COMMS 106 : Communicating Your Way: Platforms, Organisations, Communities

Arts

2025 Semester Two (1255) (15 POINTS)

Course Prescription

Draws on key theories of communication and applies them to a selection of contemporary problems and issues in three key domains: communication and technology, communication and leadership and communication and social change. Enables students to consider how contemporary communication is shaped by and for particular platforms, organisations and communities.

Course Overview

This course serves as your entry into the Bachelor of Communication programme, inviting you to explore three key domains of scholarship: Communication and Social Change, Technology, and Leadership.

In the first unit, we explore theories of social change and how communication shapes and drives that change. We will examine the role of storytelling, values and emotions, and power relations in constructing social change communication and mobilising action. We will also engage with practical tools – such as social change manifestos, photography and art, and social media that are central to how social change is communicated in local and global contexts.

In the second unit, Communication and Technology, we turn to the creative work of making digital objects and using digital tools to create, remix, and present multimedia content. Alongside this hands-on work, we will explore how digital platforms shape society through the lens of media theory. We will critically examine how these digital technologies mediate our experiences, reinforce or challenge social norms, and transform the dynamics of public and private life.

In the third unit, Communication and Leadership, we examine the art and science of leadership communication. Drawing on both leadership theories and real-world case studies, we will explore the impact of communication in public, workplace, and business contexts with a focus on what effective and ethical leadership looks like and how it is communicated in these contexts.

Course Requirements

Restriction: COMMS 102, 103, 105

Capabilities Developed in this Course

Capability 1: People and Place
Capability 2: Sustainability
Capability 3: Knowledge and Practice
Capability 4: Critical Thinking
Capability 5: Solution Seeking
Capability 6: Communication
Capability 7: Collaboration
Capability 8: Ethics and Professionalism
Graduate Profile: Bachelor of Communication

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course, students will be able to:
  1. Demonstrate foundational disciplinary knowledge in three key domains of scholarship: communication and social change, technology, and leadership (Capability 3 and 8)
  2. Apply key concepts and theories in social change communication, leadership communication, and digital communication. (Capability 3, 4, 5 and 8)
  3. Articulate and demonstrate how digital technology, communication, and leadership contribute to creating social change through collaborative group projects (Capability 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8)
  4. Practice using digital tools for social change and leadership communication to inspire your degree pathways (Capability 1, 2, 5 and 6)

Assessments

Assessment Type Percentage Classification
Tutorials 20% Individual Coursework
Assignments 40% Individual Coursework
Group Project 40% Group & Individual Coursework

Workload Expectations

This course is a standard 15 point course and students are expected to spend 10 hours per week involved in each 15 point course that they are enrolled in.

For this course, you can expect 2 hours of lectures, a 1 hour tutorial, 3 hours of reading and thinking about the content and 4 hours of work on assignments and/or test preparation.

Delivery Mode

Campus Experience

Attendance is expected at scheduled activities including tutorials to complete components of the course.
Lectures will be available as recordings. Interactive learning activities including tutorials will not be available as recordings.

The activities for the course are scheduled as a standard weekly timetable.

This course is not available for delivery to students studying remotely outside NZ in 2025.

Learning Resources

Course materials are made available in a learning and collaboration tool called Canvas which also includes reading lists and lecture recordings (where available).

Please remember that the recording of any class on a personal device requires the permission of the instructor.

Course materials are made available in a learning and collaboration tool called Canvas which also includes reading lists and lecture recordings (where available). 

Please remember that the recording of any class on a personal device requires the permission of the instructor. 

Student Feedback

At the end of every semester students will be invited to give feedback on the course and teaching through a tool called SET or Qualtrics. The lecturers and course co-ordinators will consider all feedback and respond with summaries and actions.

Your feedback helps teachers to improve the course and its delivery for future students.

Class Representatives in each class can take feedback to the department and faculty staff-student consultative committees.

This is a new course being offered for the first time in Semester Two, 2025.

Academic Integrity

The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views cheating in coursework, tests and examinations as a serious academic offence. The work that a student submits for grading must be the student's own work, reflecting their learning. Where work from other sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. A student's assessed work may be reviewed against electronic source material using computerised detection mechanisms. Upon reasonable request, students may be required to provide an electronic version of their work for computerised review.

Class Representatives

Class representatives are students tasked with representing student issues to departments, faculties, and the wider university. If you have a complaint about this course, please contact your class rep who will know how to raise it in the right channels. See your departmental noticeboard for contact details for your class reps.

Inclusive Learning

All students are asked to discuss any impairment related requirements privately, face to face and/or in written form with the course coordinator, lecturer or tutor.

Student Disability Services also provides support for students with a wide range of impairments, both visible and invisible, to succeed and excel at the University. For more information and contact details, please visit the Student Disability Services’ website http://disability.auckland.ac.nz

Well-being always comes first
We all go through tough times during the semester, or see our friends struggling. There is lots of help out there - for more information, look at this Canvas page https://canvas.auckland.ac.nz/courses/33894, which has links to various support services in the University and the wider community.

Special Circumstances

If your ability to complete assessed coursework is affected by illness or other personal circumstances outside of your control, contact a member of teaching staff as soon as possible before the assessment is due.

If your personal circumstances significantly affect your performance, or preparation, for an exam or eligible written test, refer to the University’s aegrotat or compassionate consideration page https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/academic-information/exams-and-final-results/during-exams/aegrotat-and-compassionate-consideration.html.

This should be done as soon as possible and no later than seven days after the affected test or exam date.

Learning Continuity

In the event of an unexpected disruption we undertake to maintain the continuity and standard of teaching and learning in all your courses throughout the year. If there are unexpected disruptions the University has contingency plans to ensure that access to your course continues and your assessment is fair, and not compromised. Some adjustments may need to be made in emergencies. You will be kept fully informed by your course co-ordinator, and if disruption occurs you should refer to the University Website for information about how to proceed.

Student Charter and Responsibilities

The Student Charter assumes and acknowledges that students are active participants in the learning process and that they have responsibilities to the institution and the international community of scholars. The University expects that students will act at all times in a way that demonstrates respect for the rights of other students and staff so that the learning environment is both safe and productive. For further information visit Student Charter https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/forms-policies-and-guidelines/student-policies-and-guidelines/student-charter.html.

Disclaimer

Elements of this outline may be subject to change. The latest information about the course will be available for enrolled students in Canvas.

In this course you may be asked to submit your coursework assessments digitally. The University reserves the right to conduct scheduled tests and examinations for this course online or through the use of computers or other electronic devices. Where tests or examinations are conducted online remote invigilation arrangements may be used. The final decision on the completion mode for a test or examination, and remote invigilation arrangements where applicable, will be advised to students at least 10 days prior to the scheduled date of the assessment, or in the case of an examination when the examination timetable is published.

Published on 22/05/2025 08:39 a.m.