MCH8169 : Digital communication for cultural institutions and organisations
- Offered for Year: 2025/26
- Module Leader(s): Professor Areti Galani
- Demonstrator: Dr Nick Rush-Cooper
- Owning School: Arts & Cultures
- Teaching Location: Newcastle City Campus
- Capacity limit: 75 student places
Semesters
Your programme is made up of credits, the total differs on programme to programme.
| Semester 2 Credit Value: | 20 |
| ECTS Credits: | 10.0 |
| European Credit Transfer System | |
Aims
The module aims to provide:
1. An introduction to digital communication practices in Cultural Organisations and Institutions (with emphasis on Museums, Galleries, Archives, Art and Heritage organisations).
2. An introduction to how cultural organisations (e.g. museums, archives, art organisations, performance groups, heritage community organisations etc.) use digital storytelling to create, communicate and share cultural stories, content and expressions on digital platforms and networks.
3. Skills and experience necessary for understanding and analysing the use of digital technologies (such as crowdsourcing platforms, social media and AI) by cultural organisations for communication purposes from a theoretical, practical and professional perspectives.
4. Familiarity with current debates, theory and ethics about digital communication, content creation, participation, engagement and active citizenship.
5. An introduction to digital cultural audience segmentation.
6. The opportunity to reflect on how digital tools and platforms affect the representation of contested cultural knowledges, histories and indigenous cultures in the digital realm.
Outline Of Syllabus
This module focuses on how cultural organisations (such as museums, archives, art organisations, performance groups, heritage community organisations etc.) use digital platforms, tools and practices to engage with a variety of audiences.
The module critically discusses key digital communication theories related to communication practices in cultural organisations; the types of audiences that engage with cultural sector organisations digitally and their motivations; and how value is generated in the cultural sector through digital communication. Furthermore, the module uses examples and practical activities to explore different forms of digital storytelling and how cultural organisations create, appropriate and communicate cultural content.
The module aims to encourage students to consider the challenges and opportunities of digital communication for cultural organisations. It uses a range of contemporary and historical digital communication examples, case studies and international online projects (from museums, art, heritage, performance and cultural organisations) to inspire students to explore how cultural organisations use digital communication to share knowledge, make cultural goods accessible, promote culture and support audience participation and engagement.
Teaching and learning activities will include a variety of topics, such as:
--current theoretical approaches to digital cultural communication for the cultural sector;
--digital audience segmentation and audiences' motivations to engage with cultural organisations online;
--debates and practices around cultural value and ownership of digital cultural content;
--cultural digital crowdsourcing;
--issues related to the representation of indigenous knowledge(s) and hidden (hi)stories on digital platforms; and,
--how AI and environmental sustainability debates impact digital communication in cultural organisations.
The module includes design workshops and practitioners' talks, i.e. contributions from cultural sector professionals with experience in digital communication, engagement and programming, who will introduce real-life case studies to the class.
Teaching Methods
Teaching Activities
| Category | Activity | Number | Length | Student Hours | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guided Independent Study | Assessment preparation and completion | 1 | 90:00 | 90:00 | Reading, researching and writing module assessments |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Lecture | 9 | 1:00 | 9:00 | Lecture (on-campus) |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Lecture | 3 | 1:00 | 3:00 | Talks from cultural sector experts. On campus. |
| Structured Guided Learning | Lecture materials | 3 | 1:00 | 3:00 | Structured interactive learning materials delivered via Canvas to support on-campus sessions |
| Guided Independent Study | Directed research and reading | 3 | 2:00 | 6:00 | Preparation for design/creative making workshops. |
| Guided Independent Study | Directed research and reading | 8 | 2:00 | 16:00 | Preparation for small-group teaching |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Small group teaching | 9 | 1:00 | 9:00 | Seminars (on-campus) |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Workshops | 3 | 2:00 | 6:00 | Interactive design and creative making group activity. On campus. |
| Guided Independent Study | Independent study | 1 | 55:00 | 55:00 | Independent study supported by reading and research recommendations delivered in the lecture materials and Canvas pages |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Module talk | 3 | 1:00 | 3:00 | Module Intro.; Assessment Briefing; Module closure. On campus. |
| Total | 200:00 |
Teaching Rationale And Relationship
Lectures: This is a teaching method to introduce students to the core content for this module and real-life case studies by external speakers, to achieve all of the knowledge learning outcomes.
Module talk: This teaching method will be used to introduce the module and brief students about assessment.
Lecture materials: This is a teaching methods to introduce students to focused content related to the knowledge learning outcomes of specific sessions and to help students to prepare for and extend the on-campus learning.
Small-group teaching: This teaching method is intended to allow students to consolidate knowledge learning outcomes and to meet the skills outcomes through critically applying their new knowledge. It also allows students to practice all of the skillsets within the Graduate Skills Framework.
Workshops: This method will enable students work in small groups to tackle small-scale design problem relating to the topic of the module. It will help students to develop the intended skills outcomes of the module.
Directed research and reading activities: This teaching method enables students to prepare for small group teaching and workshops by undertaking structured guided study.
Independent study: This method encourages students to deepen their knowledge outcomes and to practice all skills outcomes, as well as applying cognitive/intellectual, self-management and interaction skills in particular.
Assessment Methods
The format of resits will be determined by the Board of Examiners
Other Assessment
| Description | Semester | When Set | Percentage | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portfolio | 2 | A | 100 | 3000 words. |
Assessment Rationale And Relationship
The assessment for this module is a portfolio, written in up to 3000 words. The portfolio will include the critical analysis of two case studies of digital communication projects by cultural organisations in response to the weekly topics taught in this module. The case studies for this portfolio should take the form of a recent relevant example of a digital cultural communication project, initiative, activity, intervention by a cultural sector organisation. The case studies will be chosen by the student in relation to any of the weekly topics covered by the lectures in this module. Examples and advice in the choice of case studies will be provided by the module leader. A detailed briefing on how to critically analyse case studies is also included in the curriculum.
This assessment will assess critical and analytical thinking, academic research, synthesis of evidence and writing, and referencing skills.
Reading Lists
Timetable
- Timetable Website: www.ncl.ac.uk/timetable/
- MCH8169's Timetable