-belief/make-believe, performance in everyday life, the performative, and intercultural performance Produce collaborative work that demonstrates teamwork in applying ideas learned in the course Compare, analyze, and interpret performances of their own and other cultures Articulate how the major concepts of the course relate to their own experiences and worldviews Analyze and criticize in a constructive way the work of classmates The lessons present Schechner’s concept of performance studies along with online assignments. In the assignments, students apply what they are learning by composing short responses to materials, writing in their NYU Classes Forums, and by reviewing other students’ forum posts each week. Students choose either to work in groups of 3 to 5 on a term-long project maintaining a project portfolio in NYU Classes or to write a research paper. During the term, each group will lead an in-class 25-minute discussion of their project-in-progress. During the last face-to-face class, each group will present their project. The weekly content is: What is Performance? What is Performance Studies? Performance Processes From Not Performing to Performing Ritual Play Performing in the Paleolithic Ramlila of Ramnagar The Performing Brain Performativity Constructing Social Roles Social Media Intercultural, Transcultural, Global Group Projects & Wrap Up Course Requirements Each student is required to complete the week’s online lesson prior to the class session, attend and participate in the class sessions, complete the weekly assignments, participate and present the group project or submit a final paper. Required Readings See weekly online lessons. Required Viewings (Videos) See weekly online lessons. Written work Each student will either participate in a group project or write a research paper due at the end of the term, submitted electronically. Your professor will confer online and/or face-to-face during office hours to help students develop their writing and their projects. If you do a group project your professor may ask you to do some writing in relationship to your project. Academic Integrity The policy on plagiarism and academic honesty is posted on Classes. Read this document carefully, and be guided by it. Copyright Keep in mind the material you find in the online lessons is subject to copyright. You may not reproduce, reuse, or distribute it without permission outside of your work in this course. For more information on copyright and how it applies to course materials, see the Copyright Basics research guide.

This course, Learning Technologies Foundations and Applications, is one of the two four-week MOOC courses that form part of Instructional Design MasterTrack Certificate. After completing the course, you will be able to: 1. Identify suitable learning technology applications for problem-solving tasks. 2. Evaluate learning technology solutions based on Cognitive Load Theory and related multimedia learning design models. 3. Justify the selection of learning technologies for solving organizational problems based on evidence and best practices.

By the end of this project, you will have taken your Seesaw skills to the next level. This project is meant for those who have already started to use Seesaw with their students and are looking for ways to enhance student learning through Seesaw Activities. If you are looking for ways to engage your tech-savvy students, regardless of their age, Seesaw is a wonderful tool to use. As we learn together, you will create a Scratch and Read activity template in Microsoft PowerPoint that can be customized to use with your students right away as a Seesaw Activity.

Throughout the world, writing serves to express, record and even create meaningful moments. In academic spaces, writing becomes the bridge between ourselves and the world of ideas. In this course, we provide practical insights into how to write an academic essay. We show you how to develop the academic skills needed to be a competent academic writer. You will have an opportunity to engage with texts written by academics, and to see how some of the ideas in these texts are used by students in constructing an academic essay. We address some of the challenges these students face with respect to academic writing and offer you the opportunity to practice and to develop your own writing style. For this course, we centre our lessons around a specific topic - the concept of identity, since it forms such an important feature of how we locate ourselves in an ever-changing global world. In other words, this course teaches academic writing skills through getting you to write and reflect on your understanding of identity. So if you are thinking about studying at a tertiary institution, or if you just want to brush up on your academic essay writing skills, this course is for you!